The Asia-Pacific Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) Chipset Market was valued at USD 710 million in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 3,600 million by 2035, growing at a CAGR of 16.2% from 2024 to 2035. The market is being driven by the rapid increase in smart city initiatives, widespread adoption of IoT devices, and government policies supporting digitalization across the region.
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Market Growth Drivers
Rapid Smart Meter Deployments: With the increasing adoption of smart meters across countries like China and India, the demand for NB-IoT chipsets has experienced significant growth. For example, in 2023, Huawei partnered with China Mobile to deploy over 4 million NB-IoT smart water meters in multiple municipalities. This large-scale deployment aids in real-time tracking and management of utility services, significantly driving chipset adoption in utility sectors.
Government Policies Favoring IoT Expansion: Strategic policies from Asian governments are accelerating the deployment of NB-IoT infrastructure. The Indian government's 'Digital India' vision and the Chinese government's 'New Infrastructure' plan, both accelerated in 2023, have led to subsidies and investments in smart device networks. Companies like MediaTek have leveraged these policies to increase shipments of NB-IoT integrated chipsets to major telcos and device manufacturers.
Market Trends
Integration with 5G Infrastructure: The convergence of NB-IoT with emerging 5G networks is a prominent trend in the Asia-Pacific region. Companies such as Qualcomm are developing NB-IoT chipsets that support seamless migration paths to 5G, thus future-proofing device investments. This has spurred device makers to prefer NB-IoT chipsets with 5G compatibility, especially for industrial automation and infrastructure monitoring projects launched in 2024.
Proliferation of Low-Power Wide-Area Networks (LPWAN): Ongoing growth in LPWAN deployments, particularly in logistics and agriculture, is boosting NB-IoT chipset demand. In 2023, Samsung collaborated with several Southeast Asian telecom operators to provide NB-IoT chipset-powered agricultural sensors, enabling precise crop and livestock monitoring. This expansion is expected to continue as regional economies amplify investment in agri-tech.
Market Opportunity
Smart Cities Expansion: Accelerated government-backed smart city projects, especially in China, South Korea, and Singapore, present major opportunities for NB-IoT chipsets. ZTE, for instance, is focusing on NB-IoT-based modules for integrated urban services and transport systems, aiming to secure new municipal contracts.
Healthcare IoT Devices: The ongoing digitization of healthcare in Asia-Pacific opens doors for NB-IoT applications in wearable patient monitors and connected medical equipment. Companies like u-blox are expanding their NB-IoT chipset offerings tailored for hospital asset tracking and remote patient monitoring solutions.
The NB-IoT chipset market in Asia-Pacific shows consistent revenue growth, rising from USD 220 million in 2020 to an estimated USD 3,600 million by 2035. Growth is driven by IoT device proliferation across utilities, manufacturing, agriculture, and urban infrastructure. Notable surges occur around 2025 and 2030, coinciding with mass IoT device deployments under government-led digital transformation programs. This robust upward trend reflects both the expanding application landscape and continuous technological advancements of NB-IoT chipsets.
Asia-Pacific NB-IoT Chipset Market Share by Region (%) - 2025
In 2025, China dominates the Asia-Pacific NB-IoT chipset market with a 56% share, attributed to early adoption and extensive government initiatives supporting IoT digitalization. India emerges as the second-largest market at 15%, fueled by smart infrastructure and utility projects. Japan and South Korea hold 11% and 10% respectively, reflecting mature IoT ecosystems and advanced technology integration. The remaining Asia-Pacific countries collectively account for 8%. The pie chart highlights the strong regional disparities and shows that China will remain the single-most influential market player in the region by 2025.
Recent Developments
In March 2024, MediaTek launched its next-generation NB-IoT chipset, the MT2625A, specifically designed for smart metering, asset tracking, and connected healthcare in collaboration with leading telecom operators in Southeast Asia. The chipset offers enhanced energy efficiency and improved cellular coverage, supporting mass deployments in dense urban and rural environments.
In February 2024, Qualcomm announced a strategic partnership with SK Telecom to accelerate the commercialization of dual-mode NB-IoT/5G chipsets for industrial IoT devices in South Korea. This initiative aims to facilitate seamless device migration between NB-IoT and 5G networks, strengthening South Korea’s industrial automation ecosystem.
In January 2024, ZTE secured a major contract with Singapore’s Smart Nation Program, supplying customized NB-IoT chipsets and communication modules to support citywide sensor networks for public safety, waste management, and intelligent transport services. This collaboration marks one of the largest single-city NB-IoT chipset deployments in Southeast Asia.
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