TCL Industries Selected for World Economic Forum MINDS AI List, Pan-Smart Screen Intelligent Container Computing Cabinet Wins AI Application Star
The TCL Industries Pan-Smart Screen Intelligent Container Computing Cabinet team was selected for the MINDS list announced by the World Economic Forum in June 2026, winning the "MINDS AI Application Star," and its case was included as a benchmark example under "Building Resilient Infrastructure and Supply Chains." The project uses AI to optimize container loading planning, shortening single-container planning time from 30 minutes to seconds—a 5,900% efficiency improvement—saving over 10 million in costs annually and reducing carbon emissions by 762 tons. In the past three years, TCL's AI applications have created comprehensive benefits exceeding 2.5 billion yuan, and the Star Intelligence large model ranked 11th in the 2025 global industrial large model rankings and first in the display field.
Body · AI translation
On June 2, 2026, the World Economic Forum announced a new batch of MINDS (Meaningful, Intelligent, Novel, Deployable Solutions) selections, with 26 organizations from 12 industries and 28 countries making the list. According to the Forum's explanation, MINDS focuses on AI applications that have moved from experimentation to implementation. Among them, the TCL Industries Pan-Intelligent Screen Smart Container Planning team won the "MINDS AI Application Star," and its selected case was included as a benchmark example under the Forum's "Building Resilient Infrastructure and Supply Chains" category.
At the same time, Chinese enterprises continue to increase their investment in scientific and technological innovation. According to Xinhua News Agency, data released by the World Intellectual Property Organization show that among international patent applications filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty in 2025, "China ranked first with 73,718 filings, up 5.3% year on year."
TCL Industries' case lies in the supply chain segment: the Pan-Intelligent Screen Smart Container Planning system uses AI to optimize container loading plans, shortening the planning time for a single container from 30 minutes to seconds.
II. From a cassette tape factory to semiconductor display and new energy photovoltaics: TCL's industrial extension
TCL began as a cassette tape factory, then started with home appliances such as televisions, accumulating manufacturing, channel and brand capabilities. In 2009, TCL CSOT was founded, and TCL thus moved from terminal products into the upstream semiconductor display industry. In 2025, TCL CSOT ranked second globally in TV panel shipment market share, first globally in market share for gaming monitors, LTPS notebooks and LTPS tablets, and was the first in the world to achieve mass production of printed OLED. In the new energy photovoltaic field, TCL Zhonghuan is the company with the largest global market share in photovoltaic wafers.
Supporting this extension is sustained R&D investment: in the past five years (2021-2025), TCL's R&D expenses reached 75 billion yuan, and its R&D investment in 2025 reached 15 billion yuan; TCL currently has applied for more than 120,000 patents cumulatively, including more than 20,000 PCT patents. At present, through its two industrial groups, TCL Industries and TCL Technology, TCL has 50 R&D centers and 47 manufacturing bases worldwide, with business in more than 160 countries and regions; in 2025, TCL (including TCL Technology and TCL Industries) had total operating revenue of more than 350 billion yuan.
From cassette tapes and televisions to panels, and then to photovoltaic wafers, TCL has step by step extended its business into upstream core technology fields, becoming a globalized technology industry group. This is a typical path of successful transformation from a home appliance starting point into the technology field.
"AI toward the real" is a concept first proposed in the industry by Li Dongsheng, referring to letting AI enter real industrial scenarios, solve real problems and create real value. Entering the AI era, TCL's technological transformation has extended from industrial layout to every production link. In R&D, through "AI + simulation" and the Star Intelligence large model driving innovation, TCL has shortened the average R&D cycle of a single project by 1-2 months; in production scheduling, TCL CSOT has used algorithm optimization to compress the production scheduling plan formulation cycle from 7 days to 30 minutes; in quality inspection, TCL CSOT has applied ADC automatic defect classification technology, raising defect judgment accuracy from 85% to 95% and reducing the missed inspection rate by 85%.
The comprehensive benefits are significant: in the past three years, AI applications have created more than 2.5 billion yuan in comprehensive benefits, and there are currently about 500 "silicon-based employees" and more than 10,000 intelligent agents online.
Leading large model capabilities: TCL's self-developed three major vertical-domain large models, Star Intelligence, Fuxi and Deep Blue, have been deeply applied in industries such as semiconductor display, intelligent terminals and new energy photovoltaics. Among them, the Star Intelligence large model ranked 11th in the 2025 global industrial large model rankings and first in the display field.
Benchmark case recognized: TCL Industries' "Pan-Intelligent Screen Smart Container Planning" project was selected as a World Economic Forum "AI Application Star," becoming a benchmark example of "Building Resilient Infrastructure and Supply Chains." Through AI-driven three-dimensional loading optimization technology, the project shortened the planning time for a single container from 30 minutes to seconds, an efficiency improvement of 5,900%, saving the company more than 10 million yuan in costs each year and reducing carbon emissions by 762 tons.
Looking to the future, TCL also presented a clear strategic blueprint: using "screens" as the interaction entry point between people and AI, and "new energy photovoltaics" as the green energy foundation behind computing power.
1. The interaction entry point of the "Screen Universe." In the future, screens will become an important interface for interaction between AI and people. TCL's "Screen Universe" strategy aims to cover all scenarios from televisions, mobile phones and automotive screens to AR glasses, allowing AI to integrate more naturally into life. TCL's RayNeo achieved a 27% market share in consumer-grade AR glasses in 2025, firmly ranking first globally by an absolute margin, integrating functions such as AI translation, navigation and information reminders into daily wear.
2. The energy foundation of new energy photovoltaics. The development of AI cannot be separated from massive computing power support, and behind computing power is enormous energy consumption. TCL Zhonghuan's deep cultivation in the new energy photovoltaic field makes it a builder of the green energy foundation in the AI era. TCL Zhonghuan is the company with the largest global market share in photovoltaic wafers, and the solar wafers it produces are providing clean and sustainable power solutions for smart factories around the world.
Conclusion: The technological transformation of home appliance enterprises continues
China ranks first globally with 73,718 PCT international patent applications, and scientific and technological innovation is becoming the growth source for more and more Chinese enterprises. Among Chinese enterprises that have successfully transformed into technology companies, TCL started from a cassette tape factory and home appliances and has extended into semiconductor display, new energy photovoltaics and industrial AI, and together with home appliance peers such as Hisense and Haier, it appears on the 2026 international list. From extending into core technologies to AI toward the real, TCL's technological transformation is still advancing.