Ren, 80, said Huawei needs to learn from the receptive culture of the US, which has allowed the country to become highly advanced in science and technology, according to a transcript of his recent conversation with students and academics. It was published on Thursday on the website of the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), a prestigious global coding competition for university students.
“The US has set an example for all countries and companies worldwide on being open,” he said at the Huawei-sponsored event. “If [a country] is closed off, it will fall behind.”
Since then, Huawei has transformed itself into a major force supporting China’s self-sufficiency drive, in areas ranging from artificial-intelligence (AI) chips to operating systems.