> A lot of their designs started out stolen or cloned from the West This is also called learning by doing. This is how skill and expertise is most efficiently

> A lot of their designs started out stolen or cloned from the West This is also called learning by doing. This is how skill and expertise is most efficiently developed in the very beginning. This trope of assuming that copying is inherently valueless or devoid of creativity or innovation is simply wrong, and comes from an implicit assumption of superiority of the self. They may not innovate as much as you expect now. But they are building a foundation for future innovation. Also: Huawei is still leader in 5G technology, with the best products. You should look at their patents, they own the majority of 5G patents.