Reuters reported the deal is worth about $10 billion dollars.

The vendor is now using Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform portfolio and its Gemini AI large language models to power its own copilots, ensuring optimised performance, scale and reliability for customers. 

The expanded partnership unites Google Cloud’s advanced AI and infrastructure capabilities with Palo Alto Networks’ Prisma Airs AI security platform to empower enterprises to securely develop and deploy AI offerings.

According to Palo Alto Networks’ state of cloud report released in December, enterprises are dramatically increasing their use of cloud infrastructure to support new AI applications and services. However, 99 per cent of the surveyed organisations experienced at least one attack on their AI infrastructure over the past year.

The two companies stated the newly announced agreement addresses these challenges by offering enhanced go-to-market strategies and building security into every aspect of the AI lifecycle.

Google Cloud president Matt Renner stated the “latest expansion of our partnership will ensure that our joint customers have access to the right solutions to secure their most critical AI infrastructure and develop new AI agents with security built in from the start”.

Palo Alto Networks previously had more than 75 joint integrations with Google Cloud and $2 billion in sales through Google Cloud Marketplace.

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The judge issued her finding yesterday (18 December) in a US federal court which stated T-Mobile’s Easy Switch programme “accessed AT&T’s protected computer systems without its authorisation”.

“T-Mobile’s unauthorised access allowed it to obtain over 100 fields of private customer data from AT&T’s servers for each affected customer and transmit that information back to T-Mobile’s servers in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Texas Harmful Access by Computer Act, the Comprehensive Computer DataAccess and Fraud Act, and the Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act.”

The judge noted “AT&T has and will incur immediate, irreparable harm if a temporary restraining order is not issued”.

T-Mobile deployed a beta version of Easy Switch at the Formula 1 Heineken Las Vegas Grand Prix on 20 November.

Easy Switch is an AI tool which analyses current AT&T or Verizon accounts before recommending optimal T-Mobile plans.

AT&T sought a temporary restraining order to prevent T-Mobile from using the price comparison tool to access password-protected software without its permission. It implemented security measures to block the first version of Easy Access on 24 November.

After AT&T’s countermeasures, T-Mobile disabled the original Easy Switch on 26 November and replaced it with the current version.

On 5 December, T-Mobile’s counsel told AT&T it “does not intend to revert to the original version of Easy Switch”.

T-Mobile argues AT&T’s lawsuit is moot since it no longer uses the version of Easy Switch which scrapes customer data.

“The threat of harm remains despite T-Mobile’s deactivation of Easy Switch because, as T-Mobile represented on the record, it is T-Mobile’s intent to retain the ability to ‘use something very similar [to the Easy Switch tool] that does the same thing but might be tweaked a little bit differently in the future,’” the ruling stated.

The temporary restraining order will expire at the end of 28 days after it was issued unless AT&T and T-Mobile come to an agreement or by a court order.

The post Judge sides with AT&T in lawsuit against T-Mobile US appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Mobile World Live (MWL) surveyed several industry analysts for their perspectives on what worked in 2025, what did not and where AI is headed in 2026.

This AI panel of experts includes AvidThink founder and principal Roy Chua, Scott Raynovich, founder and principal analyst at research company Futuriom, Appledore founder and principal analyst Patrick Kelly, and Matt Walker, chief analyst at MTN Consulting.

MWL: Is the much talked about AI bubble real or imagined?

Walker: “Most definitely this is a bubble and has been for several quarters. It hasn’t popped because people keep raising the stakes and nobody is willing to back away and pursue a different strategy. Unless they are forced to, as Chinese companies are due to supply chain constraints. That may be a hidden blessing.”

Chua: “There’s definitely a valuation bubble for specific AI companies”.  He noted OpenAI went from $300 billion valuation in March to $500 billion in October this year. “Since the end of 2022, AI-related equities have driven 75 per cent to 80 per cent of the S&P 500’s earnings and total performance. The Bank of England is worried, and even Sam Altman admits investors are ‘overexcited’.

