At a show led by China’s telecom players, tokenisation, embodied AI and satellite connectivity sat at the centre of the agenda, each revealing how China’s AI and connectivity market is taking its own distinctive shape.
The industry has accepted the destination that is AI-driven autonomous networks. The challenge now is to build systems that operators can trust to make decisions across real networks. And to make every step create actual business benefits.
Agentic AI is beginning to penetrate telco operations, but only in domains such as billing and field maintenance, which do not require real-time data or network operations. What will it take to enable secure and reliable use of agentic AI in more critical network operations?
As telcos deploy more resilient and programmable networks, they could become key suppliers to armed forces. Dual-purpose tech solutions by telcos are valuable also to the population and civilian critical services during extreme weather events or energy blackouts, as much as during military conflict.
AI was again at the centre of MWC. But now telcos are focused on what they can practically achieve with AI rather than on boosting investor perception. Satellites, 5G standalone, sovereignty, security and quantum are other themes we noted in Barcelona.
As AI and national sovereignty increasingly intersect, telecoms operators face both opportunity and risk. This report sets out a practical framework to help telcos determine whether, where and how to play in sovereign AI.
As connected devices proliferate in the home, telcos are exploring how to leverage their ownership of the gateway, customer trust and network visibility to play a meaningful role in consumer smart home cybersecurity.
STL Partners’ 26 predictions for 2026, focusing on change and growth in the telco industry
China has seen rapid growth in its low-altitude economy. Its experience offers important lessons and fresh insights on how telcos can better position themselves to enable and accelerate the future of this emerging sector.
Growing demand for travel eSIMs is opening up new opportunities and intensifying competition. Telcos must choose how to participate in the expanding market: launch travel eSIM propositions or rethink roaming to provide a more personalised customer experience, convenience and value to travellers
Several telcos are refocusing on their core business amid economic challenges. Does this spell an end to their techco dreams?
Ericsson used its annual analyst event in Boston to outline the steps it is taking to strengthen its enterprise connectivity portfolio, set against the backdrop of a challenging financial period for the company. This report highlights four key themes that emerged from the event.
DTW Ignite 2025 showed a telco industry that is truly embracing AI and trying to use it as a platform for accelerated transformation. We hope it succeeds.
It was no surprise that AI dominated MWC this year. But there were lots of other notable trends on the rise – including cybersecurity and data centres – and some that were disappointingly overlooked. Find out what the STL Partners team saw and missed at MWC 2025.
Telcos are pursuing a telecom techco vision to renew business models. This report explores how network cloud, automation and AI accelerate this transformation, with insights on scaling these technologies, impactful AI/automation use cases and the advantages of open source.
SMBs are embracing 5G, cloud, and automation but face hurdles such as security, integration complexity, and resource limitations. This report examines how telcos can meet SMBs’ demands for seamless, secure, and manageable solutions, positioning themselves as integral partners in SMBs’ digital transformation journey.
Telecom operators want to become techcos, but they need to keep being telcos too. Telecom techcos will be best positioned to find growth in the Coordination Age, but the path is not easy…