After receiving clearance from USA, ZTE’s chances with India increase

ZTE may make a comeback in India, now that the US has cleared the Chinese tech giant on safety issues, and soon the company will start taking orders there.

“The US has given security clearance to ZTE, and there are chances it may get clearance from the Indian government too,” said an industry source. After the Galwan Valley clash in 2020, the government had announced a national security directive on the telecom sector.

In April 2023, Vi had awarded a Rs 230 crore optical transmission equipment upgrade order for Gujarat, Maharashtra and MP-Chattisgarh circles.

In 2021, the government mandated all telecom service providers to connect to their networks only those new devices that are designated as ‘trusted products’ from ‘trusted sources’. The approval needs to come from the National Cyber Security Coordinator. However, there is no use in banning ZTE or Huawei products if they come through unlicensed routes, is the industry consensus. “Internet service providers are using them to provide Wi-Fi service. The government has only banned networking gears, not mobile phones.”

At MWC23 being held in Shanghai, ZTE announced that it aims to build a Phygital DNA for faster iteration and innovation, ultimately reshaping society as a whole. “This is an era of data explosion, with ubiquitous but distinct requirements for data processing and circulation. As you know, ChatGPT is a heated product that has triggered the AIGC boom globally. Also, challenges are posed in addressing the slowdown of Moore’s Law, closing the gap to the Shannon Limit, pursuing green and sustainable growth, and guaranteeing digital security. Against this backdrop, ZTE focuses on key underlying technologies, infrastructure, and applications, and promotes physical-digital integration, Computing and Network Convergence (CNC), and higher efficiency of production and transaction. By doing so, we aim to build phygital DNA for faster iteration and innovation, ultimately reshaping the entire society,”said Xu Ziyang, CEO, ZTE in his presentation “Convergence and Innovation – Build Phygital DNA for Faster Growth,” at MWC23.

CT Bureau