ZTE: Drives industry digital and intelligent transformation with a "connectivity + computing power" dual-engine strategy

2025 WIC Distinguished Contribution Award

Innovation Breakthrough award-winning enterprise: ZTE Corporation

ZTE — a global leader in integrated information and communication technology or ICT solutions — is transforming industries with its innovative technologies and products. Serving telecom operators, government and enterprise clients, as well as consumers worldwide, ZTE has been at the forefront of technological development since its founding in 1985. Listed on both the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock exchanges, it operates in over 160 countries and regions, reaching more than a third of the global population, with a vision of a future where "communications and trust are ubiquitous".

Focusing on core technologies: Building stronghold for independent innovation

ZTE has prioritized independent innovation as a core strategic focus. Over the past six years, the company has invested 117.07 billion yuan ($17.07 billion) in research and development, with R&D accounting for 20 percent of its revenue in 2024. By June of 2025, ZTE had applied for over 94,000 patents globally, including nearly 5,700 in chips and 5,500 in AI. The company has won 11 China Patent Gold Awards and 30 State Scientific and Technological Progress Awards, including three first prizes in 2024, cementing its position as a technological leader in the telecoms industry.

In critical areas like chips and databases, ZTE has broken foreign monopolies. It's developed and mass-produced over 130 products covering the entire spectrum of "computing power, networks and terminals". ZTE's GoldenDB database, developed over 20 years, is the leader in China's distributed transaction database market, handling over 10 billion financial transactions daily and supporting more than 900 million mobile users.

Dual-engine strategy: Leading digital, intelligent transformation

In response to the rapid rise in AI computing demand and the need for digital transformation, ZTE has developed a full-stack intelligent computing solution. Its open and decoupled approach has fostered the development of a robust intelligent computing ecosystem. ZTE's Nebula Coder-V6 large model, which won the gold award in reasoning and silver in the overall rankings in the 2025 SuperCLUE Chinese Large Model Benchmark Evaluation, is a key driver of AI commercialization in China.

ZTE continues to lead technological advancements. Its 5G-A technology is the first to achieve large-scale commercial deployment of "integrated sensing and communications". The company, in collaboration with its partners, was awarded the "Best Mobile Innovation for Cities" for their innovative "5G-A Smart City Low-Altitude intelligent Blood Delivery" project at the Global Mobile Awards. ZTE has also completed the industry's live network verification of the 800G 16QAM pluggable module computing power interconnection solution between Nanjing and Shanghai — and implemented the first commercial-grade deterministic network for multi-user production domains at SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile.

Additionally, ZTE is pioneering integrated satellite-ground technologies — collaborating with operators and partners to verify the capability of direct connection between satellite and mobile phones with high-orbit satellite transparent forwarding architecture. The group has also launched China's first IoT-NTN commercial network and is accelerating the commercialization of satellite internet components. It has maintained a global market leadership position in 5G FWA & MBB and PON CPE products.

Technology for good: Building a sustainable future

ZTE integrates Environmental, Social and Governance or ESG principles into every aspect of its business. The company has received the highest CDP rating (A) for two consecutive years and dual certification under the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) for both 1.5°C and long-term net-zero standard.

In terms of social impact, ZTE's Signal Reach Program has benefited 580,000 people and won the WSIS Champion Award at the 2025 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Awards Ceremony  — making ZTE the only Chinese company recognized in the field of ICT cultural diversity. The group has also established an AI ethics committee to ensure the ethical, safe and inclusive development of AI technologies. In 2024, the company received the Ram Charan Management Practice Award for its excellent practice in digital transformation.

Deepening "core innovation + ecosystem aggregation"

Looking ahead, ZTE will continue to pursue a strategy of "core innovation + ecosystem aggregation" — further advancing its "connectivity + computing power" approach. By collaborating with global partners, it's aiming to build an open, sustainable digital ecosystem, contributing to the high-quality development of the global digital economy.