The rise of Huawei, the controversial Chinese tech giant that rivals Apple and is seen as a US national security threat

• Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications company, has become one of the world's biggest tech names.
• It started off manufacturing equipment before venturing into smartphones and more.
• Here's how it rose to compete with tech titans like Apple.

Huawei has become one of the world's biggest, most controversial tech companies over nearly 40 years.

The Chinese tech giant started as one of the world's leading networking equipment producers, making items such as base stations, routers, modems, and switches that provide phone service and internet access worldwide.