Huawei Unveils Massive R&D Center in Shanghai to accommodate 35,000 employees

Huawei Unveils Massive R&D Center in Shanghai to accommodate 35,000 employees
Image credit: Tom's Hardware 

Huawei has completed its Shanghai Qingpu project, officially named the Huawei Lianqiu Lake R&D Center. The expansive facility, which cost over 10 billion Yuan (nearly $1.4 billion) and spans 2,600 acres, features over 40,000 offices and will accommodate 35,000 employees.

Located about 30 miles West-Southwest of central Shanghai, the center consolidates all of Huawei’s research and development activities. These include work on HiSilicon, wireless technologies like 5G-A/6G, smartphones, automobiles, and digital energy research. The center is divided into eight districts, interconnected by roads, trains, and elevated overpasses.

Construction of the project began in September 2021 and took over three years to complete. Inspired by the Chicago Lakeside Complex, Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei emphasized the Yangtze River Delta's appealing environment for the approximately 700-800 foreign scientists at Huawei.

As the centerpiece of the Xicen Science and Technology Innovation Center in the Yangtze River Delta Integration Demonstration Zone, the R&D center is part of China’s strategy to develop indigenous technologies and reduce dependence on the West. This initiative is critical for Huawei as it navigates U.S. sanctions in the ongoing chip war between Beijing and Washington.

The new R&D center allows Huawei to streamline operations and enhance collaboration by uniting various departments under one roof. The sheer size of the facility surpasses that of Apple Park and the Microsoft Redmond Campus combined.

In addition to its real estate investment, Huawei is actively recruiting top talent. Amid U.S. bans and sanctions, Huawei offers competitive salary packages to attract Chinese talent from abroad, as hiring American citizens and green card holders is no lon

ger viable.