Thailand's 5G development is moving forward with domestic mobile operators. The nation's largest telecommunications firm recently acquired several frequency bands key to providing high-speed internet and internet of things technologies, Nikkei reports.
Concerns about U.S. restrictions on advanced technology have brought Russia and China together, with the two countries creating a $1 billion joint investment fund for high-tech projects. Huawei is a particularly active AI player in Russia and has announced plans to build an “AI ecosystem” in the country, Nikkei reports.
The UK has announced that it will allow the limited use of Huawei equipment in its 5G network despite pressure from the U.S. to exclude the Chinese tech company due to security concerns, Nikkei reports.
As the world becomes increasingly urban and digital, smart cities are emerging as ground-zero for new approaches to development and governance. On Thursday, January 23rd, a diverse group of experts convened as CSIS to distinguish between leading smart city models and discuss how their technologies, including in the areas of public safety and surveillance, are impacting the power of citizens, governments, and corporations.
Malaysia's AirAsia Group says it will co-found a tech training facility with California-based Google, as it pushes to become a technology-led company, Nikkei writes.
Chinese fintech companies with established expertise in digital payments are hoping to escape stiff competition at home by expanding into Southeast Asia, where the digital economy is expected to triple in size over the next five years, Nikkei reports.
China recently announced plans to complete its Beidou satellite-based positioning system by June. The navigational system is key to the development of 5G technology and already provides services to about 120 countries, many of which are part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, Nikkei reports.
In order to accomplish a nationwide 5G rollout by the first half of 2020, Malaysia is looking to Chinese and Japanese telecommunications companies to supply the needed technology and expertise. Proposals are currently dominated by Huawei, and Malaysian officials have affirmed the country's willingness to work with the controversial Chinese firm, Nikkei reports.
The Chinese Communist Party’s Central Office has ordered all government offices and public institutions to remove foreign computer equipment and software within three years. The move is part of the government's broader campaign to increase reliance on domestic technology, Nikkei reports.
Amid rising concern about Chinese technology companies, German legislators are challenging a government proposal that would allow the use of Huawei equipment in the country's 5G network, Nikkei reports.
As the U.S. ban on sales to Huawei forces the company to turn to other suppliers, Huawei is increasingly looking to Japan for procurement and R&D collaboration, Nikkei reports.
Spark, New Zealand's second-largest mobile carrier, has named Huawei as one of its preferred 5G vendors and intends to procure equipment from the Chinese company; however, New Zealand's government may still refuse to grant approval due to security concerns and U.S. pressure, Nikkei reports.
While the core focus of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is on traditional infrastructure deployments, it is evident that the Digital Silk Road is a key part of the overall BRI strategy, and China will leverage technology to increase its influence along the route.
Huawei’s “Safe City” products, including facial recognition and surveillance technology, have fueled concerns that China is exporting authoritarianism. A new dataset analyzes Huawei’s growing global footprint, questions the benefits its technology provides, and identifies issues for further research.
China rolled out commercial 5G services today, which are anticipated to add $2.4 billion and almost 20 million jobs to China's economy over the next ten years, Nikkei reports.
While Chinese carriers are expected to lauch the world's largest 5G network, on Thursday, Sony, NTT and Intel announced that they will form a partnership to work on 6G mobile network technology, to be announced around 2030. The three new partners want to establish an organization in the U.S. by next spring, reports Nikkei.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will vote in November on whether to classify Huawei and ZTE as a national security risk, a decision that could block U.S. rural carriers from using FCC funding to purchase Huawei products or services.
In light of an increasingly dominant Chinese space program under China's Belt and Road Initiative, the newly created Australian Space Agency has invested $150 million AUD to bolster cooperation with the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Nikkei reports.
Germany has released its draft security guidelines for new 5G network suppliers which do not exclude Chinese companies, despite U.S. warnings that it will have to reconsider intelligence sharing with allies that use equipment from Chinese manufacturer Huawei, Nikkei reports.
The U.S. has blacklisted over 20 percent of Huawei's global R&D and innovation centers, further limiting the company's access to U.S. technologies, Nikkei reports.
As Huawei is in hot water in the U.S for security concerns, experts warn that other surveillance companies pose similar risks through utilizing surveillance technologies, such as Chinese facial recognition trailblazer SenseTime, reports Nikkei.
As the smartphone market struggles, Huawei, Samsung, and Apple compete to dominate the race to 5G. Though one of the challenges for these companies is that 5G smartphones require strong 5G infrastructure, which in the immediate future isn't available in all countries, reports Nikkei.
The U.S.-China trade war is leading China to develop standards for 5G and other connectivity technologies that may be incompatible with U.S. built standards, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Huawei's intellectual property chief has demanded Verizon Communications pay the Chinese firm for intellectual property licensing fees on network infrastructure and equipment, as well as "internet of things" technology, reports Nikkei.
