Global broadband innovations and excellence recognized at the Broadband Excellence Awards
From cutting-edge infrastructure and smart city solutions, to breakthroughs in digital inclusion and sustainable connected environments, the awards – which were announced at this year’s Broadband Development Congress – highlight the pioneers building the foundation of tomorrow's gigabit societies.
“We would like to congratulate all the winners of this year’s Broadband Excellence Awards,” said WBBA Director General Martin Creaner. “All organizations, projects and technologies nominated this year are shaping the future of connectivity, driving digital transformation, and empowering communities through broadband and emerging technologies such as AI and cloud.”
T-Mobile USA were the winners of the AI in Network Excellence category, in recognition of exceptional initiative in leveraging AI applications to transform network capabilities, improve performance and support next-generation applications. The company’s submission demonstrated a commitment to pushing the boundaries of broadband networking, and laying the foundation for efficient and scalable digital ecosystems.
Within the Broadband for Digital Inclusion Excellence category, Aztelekom and Globe Telecom were joint winners for their respective ‘Online Azerbaijan’ and ‘No Filipino Left Offline – Connecting the Underserved’ submissions. Both entries reflected impactful initiatives which have successfully closed the digital divide within their regions by extending meaningful and affordable broadband access to underserved or unserved populations.
This year’s Broadband Innovation Excellence for Future Applications winner was Safaricom. The service provider’s ‘Affordable Broadband for All: Pioneering Africa’s Smart Cities Through Digital Equity and Innovation’ submission was recognized for enhancing broadband capabilities to enable emerging, high-demand digital experiences across the continent, while future-proofing broadband networks to meet the demands of next-generation content and user interaction.
China Unicom and the Intelligent Converged FTTR Terminal won the Intelligent Home Innovation Excellence Award for the solution’s ability to redefine the connected home. The telco was successful as its terminal delivers intelligent, seamless and value-added digital experiences within the home through Customer Premises Equipment and Networks (CPE/CPN).
For the Network Infrastructure Innovation Excellence Award, the judges chose China Telecom E-Surfing IoT Tech and Turkcell. Both companies evidenced outstanding advancements in broadband infrastructure that enables smarter, more inclusive and resilient digital societies.
Four nominees were awarded the Smart Gigacity Excellence Award during BDC 2025. Within the Advanced Cities subcategory, Telecom Argentina’s submission for their work in Recreo, Charata, Cafayete and Anatuya, as well as Raisecom for their Beijing project were the winners. For the Developing City subcategory, both Sunrise - for their advancements in Kenya, including Nakuru and Kiambu - and Tunisie Telecom, which was nominated for its work in Tunis, Tunisia, were awarded the prize.
Finally, stc was recognized as the Judging Panel’s Special Award, bestowed on them for the company’s outstanding achievement in Regional Giga Network developments.
For full details on all shortlisted submissions and the award categories, please visit the WBBA website.