Chinese engineers have unveiled what may be the world’s smallest high-power, broadband traveling-wave tube (TWT), roughly the size of a pistol and just 20 mm thick, capable of amplifying microwave pulses in the 8–18 GHz range with outputs exceeding 500 W, marking a milestone in miniaturized radar and electronic warfare hardware, as disclosed on August 15 and 16 2025. Housed within a compact cylindrical structure, the TWT incorporates an electron gun, helix slow-wave structure, anode plates, and a collector, enabling high-gain, low-noise, wide-bandwidth amplification previously reserved for much larger devices. This breakthrough underscores China’s strides in vacuum-electron-device refinement, enhancing both radar and electronic warfare systems at unprecedented scales. The new TWT’s performance notably surpasses earlier mini-TWT benchmarks which, in the late 1990s, achieved around 100–140 W over similar frequency bands but required larger form factors. Its emergence accentuates the intensifying technological competition in advanced microwave amplification, prompting a strategic imperative for India to bolster its own electronic-warfare and radar-technology development to sustain regional defense parity. Meanwhile, on a broader market scale, TWTs remain vital in defense and satellite communications and are forecasted to grow globally in value from roughly USD 2.0–2.3 billion in 2024–2025 to over USD 2.7–3.1 billion by the early 2030s.