Mistrust of Huawei around the world imperils China's ambitions to lead tech revolution

SHANGHAI – China's ambitious drive to dominate next-generation 5G technology faces a sudden reality check as fears spread that telecom companies like Huawei could be proxies for Beijing's intrusive security apparatus. Fifth-generation mobile communications are the next milestone in the digital revolution, bringing near-instantaneous connectivity and vast data capacity. They will enable the widespread adoption of futuristic technologies such as artificial intelligence and automated cars and factories -- advances China is desperate to lead. With 5G's rollout expected to gain pace in coming years, the race to dominate standards and control security and data traffic underpins much of the current high-tech rivalry between the United States and China, technology experts said. Huawei's status as a leading world supplier of the backbone equipment for telecoms systems -- mostly in developing markets -- gives China an inside track. But analysts say mounting concern over Huawei imperils that lead.