China Telecom Global (CTG) and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have formally established the HKUST–China Telecom Joint Laboratory on AI for Telecommunications, holding a signing ceremony at the HKUST campus followed by the laboratory's first Scientific Advisory Committee meeting, as announced via Media OutReach Newswire. The milestone moves the two parties' industry–academia–research collaboration into its implementation phase.
Chen Kai, Executive Vice President of CTG, and Prof. Guo Yike, Provost of HKUST and Director of the Joint Laboratory, delivered addresses and executed the cooperation agreement on behalf of the two organisations. Chen said China Telecom is accelerating its development into a technology-driven enterprise, adding that the laboratory will draw on the company's business scenarios in global networks and its AI-powered intelligent computing cloud to pursue frontier research with HKUST, drive collaborative innovation across telecommunications and artificial intelligence, and serve the development of Digital China and the Greater Bay Area.
Prof. Guo described the laboratory as an important platform for HKUST to advance the deep integration of AI research with real-world industry scenarios. He said the university will give full play to its research strengths, accelerate the translation of research outcomes, and contribute to building Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology hub.
The laboratory is a key outcome of a strategic cooperation agreement signed between China Telecom and HKUST in March 2025, under which the two parties committed to deepening industry–academia–research collaboration and advancing frontier technology research and commercialisation. For the telecom industry, the arrangement signals a structured attempt to shorten the distance between academic AI research and deployable network products, a gap that has historically slowed adoption of new technologies by operators.
Focusing on frontier AI technologies for telecommunications, the laboratory will define research topics around CTG's business scenarios in global networks and the AI-powered intelligent computing cloud, explore joint talent development, and build a closed-loop pathway running from business scenarios through research topics to commercialised outcomes.
At its first meeting, the Scientific Advisory Committee approved the laboratory's first batch of research projects and adopted the Laboratory Charter and its Rules of Procedure, with in-depth discussions on 2027 research and development directions and the translation of telecommunications business scenarios into research topics. The laboratory will operate a mechanism combining quarterly written reports with biannual review meetings to keep research aligned with industry needs and ensure outcomes are measurable and translatable.
The implications extend beyond the two signatories. CTG, established in 2012 and headquartered in Hong Kong as a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Telecom Co., Ltd., operates in 53 countries and markets with resources including 185 submarine and terrestrial cables, over 304T in intercontinental capacity, 259 points-of-presence and 15 proprietary data centres. Applying AI to that infrastructure base could shape how global network capacity is managed and how enterprises in the Greater Bay Area access intelligent computing services.
Looking ahead, the two parties said they will deepen their long-term cooperation in AI for telecommunications through the joint laboratory, accelerate the industrialisation of research outcomes, support Hong Kong's development into an international innovation and technology hub, and inject fresh momentum into the high-quality growth of the digital economy in the Greater Bay Area.