“Nevertheless, the underlying technology demand is very real. Hyperscalers can’t get GPUs fast enough, and the infrastructure buildout looks like the 1990s internet boom again. Over five to ten years, AI will likely have more impact than the internet or mobile but expect some painful corrections along the way.”

Raynovich: “Somewhat yes. The near-term value as expressed in financial markets is overexuberant, but its long-term impact will definitely be profound.”

MWL: 2025 was supposed to be the year of agentic AI, or, more granularly AI agents. Did it live up to the hype?

Kelly: “Early deployments demonstrate that AI agents can deliver measurable improvements when applied to well-defined domains such as RAN optimisation, transport anomaly detection, and fibre fault resolution.

“However, widescale adoption remains constrained. Appledore Research finds that the primary barrier is not model performance but data accessibility and quality. Fragmented data across OSS, network domains, and IT systems limits an agent’s ability to reason accurately and act confidently.”

Raynovich: “I give it a C+. It’s definitely going to be a long-lived technology but there are many things to work out on the compliance and security side.”

Chua: “Not quite, but that’s okay. The ‘year of the agent’ delivered more of a reality check than a revolution. While many organisations experimented with agents, only 17 per cent reached full deployment, per PwC’s Agent AI survey in 2025.

“However, AI agents are rapidly improving, and the state-of-the-art as represented by coding agents has progressed tremendously through 2025.  In general, agents worked great in bounded domains. And we’re seeing them across most telco OSS and BSS systems performing limited tasks well.”

MWL: What are the roadblocks for large-scale AI deployments?

Walker: “It depends on what kind of AI. With generative AI, the predictive, probabilistic nature of the models means that results are different every time they are run.”

“That is a big roadblock for an industry used to certainty and five-nines of reliability.”

Raynovich: “Security, data privacy, governance, and sovereignty.”

Chua: “Data, talent and culture. Few business leaders think their data maturity can support AI at scale, and many we talk to say data management can’t keep pace. We keep hearing that telcos are sitting on decades of siloed systems that don’t talk to each other.”

“The talent gap is brutal, and telcos have a hard time finding the ‘purple squirrels’ who understand both AI and telco. The hyperscalers and model builders are outbidding everyone for pure AI talent.

“Then there’s cultural resistance. At TM Forum’s DTW, industry leaders called it the primary hurdle to network automation. Fix the foundations first, or you’re just doing AI theatre.”

MWL: Are operators deploying AI to make money or save money?

Chua: “Save money. Telco survival demands it. As I shared, the GSMA confirms 75 percent to 80 per cent of deployments target cost reduction.

“But the pivot is starting. Deutsche Telekom is building a €1 billion ‘AI Factory’ with Nvidia. SK Telecom is pushing GPU-as-a-service, and T-Mobile US is using AI-powered switching tools to poach competitors’ customers. I think the path is clear: Save first to fund the revenue experiments.”

Walker: “So far it is mostly about cost and time saving. Hopefully next year we will start seeing more revenue growth examples.”

Raynovich: “The initial lift will come on the savings side. The operators that can efficiently connect data centres will see lift on the revenue side as well.”

MWL: Which US operator had the most success deploying AI this year?

Walker: “I would say that T-Mobile US deserves some recognition given the DT group leadership.”

Chua: “Probably T-Mobile, given their much lauded OpenAI-powered IntentCX platform. The T-Life app’s ‘Easy Switch’ feature completes carrier switching in 15 minutes using AI-recommended plans. These efforts are likely contributing to T-Mobile’s continued postpaid net adds that outpace the competition.”

MWL: Which vendor ruled the AI roost in 2025?

Chua: “Nvidia, obviously. They own 80 per cent to 90 per cent of the AI accelerator market. And they are spreading excess cash to give them visibility and influence over the data centre, application, and telco markets. For example, the $1 billion infusion into Nokia and the partnership for 6G AI-RAN help bolster their telecom position.

