TP-Link is an American-incorporated Chinese company that manufactures network equipment and smart home products. The company was established in 1996 in China, and transferred ownership out of the country in a series of corporate restructurings in 2022–2024. TP-Link's main headquarters occupies a 30-story skyscraper in Shenzhen, China; there is a smaller headquarters in Irvine, California, where the main holding company is legally based. It has 42 subsidiaries operating globally and owns several brands, including Deco, Tapo, Omada, VIGI, Aginet, Kasa Smart, and Mercusys.

History

TP-Link was founded in 1996 by two brothers, Zhao Jianjun (赵建军 Zhào Jiànjūn) and Zhao Jiaxing (赵佳兴 Zhào Jiāxīng), to produce and market a network card they had developed. The company name was based on the concept of "twisted pair link" invented by Alexander Graham Bell, a kind of cabling that reduces electromagnetic interference. TP-Link began its first international expansion in 2005. In 2007, the company moved into a new 100,000-square-meter headquarters and facilities at Shenzhen's Hi-Tech Industry Park. TP-Link USA was established in 2008. In 2022, TP-Link Corporation began to separate from TP-LINK Technologies Co., Ltd. (TP-LINK) in China. After the separation, TP-Link Corporation became a standalone entity in all shareholdings and all operational aspects, such as workforce, research and development, production, marketing, and customer service. In May 2024, TP-Link announced the completion of corporate restructuring, with headquarters in the United States and Singapore. In August 2024, the United States House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party asked the United States Department of Commerce to investigate TP-Link and its affiliates for potential national security risks.

Products

TP-Link products include high speed cable modems, mobile phones, ADSL, range extenders, routers, switches, IP cameras, power-line adapters, print servers, media converters, wireless adapters, power banks, USB hubs, smart home devices, and home robots. TP-Link also manufactured the OnHub router for Google. TP-Link manufactures smart home devices under their Kasa Smart and Tapo product lines.

Manufacturing

TP-Link manufactures its products in-house, as opposed to outsourcing to original design manufacturers (ODMs).