South Korea, the U.S. and Japan lead the rollout of 5G networks, but industry leaders say that applications designed to use the next-generation technology are years away, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said his country would use Huawei equipment "as much as possible" in Malaysia's 5G network, despite U.S. warnings that it is not secure, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
China Mobile, the world's largest mobile service provider by subscribers, expects to secure a license for commercial 5G services later this year. The company is closely watching developments related to U.S. restrictions on telecommunications equipment from Huawei Technologies, which is expected to play a crucial role in the rollout of 5G, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Cambodian state-owned telecommunications companies have teamed up with China's Huawei to roll out a 5G network in 2020. However, experts say it could be years before 5G reaches ordinary Cambodians due to the scale of investment needed and the high cost of 5G handsets, reports Nikkei.
Some European countries are allowing equipment from China's Huawei into their 5G networks. A full ban is not seen as cost-efficient where Huawei gear is already incorporated into national 4G wireless infrastructure, reports Nikkei.
U.S. president Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order this week barring U.S. companies from using telecommunications equipment made by firms posing a national security risk, paving the way for a ban on doing business with China's Huawei according to three U.S. officials familiar with the plan, Nikkei reports.
Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala Investment Co., is looking to invest in Asian technology and infrastructure, Nikkei reports.
Major Japanese companies across industrial sectors are signing partnerships with Japanese telecommunication firms to develop products and services that make use of the super-charged national 5G network, set to open in 2020. The Japanese government is encouraging these partnerships, claiming that 5G will be the "basic infrastructure" of the 21st century, reports Nikkei.
China and the U.S. are better prepared for the 5G mobile era than any other country, even though South Korea is about to become the first to launch the super fast communications services this week, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Intel has ended a partnership to share its latest 5G modem chips with China's state-backed mobile chipmaker, Unisoc, amid concerns that the technology transfer could cause problems in Washington, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Southeast Asia’s strategic importance for China, the United States, Japan, and others, and the advantages that will come with control over data flows, mean that the region’s decisions on digital infrastructure and internet governance will have implications that far transcend business outcomes.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence urged allies Saturday at the annual Munich Security Conference to be vigilant and avoid deals with Huawei Technologies. Pence emphasized the risks linked to equipment made by Huawei and other Chinese telecom manufacturers, saying those companies must be shunned due to national security concerns, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
Huawei's Vietnam chief says the company has received assurances from the country's communications minister that Vietnam remains "open" to Huawei's 5G technology. This comes on the heels of European countries announcing they will reconsider telecommunications partnerships with Huawei due to information security concerns.
The world requires an interconnection agenda that focuses on multilateral institution-building and frames power trade as a tool for states to shore up grid systems in the renewables age.
The Philippines' leading wireless provider Globe Telecom is on track to launch its Huawei Technologies-backed 5G service in the next quarter. The Philippines has joined Thailand and Singapore that are open to tapping Huawei for 5G amid rising security concerns related to the Chinese telecom equipment supplier, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
China's Digital Silk Road is ambitious and includes fiber optic cables, 5G networks, satellites, smart cities, and the devices that connect to these systems. On February 5th, the CSIS Reconnecting Asia Project hosted a discussion about these developments and their implications for U.S. economic and strategic interests.
Taking effect Friday, The economic partnership agreement between Japan and the European Union incorporates wide-ranging regulations on data transfer and intellectual property protection. The trade deal could help establish precedent for the digital field, Nikkei reports.
With an eye toward illuminating current issues, this report draws from examples throughout history of how states use foreign infrastructure to advance strategic objectives. It shows how China is updating and exercising tactics used by Western powers during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and how these issues, and the strategic implications they carry, are likely to intensify in the coming years.
A recently opened express railway between Hong Kong and mainland China has drastically cut travel times, but has experienced less demand in commuters and tourists as initially anticipated, reports the Nikkei Asian Review.
"As demand for network bandwidth grows among Belt and Road countries, China will exert its technological dominance and set global standards through centrally-coordinated fiber-optic roll-outs, the establishment of data centers, and the deployment of communications, positioning, and observation satellites."
China's Belt and Road Initiative aims to dominate the next wave of wireless technology by becoming the global leader in the development of 5G networks.
The United States announced a $113 million package aimed at developing the Indo-Pacific region's digital economy, energy sector, and infrastructure.
In anticipation of a big trade increase along the BRI's Eastern Economic Corridor, Hong Kong-based Hutchinson Port Holdings has invested $600 million to open a new high-tech, fully automated terminal at Thailand's largest commercial port this June.
On November 30th the CSIS Energy and National Security Program hosted "Hydrogen and Green Shipping: Zero Emission Fuel in the Maritime Sector" to discuss the important role that hydrogen fuel technology could play for shipping in the transition to a low-carbon future.
This report highlights essays from our Big Question series - an analysis collection that explore the drivers and implications of the massive infrastructure push taking place across the Eurasian continent.