“Broadcom is also notable for its custom ASICs for Alphabet and Meta, as well as an OpenAI deal that represents 10GW of AI accelerators between 2026 and 2029.”

Raynovich: “Ciena had an epic year.”

Walker: “Ciena is a strong contender. Even if there is an AI bubble, all of these new AI data centres and factories need fibre connectivity, and Ciena is a leader in the space. It has a strong relationship with Meta, for example.

“Plus, Ciena continues to be a leading player in optics/IP in the telco market.”

MWL: What’s next for AI vendors, enterprises and operators?

Raynovich: “We believe the next phase of growth in AI is implementing AI at the edge, implementing new AI-focused data sovereignty and security solutions, and helping enterprises manage their data and AI applications.”

Chua: “Physical AI and edge intelligence. The next killer apps are robots, drones, and autonomous systems that need real-time network connectivity because they can’t process everything on-device.

“Telcos may own the beachfront property for supporting edge intelligence, but they should be cautious given past failings in MEC.

“Sovereign AI clouds are becoming real products. Deutsche Telekom, Orange, and others are wrapping Nvidia compute in national flags for regulated industries. Operators who figure this out could evolve into AI infrastructure providers, but the path will prove treacherous for all save the nimblest of telcos.”

Walker: “Not anytime soon, outside of attention-grabbing trials that don’t scale,” when asked about mass deployments of physical AI for robots or edge devices next year.

The post Analysis: Was AI overhyped or successful in 2025? appeared first on Mobile World Live.

US-based Kodiak AI offers an autonomous driver-as-a-service capability, using its AI-powered virtual driver for long-haul, industrial, and defence trucking applications. Its system enables continuous, driverless operations, supported by AI.

The company’s assisted autonomy capability is enabled by Verizon partner Vay Technology, a provider of automotive-grade remote driving technology.

Assisted autonomy enables remote human assistance in low-speed or clearly defined situations, with low latency across long distances in remote areas.

Use cases for the partnership include over-the-air software updates, remote fleet management and remote assistance for Kodiak’s long-haul trucking and industrial operations.

Kodiak AI is using Verizon Business’ 5G telematics and its ThingSpace IoT platform to manage the massive amount of date generated from its driverless trucks.

The collaboration also leverages Verizon’s 5G and LTE networks to provision Kodiak’s advanced data capabilities.

The post Verizon drives data for autonomous truck company appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Chief product officer Scott Lawrence detailed the debut of its 5G Network Slice, Enhanced Internet service in an article, explaining it provides enterprise-grade internet with 45Mb/s on the uplink and 200Mb/s down, priority access during congestion and no data caps.

Lawrence highlighted service level agreements based on the consistent connectivity provided by FWA, along with low latency for cloud applications and large file transfers.

He pitched the service as ideal for AI-centric workloads which require constant data ingestion.

Businesses handling AI inference, computer vision and machine learning stand to benefit from constant, high-capacity data ingestion from edge to cloud, Lawrence stated.

“If you work in an industry now inundated with AI-generated data or invested in highly automated, AI-optimised dataflow from edge to cloud or among multiple worksites, you now have a convenient, wireless internet solution with the two-way transport capacity and reliability to underpin your operation.”

Verticals cited as likely targets include media and entertainment, construction, distribution and healthcare. 

Lawrence stated the FWA service is suitable for businesses of all sizes, with remote management through the Verizon Business Internet Portal.

The service is available in select areas throughout the US, with availability expanding on a rolling basis. It adds to a video calling service launched in December 2024 and an emergency services option deployed in April.

The post Verizon extends 5G network slicing portfolio appeared first on Mobile World Live.

The collaboration aims to deliver at least 245 megawatts and potentially up to 2,295 megawatts of AI data centre capacity for Anthropic by utilising high-performance clusters managed by Fluidstack.

Hut 8 inked a 15-year, $7 billion lease with Fluidstack for the initial 245-megawatt facility in the US state of Louisiana. Google is providing the financial backing, which covers lease payments and related pass-through obligations.

