ZTE Releases Sustainability Report 2025: Driving a New Chapter in Sustainable Development Through AI

SHENZHEN, China, May 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTE Corporation (0763.HK / 000063.SZ), a global leading provider of information and communication technology solutions, recently released its Sustainability Report 2025, highlighting the company's latest achievements in deepening ESG practices. This marks the 18th consecutive year that ZTE has voluntarily disclosed its annual sustainability performance to the public.

Xu Ziyang, Executive Director and CEO of ZTE, states in the report: "Driven by our 'Connectivity + Computing' strategy, we remain committed to our original aspiration of empowering high-quality and sustainable economic development through technology, and work with our partners to build an intelligent future that is more efficient, green, and inclusive."

In 2025, ZTE sustained disciplined R&D investment, recording annual expenses of RMB 22.76 billion, approximately 17% of total revenue, to advance the development of its comprehensive AI capabilities. By December 31, 2025, ZTE had filed approximately 95,000 global patent applications, with over 50,000 granted globally. In the chip sector, the company holds around 5,900 patent applications and over 3,700 granted patents. In the field of AI, it has nearly 5,500 patent applications, with almost half granted.

Leading Science-Based Carbon Reduction, Paving the "Digital Green Path"

ZTE integrates climate action into its strategy, advancing the "Digital Green Path" across four key dimensions: green corporate operations, green supply chain, green digital infrastructure, and green industry empowerment, ensuring the achievement of science-based targets.

In 2025, through management measures for energy saving and technologies such as AI-based dynamic scaling and remote control, ZTE exceeded its Phase I target outlined in the ZTE Net-Zero Strategy White Paper, reducing operational carbon emissions by 46% compared with 2021. For Scope 3 (upstream and downstream emissions), ZTE achieved an 8.55% reduction in physical emissions intensity during the use and maintenance phase of telecom products, with a YoY reduction of 3.05% in absolute emissions across the full lifecycle of terminal products.

For three consecutive years, ZTE has been recognized on the CDP Climate A list for its excellence in environmental governance.

Advancing Tech for Good, Building an Inclusive and Equitable Society

ZTE remains committed to equal communication rights and digital opportunities worldwide. Regarding talent as its most valuable asset, in 2025, ZTE maintained 100% employee training coverage and regularly carried out Employee Assistance Program (EAP) initiatives. The company also passed the re-assessment for the ISO 45001 system for all domestic operations and production sites, as well as for operations in 30 overseas countries.  

In public welfare, ZTE further strengthened its volunteer service system in 2025, with the number of employee volunteers surpassing 20,000 and more than 600 global community programs carried out during the year. These efforts benefited more than one million people globally, underscoring ZTE's commitment to building a more inclusive and sustainable society.

Strengthening Compliance Foundations, Enhancing Governance Resilience 

ZTE continuously builds and improves its three-tier sustainability governance system of "Strategy—Decision-Making—Execution", proactively addressing emerging risks to ensure steady implementation of its strategic goals. In 2025, the company sustained its ISO 22301:2019 Business Continuity Management System certification, covering five manufacturing bases and major R&D centers.

ZTE regards data compliance governance as an important part of the company's overall compliance governance framework. In 2025, alongside releasing its updated ZTE Privacy Protection White Paper, ZTE secured EU's ePrivacyseal Global certification for five of its key fixed network and multimedia products, reinforcing its world-class data protection standards.

ZTE's ESG efforts continue to receive worldwide recognition. In 2025, the company was rated by Sustainalytics as "Low ESG Risk" for the fourth consecutive year, included in the 2025 Fortune China ESG Impact List for the fourth year, honored with "Excellence in Practice Award" from the Association for Talent Development (ATD) for the sixth consecutive year, and once again featured in the S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook (China Edition) 2025.

Looking forward, ZTE will continue to leverage its strengths in the R&D innovation and commercialization of fundamental technology, actively supporting the realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and driving society toward a future that is more efficient, greener, smarter, and more inclusive.

Download ZTE Sustainability Report 2025 here:https://www.zte.com.cn/content/dam/zte-site/investorrelations/en_announcement/ZTE_Sustainability_Report_2025_en0519.pdf

Visit ZTE's sustainability website for more: https://www.zte.com.cn/global/about/sustainability.html

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Email: ZTE.press.release@zte.com.cn 

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