Insights from our Future skills tracker tool show that telcos remain behind technology companies (techcos) in the penetration of the key role types that would enable them to compete and add value like technology companies. The tracker provides direction on where telcos should learn from techcos and build capabilities to increase operational efficiency and enable new revenue streams going forward.
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?
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.
STL Partners’ 26 predictions for 2026, focusing on change and growth in the telco industry
Several telcos are refocusing on their core business amid economic challenges. Does this spell an end to their techco dreams?
Modern telecom networks drive competitiveness, but organisational factors can thwart progress. We identify five startup practices telcos should adopt to enable true techco transformation.
At its September 2025 analyst event, Amdocs outlined how it is transforming to support its view of where the telecom industry will go next, particularly in the context of AI, and demonstrated a techco playbook of change. What can telcos learn from its approach?
Appropriately beginning in a cinema room at Pathé Palace in Paris, Orange Insights 2025 set the stage for blockbuster discussions, led by the enterprise arm of an operator emblematic of an industry in the midst of profound change. In this report, we present four key themes 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.
As CSPs transition into the Coordination Age, they face critical challenges in adopting cloud-native architectures and transforming operational models to meet the demands of enhanced connectivity and resource optimisation. This report provides practical strategies to navigate these challenges, with a focus on simplifying RAN transformation, enabling agility and unlocking new opportunities for innovation and growth.
Ten years of private network deployments tracked in our global insights tool.
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.
Platform business models can revitalise stagnant enterprise revenues in the telecom industry. Being successful requires investing in the commercial aspects of a platform and the technical service architecture, as well as adopting a mindset that starts with the customer.
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…
New technologies have made innovation in the network imperative for telcos’ survival. But the focus and scope of innovation varies by the type of company telcos aim to become.
Implementing autonomous networks offers an average CSP cost savings and annual revenue uplift of around US$794 million. However, challenges impede progress to realise this financial potential. This report addresses five of the main obstacles faced by CSPs and provides recommendations to help overcome them.