The partnership is across three tranches. In the first, Hut 8 and Fluidstack will develop an initial 245 megawatts of IT capacity, supported by 330 megawatts of utility capacity.

In the second, Hut 8 stated it could increase the computing capacity by an additional 1,000 megawatts.

In the third tranche, Anthropic and Hut 8 could develop up to 1,050 megawatts of additional capacity at the latter’s other US sites.

The companies stated the partnership is notable for its scale, phased approach and the alignment of power, digital infrastructure and compute resources to support energy-intensive AI models. 

In November, Anthropic revealed a plan to spend $50 billion on the buildout of custom data centres across the US to better compete against AI rivals Meta Platforms, OpenAI, Microsoft and Google.

The post Anthropic signs fresh US data centre deal appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Osborne stated on LinkedIn he is now managing director and chief of its “OpenAI for Countries” project which includes the expansion of Stargate while ensuring AI systems are built on democratic values.

Osborne’s remit also includes supporting local innovation ecosystems, education and infrastructure. He starts his new job next month and will be based in London.

He served as the UK’s chancellor of the exchequer from 2010 to 2016.

Osborne’s appointment follows OpenAI rival Anthropic hiring former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a paid senior advisor in October.

OpenAI also hired former Google executive Albert Lee as its VP of corporate development as part of a plan to expand its AI efforts.

AI companies OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Google have engaged in an AI hiring spree this year, which has including attracting employees from each other.

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The multi-year agreement allows Verizon to collocate on a large number of Array Digital Infrastructure’s tower sites. The operator stated the deal features a streamlined pricing structure, which is expected to deliver cost efficiency and long-term stability for Verizon.

According to Phillip French, VP of engineering at Verizon, the partnership is a key part of the company’s network tower management strategy, providing flexibility and accelerating the deployment of advanced wireless technologies for customers nationwide.

Array Digital Infrastructure was formed in November after UScellular reached a $4.4 billion deal to sell most of its wireless assets to T-Mobile US in 2025. The new entity operates 4,400 towers across 19 US states.

As of 30 September, former UScellular parent Telephone and Data Systems owned approximately 82 per cent of Array Digital Infrastructure. It claims to be the fifth-largest tower company in the US, according to its website.

The post Verizon inks tower deal with Array Digital Infrastructure appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Financial Times (FT) reported the talks were halted last week by the US over the two countries’ “technology prosperity deal” announced in September when Trump made a state visit to the UK.

The news agency noted the deal is designed to increase cooperation between the two countries in areas such as AI, quantum computing and nuclear energy.

A UK official told FT on 15 December the Trump administration is lobbying the UK for concessions across areas which are not part of the technology partnership.

“Our special relationship with the US remains strong and the UK is firmly committed to ensuring the Tech Prosperity Deal delivers opportunity for hardworking people in both countries,” a UK government representative told CNBC.

Government officials countries began discussing terms for Trump’s tariffs in April before reaching an agreement a month later, according to FT.

The post US halts technology trade talks with UK appeared first on Mobile World Live.

The US Tech Force is hiring software engineers, data scientists, project managers and AI experts to work on modernisation projects across government agencies, according to its website.

Participants will work on high-impact technology initiatives including AI implementation, application development, data modernisation and digital service delivery across federal agencies.

Tech Force is designed as an ongoing initiative to continuously bring top technical talent into government service.

The government is partnering with at least 28 tech companies on the programme, including Apple, AMD. Amazon Web Services, Anduril, Dell Technologies, Box, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, Palantir, Oracle, Uber, ServiceNow, and xAI, among others. There are plans for more companies to be added over time.

The private companies can also nominate their employees to do stints of government service.

The US Office of Personnel Management oversees the early-career programme in partnership with other federal agencies such as the US Department of War, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Treasury.

Potential employees can seek to find permanent positions with the agencies or private companies once they complete their two-year terms.

Tech Force stated compensation varies based on experience level and agency placements. Annual salaries are expected to be in the range of $150,000 to $200,000, plus benefits.

