Hasso-Plattner-Institut
 

Houkun Hu

Huawei Technologies, Rotating Chairman

 

Houkun Hu used his presentation not only to introduce cybersecurity from the perspective of one of the world's largest telecommunications companies. The Huawei CEO also addressed the current trade conflict, which, besides affecting his group, also hurt  numerous suppliers around the world and especially users. "We don't want to build a new wall in trade, and we don't want to build a new wall in technology," he stressed.

"Digital technology has evolved very quickly. This poses major security challenges,”  Hu said. Enterprise digitalization, cloud computing, the Internet of Things connecting people and machines, artificial intelligence - all of these also mean the highest risks in terms of cybersecurity, he said. Hu argued  for a rational and evidence-based approach to these threats, rather than an emotional one. "Trust and mistrust should be based on facts," he stressed. He said there is a need for cross-national cooperation and joint efforts by companies and governments to develop uniform security standards that are independently verified. "Technology fundamentally improves our lives; we should embrace it, not fear it," Hu said.