So, by now, you are probably aware of the current events between the US, Huawei, and China. If you don’t, you can check out our insight here. But since it’s the hot topic in the tech industry, I doubt you don’t know about it. Long story short, Huawei, is going through some tough times right now. The company lost its license to use Android, the ARM chip architecture, and its privilege to influence decisions regarding Wireless technology and SD cards. Basically, the Trump administration is not allowing any US firms to trade with Huawei, as it is in their “Entity List”, citing some security reasons.
Not only that, but the US is also encouraging its Allies to ban Huawei’s technology – not only mobile phones and equipment but also their 5G claiming it poses security threats to their countries! That may or may not be, but so far there is no evidence of it. Yet, Trump Administration is rallying behind these reasons claiming Huawei to be stealing military information, intellectual property and spying on others through their 5G infrastructure. The US Authorities have a dozen criminal charges on the company. But without any kind of proof, it is looking more like a sly move in the broad US-China Trade War.
If you don’t know what that is, well, it’s basically, tensions growing between the two largest economies in the world. The US is number one, while China is second. And China’s economy is growing so rapidly that I think Trump is actually scared. Otherwise, you can’t justify the reasons behind all this escalation! From banning one of the top technology firms like Huawei to restricting a lot of things, it’s going nuts! And even though Huawei is one of the largest players in technology in the world, it relies heavily on US support in many aspects.
Without that, Huawei is, for now, in a fix. Of course, a company like that has all the means and resources necessary to develop their own technology. But that takes time, and until they do, they will have to struggle. But that’s only one part of the story. Even IEEE, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers publishing group decided to ban Huawei employees from editing its papers! This is just absurd…because IEEE is responsible for working with scientists and professors from all over the world to help advance the world’s technology. And Huawei has multiple employees within the IEEE, but now, they can no longer contribute to their papers.
Now, a part of this US-China Trade War, or Tech War, whatever you would like to call it, is the 5G Race. And as far as the world is concerned, China is leading. They have all the necessary infrastructures in place, and their 5G tech is more advanced and more affordable. In addition, they’re helping many developing countries with their technology. They already have agreements even with the Nepali government to implement 5G in the near future! They’re clearly winning this race.
But the Trump administration is bent on not letting this happen. This is about money and power. And the US, being US, will not let anyone beat it, by any means necessary it seems. Banning Huawei of the most crucial elements it needs to build its infrastructure, US is trying to stop Huawei in its tracks. They’re playing dirty, but what’s more appalling is this won’t help the US develop advanced tech overnight! Stalling Huawei won’t help their development. This means they’re just stalling the overall evolution of technology – slowing down the development of whole mankind, in a way!
That…escalated quickly! But this is the whole point, actually. Because there’s a lot of politics involved here – from cornering a private company by imposing accusations without proof and influencing other countries to do the same. And a private company suffering from this is only the surface. The real losers will be us – the consumers and the general populace.
Also, there are small firms and startups, both in and outside the US, that rely on affordable tech like China’s to grow themselves. And those inside the US will be severely be affected by this ban, too. And who knows? Maybe one such small startup could be an innovator in the future? However, that might very well not be now. Because of this game the Trump administration is hell-bent on playing.
Okay, …forgive me for going a bit too overboard here. But one of my favorite inspirations, Carl Sagan said,
“To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.”.
All that we know and all that we will, in our lifetime, will take place in this very place. In this world of ours, Humanity has got this far due to our advancement in technology. And we’ve still a long way to go.
And this, right here, is a setback for the humankind as a whole. Technological advancement will be slowed down considerably. Not only will consumers lose a great phone brand, but 5G, which promises to take human innovation to new heights.
Okay, let’s say Huawei might be able to find a workaround soon about the tech it’s not receiving from the US. But why ban Huawei employees from such an organization as the IEEE? And because of this act, a senior IEEE member, professor Zhang from Peking University is resigning from the IEEE itself. To lose such personalities from the tech field is a loss for all of us.
Again, I might be out of place here. But all I’m saying is, this trade war between two countries and a lot of egos mixed in there somewhere, is a huge loss for all of us. Technology should be treated as a separate entity, indifferent from the politics and ego of the powerful few. Of course, when you invent any technology of your own, then you can patent it and do whatever you want with it. But this is 5G…it belongs to the whole world! This should not suffer because someone somewhere cannot keep up with what the other guy is doing…
This is just sad, and an act worth condemning. Of course, China has its own answer for the US now. Chinese media reports that the country might restrict exporting essential earth minerals to the US. This means that the US will lose about 80% of its necessary raw materials to create other technology – from camera lenses to car engines and almost everything there is. We don’t know if this will, indeed happen, because China’s goal was to portray the US as a “lawless actor” hindering technological advancement. But considering how the Trump Administration is cornering one company and escalating the trade war, can we blame them?
In the end, this is just sad. Such big superpowers should be supporting each other for the betterment of all of us. But no, this is more about money and power rather than human advancement. And due to such corporate greed, we, the consumers and the general population will be the real losers!