The Trump administration is keenly focused on keeping the US ahead of other countries, such as China, on the development of AI.

In July, it unveiled its AI action plan, designed to solidify the US’ position as the global leader.

On 11 December, Trump signed an executive order to blocks states from enforcing their own AI regulations in favour of a single federal rule.

The post Trump launches Tech Force to groom AI talent appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Reuters reported Lee is starting his new role today (16 December), reporting to finance chief Sarah Friar.

The news agency cited comments from OpenAI explaining the move to bring Lee “on board is to ensure we have a senior leader with broad visibility across the company who is empowered to move quickly”.

Lee had an almost 15-year stint at Google, most recently as its senior director of corporate development for Google Cloud and Google DeepMind.

On his LinkedIn profile, Lee states he worked on more than 60 transactions during his career at Google, including strategic investments totalling more than $50 billion. He was involved in work for the company’s $32 billion deal to buy Israeli cybersecurity company Wiz in March.

Top AI companies OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Google have engaged in an AI hiring spree this year, which has including attracting employees from each other.

The post OpenAI snares Google exec to lead corporate development appeared first on Mobile World Live.

The Nemotron 3 family of models consist of three sizes: Nano, Super and Ultra. Nvidia claims they use a hybrid mixture-of-experts (MoE) design, enabling high throughput and scalability across multi-agent systems.

The models are optimised for low inference costs and high performance, making them ideal for tasks like software debugging, content summarisation, AI assistant workflows and information retrieval.

The company stated the launch of the Nemotron 3 models address the aggressive acceleration of industry adoption of agentic AI applications which require reasoning and tool orchestration.

Nvidia stated organisations are shifting away from single model chatbots to collaborative multi-agent AI systems.

Launching today (15 December), Nvidia explained Nano delivers four times higher throughput than its predecessor and excels in multi-agent tasks with a 1-million-token context window.

The Super model combines 100 billion parameters with 10 billion active parameters. It is designed to provide mid-range intelligence for multi-agent applications.

Finally, Ultra, a large reasoning engine with 500 billion parameters with 50 billion active parameters, delivers more powerful advanced reasoning for complex workflows.

The Super and Ultra models are expected to be available in the first half of 2026

Early adopters include Accenture, Deloitte, EY, Oracle, Palantir, Perplexity, ServiceNow, Siemens, Synopsys, and Zoom. Those companies are using the Nemotron models for AI workflows in manufacturing, cybersecurity, software, media, and communications.

Reuters reported the new family also positions Nvidia to better compete against a growing number of open-source models from companies such as DeepSeek, Alibaba and Moonshot AI.

Meta Platforms has been a big proponent of open source through its Llama large language models (LLMs) but Bloomberg reported it is mulling a shift to towards closed-source models.

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Markus noted fine-tuned SMLS are key for unlocking value in mature agentic offerings and stated businesses “will understand the importance of their own data in driving AI value”.

“The large language and reasoning models will often handle the master control of an agentic workflow, but the purpose-built SLMs very adequately deliver the required accuracy and efficiency when trained for their dedicated job within the agentic workflow,” he explained.

Markus provided several AI-related predictions for next year in a blog post, all of which are largely due to the combination of AI agents and AI-fuelled coding.

He stated AI-fuelled coding will be the next major methodology for developers, enabling them to cut development phases from weeks to minutes.

“With AI-fuelled coding, developers will start to wear multiple hats in the lifecycle, from product owners to architects, reducing cycle times and time to operation,” Markus stated.

It also helps non-technical teams to develop apps by using plain language prompts to build software prototypes.

Internally, AT&T has used AI coding to curate data products withing 20 minutes while also training it to “adhere to our rigorous code discipline for quality, security and compliance”.

On-demand apps
Also on the 2026 horizon, businesses will start to build on-demand apps supported by AI agents.

