Huawei loses trade secret case against CNEX Labs

BEIJING: Huawei Technologies Co stole trade secrets from a company co-founded by a former employee, said a United States jury on Wednesday as it rejected claims that China’s largest technology company was the real victim in the dispute.

The jury in Sherman, Texas, said Huawei didn’t benefit from the theft and awarded no damages to the startup, CNEX Labs Inc. Still, the verdict following a three-week trial could provide ammunition to critics who say Huawei doesn’t play by the rules in the global technology playground.

Huawei said it was evaluating the verdict. “We are disappointed that the jury didn’t support Huawei’s claims,” said Jason Ding, director of the firm’s intellectual property rights department.

Huawei and CNEX had each accused the other of stealing inside information regarding data storage. The eight-person jury heard testimony involving duelling tales of intrigue, disloyalty and corporate espionage.

The trial also marks a rare instance in which Huawei has accused a former employee of stealing secrets.

The dispute concerns solidstate drives, which are made up of chips called Nand flash memory that store information on semiconductors. They access data much more quickly than traditional magnetic disk-based technology.