Meng Wanzhou Takes Over as Chairwoman of Huawei Amid US Sanctions

Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei’s founder and a central figure in the US-China tech war has taken over as rotating chairwoman of the Chinese tech giant. Meng’s appointment comes as Huawei faces challenging times, with profits falling under US sanctions, causing it to lose its top spot in the smartphone market and throttling its supply chains. At a recent press conference, Meng struck a defiant tone, stating that the the company was placed in a fatal impasse and that they had no choice but to go all in and fight. She is no stranger to being on the front line of the US-China tech war, having been arrested in Canada in 2018 on fraud charges relating to her alleged efforts to hide violations of US sanctions on Iran involving Huawei affiliate Skycom. Huawei has been repeatedly targeted by Washington in recent years over cybersecurity and espionage concerns. The Trump administration effectively barred US companies from doing business with the firm, and President Biden has imposed further sanctions. The company has replaced thousands of product components banned for export by the United States with homegrown versions but still relies on US chips for many of its products. Despite being internally known as Huawei’s princess Meng is said to be approachable and self-deprecating. She started as a secretary at Huawei and kept her head down for years, to such an extent that few knew her father was founder Ren Zhengfei. Meng will lead the company for six months until September 30. Huawei, which is not publicly listed, has two other rotating chairs. In the meantime, the company is looking to expand its lines of business and develop new supply chains, with Meng identifying Huawei’s cloud business as a key area of growth.

Staff Reporter