How Chinese Tech Got Caught Up in an American Political Storm

The Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei grew from humble origins, founded in 1987 by a former PLA officer, into one of the largest firms in the world. Then in 2019, it was added to the U.S. Entity List, amid suspicion it could provide a backdoor into American networks for the Chinese Communist Party. That was just one salvo in a wider war of words (and action) between the U.S. and China during the first Trump administration. As the second Trump term looms, we’re delighted to host Washington Post journalist Eva Dou, in conversation with tech specialist Dan Wang, to talk about Huawei’s story — as well as the TikTok ban, cyber attacks and other aspects of tech rivalry across the Pacific — on the occasion of the publication of her new book House of Huawei: The Secret History of China’s Most Powerful Company (Portfolio, 2025).