2019年5月21日
Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei says the company is 'fully prepared' for a conflict with the US
Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei told Chinese media on Tuesday that the company is “fully prepared” for a clash with the US, which he considers inevitable as the company works towards becoming a global tech leader. “We sacrificed [the interests of] individuals and families for the sake of an ideal, to stand at the top of the world,” Ren said in an interview with Chinese state media.
The US has ramped up action against Huawei – over concerns that its technology may be used as a backdoor for spying by the Chinese government. Huawei has repeatedly denied the allegations. After Google, US tech suppliers – like Intel and Qualcomm, which provide crucial software and parts to Huawei phones and tablets – have also reportedly cut ties with the Chinese company.On Monday, the US Commerce Department announced it would loosen restrictions on Huawei for 90 days, which would allow the Chinese telecommunications giant to temporarily maintain existing networks.
Huawei Technologies’ chip arm HiSilicon wrote in a memo on Friday that the company has been preparing for years in the event that the US were to impose restrictions on its ability to buy American-made chips and technology. “All our backup products are now being put to use our long-term efforts will ensure continuous product supply,” he wrote. “We can make chips with the same quality as the US ones, but it does not mean we will not buy US chips,” Ren said. “We can’t be isolated from the world.”
He also expressed gratitude to American companies for their contribution to Huawei’s development, and said many of his consultants came from US companies like IBM. “Blame should be directed at US politicians, not companies,” he said.
A boost for the property market and bank revenues
APRA, Australia’s banking regulator, has signalled that it may relax serviceability assessments for new residential mortgage loan applications, potentially allowing home buyers to borrow more to fund their purchase property.
With mortgage rates already sitting at multi-decade lows, and likely to fall further given widespread expectations that the RBA will reduce official interest rates in the months ahead. While these changes are welcome and will help some borrowers that can’t quite access a mortgage currently to get one, it is unlikely to result in a rebound in the housing market. Any proposed changes will likely help to stabilise market conditions in the months ahead.
According to analysis from RiskWise Property Research, APRA’s proposal will provide a meaningful boost to the amount owner-occupier buyers can borrow. If the RBA cut rates twice, we will see an increase of around 9% for investors and potentially 13-14% for owner-occupiers.
ANZ Bank estimates the borrowing capacity of households has fallen by around 30% because of various measures introduced by APRA since late 2014, with around a third of that reduction a direct result of the minimum 7% serviceability ratio.
The ACLU calls on Amazon investors to stop the firm selling facial recognition tech to law enforcement
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) called on Amazon shareholders to oppose the company’s sale of its facial recognition software to government agencies. “Amazon has shown it will not voluntarily act to prevent the deployment of this dangerous technology, posing a material risk to the company’s business reputation and the public’s trust. This product threatens the safety and civil rights of people everywhere,” wrote the ACLU.
The letter calls on Amazon investors to vote on two proposals coming up at the company’s shareholder meeting on Wednesday. The first is a proposal to block Amazon from selling the software (called Rekognition) to the government, and the second mandating an independent review of the civil rights impacts of facial surveillance.
Last year the ACLU tested the technology on members of Congress,28 of whom it mistakenly identified as people who have previously been arrested. A group of AI experts also published an open letter in April, warning that the technology is particularly inaccurate when analysing the faces of women and people of colour. Amazon responded that the ACLU had not applied the correct “confidence threshold” which it says is necessary to use the technology.
Regardless of its accuracy, putting this technology in government hands creates an unacceptable risk of exacerbating racial disparities in arrests, imprisonment, and even police use of force.
