Rise of Huawei - from balloon sale to telco giant

How a discharged army engineering officer built a conglomerate out of practically nothing

Huawei's 9 sq km headquarters in Dongguan, China, has its own train stop and can house 25,000 employees.
Mr Ren Zhengfei co-founded what was then the Shenzhen Huawei Technologies company in 1987. In 1993, the company made its first major breakthrough when it launched what was then the most powerful telephone exchange switch in China. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Huawei unveils the Balong 5000 chipset, intended for use in 5G devices.
Huawei’s 9 sq km headquarters in Dongguan, China, has its own train stop and can house 25,000 employees. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
Mr Ren Zhengfei co-founded what was then the Shenzhen Huawei Technologies company in 1987. In 1993, the company made its first major breakthrough when it launched what was then the most powerful telephone exchange switch in China.
Huawei unveils the Balong 5000 chipset, intended for use in 5G devices. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
Huawei's offices in Lusaka, Zambia. By 2004, the company had embarked on its push into overseas markets, backed by credit from China's state banks.
Huawei’s offices in Lusaka, Zambia. By 2004, the company had embarked on its push into overseas markets, backed by credit from China’s state banks. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
Lim Yan Liang China Correspondent In Beijing
Updated
Jan 27, 2019, 10:03 AM
Published
Jan 27, 2019, 05:00 AM
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Huawei Technologies is known today for its sleek smartphones packing futuristic hardware, and the company recently eclipsed Apple to become the second-largest smartphone maker in the world.

From its humble roots as a seven-man operation, the firm now has 180,000 employees across 170 countries and regions. Last year, Huawei broke US$100 billion (S$135 billion) in revenue for the first time with year-on-year growth of over 20 per cent.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on January 27, 2019, with the headline Rise of Huawei - from balloon sale to telco giant. Subscribe

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