ZTE HI-OTN Earns the Only Unanimous Perfect Score at Light Reading's 2026 Leading Lights Awards

• HI-OTN was the sole entry to receive a unanimous perfect score, recognized for its breakthroughs in technology, intelligence, and commercial deployment
• HI-OTN has been deployed globally in over 20 projects, delivering industry-first innovations, alongside intent-driven L4 autonomous networking and AI-based failure prediction system

Shenzhen, China, September 21, 2026 – ZTE Corporation (0763.HK / 000063.SZ), a global leading provider of integrated information and communication technology solutions, today announced that its HI-OTN (High-Performance & High-Intelligence Optical Transport Network) solution has won the "Most Innovative Optical Networking Product or Solution (Systems)" award at Light Reading's 2026 Leading Lights Awards. HI-OTN was the only entry in any category to receive a unanimous 10 from the judges this year. This rigorous assessment reflects the solution's combined strength in technological breakthroughs, intelligent capabilities, and commercial deployment, earning high recognition from a judging panel of more than 30 industry analysts.

Widely regarded as a barometer of the telecom industry, the Leading Lights Awards feature a rigorous evaluation process: every submission is subject to cross-verification of field-test data, live network deployment cases, and publicly available information. ZTE's HI-OTN solution achieved the only unanimous perfect score under such demanding review standards — a strong testament to the industry's recognition of its innovation and commercial maturity.

Against the backdrop of booming AI computing power and explosive traffic growth, traditional optical transport architectures are hitting bottlenecks in capacity, latency, and operating efficiency. To address this industry-wide challenge, ZTE launched the HI-OTN solution, which redefines the foundational transport architecture of the AI era through performance leaps and intelligent empowerment, meeting ever-growing demands for ultra-large capacity, ultra-low latency, ultra-high reliability, and end-to-end operating efficiency. On the high-performance transport front, HI-OTN delivers multiple industry-first breakthroughs that solidify ultra-broadband carrying capacity. It adopts the industry's first C6T+L6T Hz full-band integrated 800G/1.6T solution, increasing system capacity by 25% over the C4.8T+L4.8T Hz solution while reducing optical-layer footprint by 20% compared with separate architectures. It completed the world's first real-time validation of an S+C+L-band hollow-core fiber system, achieving a total capacity of 114.9 Tb/s per fiber with a 30% reduction in system latency. It also integrates quantum encryption technology to ensure secure, reliable remote transmission of enterprise data, balancing high speed with security.

Intelligence is another core highlight of HI-OTN. Powered by ZTE's proprietary Nebula Telecom Large Model and intelligent network management system, the solution marks a fundamental leap from traditional operations to intent-driven L4 autonomous networks. Holographic mapping technology provides a unified-entry, panoramic view of the network, improving O&M and monitoring efficiency by more than threefold; multi-factor intelligent path computation raises the service routing success rate to over 95%; and the AI-based optical device failure prediction solution achieves over 95% prediction accuracy, improving network stability by 10%.

Mature commercial deployment capabilities were the key pillar behind the judges' recognition. To date, HI-OTN has been deployed in more than 20 projects worldwide and has completed five industry-leading live network validations, including the world's first C+L (12 THz) full-band integrated 1.6 Tbps live network trial completed in March 2026 — an important milestone in the global high-capacity optical transport field.

This award not only underscores ZTE's global leadership in optical networking technology, but also sets a new benchmark for the development of all-optical networks in the AI era. Looking ahead, ZTE will continue to work with global industry partners to deepen optical networking innovation and commercial practice, driving all-optical networks toward higher speed, greater intelligence, enhanced security, and greener operations, and contributing to the upgrade of global digital infrastructure.