“AI-fuelled coding dramatically accelerates software development cycles, making it feasible for a company to build on-demand apps,” Markus said. “Autonomous agents can even independently adapt to new requirements, making redevelopment faster than traditional app cycles.”

He stated while traditional apps will remain, they will be supplemented by agile, AI-driven offerings.

Mobile operators will also offer more AI services, such as fine-tuning, to enterprise customers. Markus noted operators have a long history of working with cloud providers and AI software companies, “giving us a strong foundation in AI services like fine-tuning”.

His last prediction is metrics for AI accuracy, cost and speed will become the focus across every business sector.

“It’s not enough to use AI tools. They have to use them well, with measurable AI results. Accuracy is what drives value, and optimisation is what’s needed for generative and agentic AI to measure up across any use case,” he said.

The post AT&T data chief outlines top AI trends for 2026 appeared first on Mobile World Live.

In addition to the $1 billion sum, Walt Disney will receive warrants to purchase additional equity.

As part of the landmark agreement, OpenAI’s text-to-video Sora AI model will enable users to generate and share short, user-prompted social videos featuring more than 200 characters from Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars. 

The videos will include costumes, props, vehicles, and iconic environments, but exclude talent likenesses and voices, in a move to perhaps stave off protests from actors’ unions.

ChatGPT Images will allow users to create content from Disney’s intellectual property using simple prompts while selected fan-inspired Sora short-form videos will be available for streaming on Disney+.

Sora and ChatGPT Images are expected to launch the fan-inspired videos with Walt Disney’s licensed characters in early 2026.

Walt Disney will use OpenAI’s APIs to build new products and experiences, including for Disney+, and will deploy ChatGPT for its employees.

Walt Disney CEO Robert Iger stated the agreement provides the company with new methods for sharing its content with the world through generative AI but noted it will respect and protect content creators and their works.

Bloomberg reported OpenAI conducted talks with other large film studios such as Comcast’s Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. Discovery about pairing Sora with their content but noted they are hesitant to partner with an AI company.

The deal is subject to final agreements, board approvals and standard closing conditions.

The post Disney to invest $1B in OpenAI, inks licence deal appeared first on Mobile World Live.

The network revamp included more than 2,400 wireless access points to boost coverage across the 76,125-seat stadium. Verizon Business stated the upgrade significantly enhances connectivity for fans and stadium operations.

Fans benefit from fast, reliable public Wi-Fi throughout the stadium, supporting an improved game-day experience.

Verizon Business noted the new network backbone, using a dedicated 6GHz frequency band and WPA3 security, boosts speed, reliability and security for both public and private Wi-Fi.

The network powers point-of-sale systems, surveillance, crowd management, ticketing, and sustainability initiatives.

Ahead of the 2023–2024 season, Verizon also installed 965 antennas for LTE and mmWave 5G coverage, ensuring robust connectivity for fans and staff anywhere in the stadium and parking lot tailgating areas.

It also operates the stadium’s neutral host distributed antenna system (DAS).

Verizon Business CRO Massimo Peselli stated the holistic approach “uses a mix of 5G and advanced technologies to tailor a high-performance connectivity ecosystem,  transforming both front-end and back-office functions”.

The operator has deployed mmWave, CBRS, Wi-Fi, managed private wireless, and 5G across numerous NFL stadiums.

The post Verizon boosts NFL stadium coverage with Wi-Fi 6E appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Research director Sian Morgan stated WLAN revenue in China contracted by double digits.

She stated the Middle East and Africa led market expansion, while most regions rebounded from declines seen in 2024.

The research company reported public cloud-managed WLAN offerings grew at twice the rate of the overall market, driven by higher average selling prices.

On the vendor front, Morgan stated Cisco led by revenue despite being “late to the Wi-Fi 7 party”, due in part to an aggressive pricing strategy.

She noted the latest technology has “ramped faster for Cisco than any prior version of Wi-Fi”.

Morgan told Mobile World Live Cisco sold its first Wi-Fi 7 access point a year after the first North American competitor and almost two years after one commercialised in China.

