Technology should reduce costs while opening new business opportunities
ZTE gathered 300+ senior executives from ISPs and operators to showcase network solutions combining cost reduction with revenue diversification through AI and intelligent broadband technologies. The company demonstrated end-to-end solutions spanning access networks, transport systems, smart home services, and operations platforms designed to improve ARPU and reduce operational expenses.
- 300+ senior executives from ISPs and operators attended the congress in São Paulo
- ZTE serves over 100 million users in Brazil after 20+ years in Latin America
- New optical transport system delivers 1.6 terabits per second per wavelength with AI management
- Core router handles 28.8 terabits per second in a single slot
- Partnerships announced with MediaTek and Qualcomm for next-generation AI-native networking
ZTE hosted its fifth Broadband User Congress in São Paulo, presenting AI-driven solutions to help operators and ISPs transition from traditional pipe-only models to diversified revenue streams across Latin America.
ZTE brought together more than 300 senior executives from internet service providers, telecom operators, and government officials to São Paulo in early May for the fifth iteration of its annual Broadband User Congress. The gathering, held under the banner "Monetize Your Intelligent Broadband," reflected a shift in how the Chinese networking equipment maker sees the future of connectivity in Latin America—not as a commodity to be sold at the lowest price, but as a platform for generating new revenue streams through artificial intelligence and intelligent service delivery.
The company has maintained a presence in the region for over two decades, serving more than 100 million users across Brazil alone. But the congress signaled a strategic pivot. Rather than selling operators and ISPs on the traditional model—building and maintaining networks as a basic utility—ZTE was presenting a vision of broadband as a foundation for layered services: smart home systems, video platforms, security offerings, and enterprise connectivity solutions that could command premium pricing and diversify income beyond simple bandwidth sales.
Fang Hui, ZTE's Senior Vice President, framed the moment in his keynote address. The company would drive growth through technological innovation, build partnerships that benefited all parties, and use artificial intelligence to transform the industry itself. The specifics came through in the product announcements that followed. In the access network layer, ZTE showcased fiber-to-the-home solutions that reduced deployment costs while incorporating AI-powered quality analysis and targeted marketing tools. For transport networks, the company unveiled a new optical transmission system capable of 1.6 terabits per second per wavelength, enhanced with AI for network management and energy efficiency. A new core router could handle 28.8 terabits per second in a single slot—the kind of raw capacity that allows operators to scale without proportional increases in infrastructure spending.
But the real emphasis fell on what happens inside the home and in the operations center. ZTE demonstrated an AI-powered Wi-Fi 7 system designed to optimize total cost of ownership while enabling operators to move beyond price competition. Smart home services—cameras, fitness tracking, entertainment, security—would be managed through a unified platform that also handled remote diagnostics, device theft protection, and targeted marketing of value-added services. The operations platform itself incorporated machine learning to reduce maintenance costs and stabilize revenue.
For independent service providers operating at smaller scale, ZTE presented lightweight versions of these systems. A simplified optical transport network could be deployed with minimal management overhead. An end-to-end IP network architecture promised to integrate diverse equipment and reduce operational complexity. The message was consistent: technology should reduce costs and complexity while opening new business opportunities.
Three partnership announcements underscored ZTE's strategy. A new set-top box for Brazil's digital television transition marked the company's continued investment in the region's media infrastructure. A joint effort with MediaTek brought Wi-Fi 7 and 10-gigabit fiber solutions designed specifically for premium home and small business markets—the high-value customer segments where operators could command better margins. Most significantly, a collaboration with Qualcomm positioned ZTE at the center of next-generation networking for the artificial intelligence era, combining Qualcomm's AI-native wireless platforms with ZTE's access and core network expertise.
What emerged from the congress was a portrait of an industry in transition. The operators and ISPs in that São Paulo ballroom face pressure from multiple directions: rising costs, competition from wireless providers, and customer expectations for integrated services beyond basic internet access. ZTE's pitch was that artificial intelligence, deployed across the entire network stack and into the home, could address all three challenges simultaneously. Whether that vision translates into actual deployments and revenue growth will depend on execution and market adoption—but the company's investment in the region and its partnerships with major semiconductor makers suggest it is betting seriously on Latin America as a testing ground for these new business models.
Citas Notables
Moving forward, we will drive premium user experiences through technological innovation, unlock growth potential through win-win partnerships, and empower industrial transformation with AI.— Fang Hui, Senior Vice President of ZTE
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does ZTE care so much about getting operators to think differently about broadband? Isn't selling network equipment enough?
The equipment business is mature and competitive. Margins are thin. If you can help an operator generate new revenue from the same network—smart home services, security, premium video—suddenly that operator becomes more profitable and more loyal. ZTE becomes a partner in their growth, not just a vendor.
But operators have tried value-added services before. Why would AI make the difference now?
Scale and precision. AI lets you analyze which customers are most likely to buy which services, optimize network quality for specific applications, and manage everything with fewer people. The cost of offering these services drops dramatically. It becomes economically viable for smaller operators too.
The congress brought together 300 executives. What were they actually looking for?
Proof that there's a path forward that doesn't involve competing purely on price. They want to know how to reduce their operational costs while simultaneously opening new revenue doors. ZTE was showing them the technical building blocks to do both.
Why partner with Qualcomm and MediaTek specifically?
Qualcomm brings AI-native wireless technology—Wi-Fi and cellular—that's becoming essential. MediaTek brings consumer-grade chipsets for home devices. Together with ZTE's network infrastructure, you have an end-to-end ecosystem. No operator has to piece it together from five different vendors.
Is this actually new, or is ZTE repackaging existing technology?
It's both. The individual components—optical transmission, Wi-Fi 7, smart home platforms—exist. What's new is the integration and the AI layer that ties it all together. The real innovation is in the business model: showing operators how to use these pieces to escape the commodity trap.
What happens if this doesn't work? If operators don't adopt these services?
Then ZTE loses market share to competitors with similar offerings, and the industry continues its slow margin compression. But the company is betting that the pain of that compression is real enough that operators will try something different.