Huawei works way around ban

When the US government blacklisted Huawei Technologies as a national security threat, it cut the Chinese company off from buying American semiconductors and other critical technologies.

Now Huawei may have a path around those restrictions.

The Chinese technology giant is providing support to a startup in its hometown of Shenzhen that has ordered chipmaking equipment - including from foreign suppliers - for a semiconductor manufacturing plant, according to people familiar with the matter. The fledgling firm, Pengxinwei IC Manufacturing, is run by a former Huawei executive and is constructing facilities close to Huawei headquarters, according to public records and satellite photos.

Huawei is expected to buy most, if not all, of its output, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. PXW, as the company is known, plans to take delivery of the gear as early as the first half of 2023, one of the people said.

If it succeeds in getting off the ground, the startup could effectively enable Huawei to sidestep Washington's efforts to choke off the flow of chips to a company it views as a military and economic threat.