The post Dell’Oro finds China impact on Q3 WLAN revenue appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Instagram, YouTube, Google Maps, Gmail, and Google’s Gemini trailed WhatsApp in the rankings of free apps.

Apple released its annual list of the most downloaded apps and games for the year yesterday (10 December). The list includes free and premium titles, as well as those included with an Apple Arcade subscription.

ChatGPT ranked fourth in 2024 while shopping app Temu held the top spot. The chatbot failed to crack the top ten in 2023, which is the year it launched.

Block Blast! was the most downloaded free game on iPhone while Minecraft took the top spot as the most purchased game.

YouTube was the number one free app on iPad while creativity app Procreate was the leading paid app. Roblox was the most downloaded free game for iPad.

The post ChatGPT tops Apple free app chart in 2025 appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Freier previously served as the operator’s consumer group president since 2021, but he has a long history with T-Mobile.

He started his career in the telecommunications industry in 1994 with Western Wireless, which became T-Mobile in 2021, according to a recent SEC filing announcing his promotion.

Gopalan mentioned Freier’s new role during an investor conference yesterday (9 December) as part of a plan to align “the organisation behind the strategy”. He assumed the role on 5 December.

A representative for T-Mobile told Mobile World Live the restructuring also included naming Mike Katz as the company’s chief business and product officer,  leading the company’s long-term strategy and planning. His prior role was president of marketing, strategy and product.

Gopalan took over as COO on 1 March after previously serving as a member of T-Mobile’s board of directors since 2022. He replaced Mike Sievert as CEO.

It’s worth noting Sievert served as COO prior to replacing former CEO John Legere in 2020 as part of a planned succession.

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The operator filed its response in a federal court on 8 December. T-Mobile stated the challenge to Easy Switch is irrelevant because it removed a function scraping AT&T customer data four days before the rival initiated its legal action.

AT&T had argued the data was being accessed to encourage customers to switch providers.

T-Mobile stated since ending the scraping, “Easy Switch has only allowed AT&T customers to upload a copy of their wireless bill or manually enter their wireless plan information”.

“AT&T does not allege that this current version of Easy Switch is unlawful or harms it, let alone irreparably so.”

T-Mobile deployed a beta version of Easy Switch at the Formula 1 Heineken Las Vegas Grand Prix on 20 November.

Easy Switch is an AI tool which analyses current AT&T or Verizon accounts before recommending optimal T-Mobile plans. It went live on 1 December.

AT&T sought a temporary restraining order to prevent T-Mobile using a price comparison tool to access secure software without permission.

It implemented security measures to block the access on 24 November.

After AT&T’s countermeasures, T-Mobile disabled the original Easy Switch for its customers on 26 November and replaced it with the current version.

On 5 December, T-Mobile’s counsel told AT&T it “does not intend to revert to the original version of Easy Switch”.

Backed down
T-Mobile’s lawyers stated it dropped the original version because of “AT&T’s dogged efforts to technologically block its customers from taking advantage of the feature and thereby impede their ability to compare the companies’ offerings”.

“These facts resolve the motion.”

“The conduct AT&T challenges is not occurring and AT&T has not objected to the operation of Easy Switch in its current form.”

An AT&T representative told Mobile World Live it appreciates T-Mobile saying it “will stop recklessly scraping customer data for now”.

“We ask that they commit, on the record, to never employing these unlawful tactics that put customers and intellectual property rights at risk again.”

The lawsuit is scheduled to move to an in-person hearing on 16 December in a US district court in the state of Texas.

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Through the formation of the Accenture Anthropic Business Group, approximately 30,000 Accenture professionals will be trained on the AI startup’s Claude AI technologies. The two companies stated the project will boost productivity, streamline code generation and improve software quality.

The multiyear initiative aims to accelerate enterprise AI adoption by providing customers with immediate access to skilled Claude practitioners, reducing deployment risks and speeding up the transition from proof-of-concept projects to full-scale production.

The companies are also developing a joint offering tailored for CIOs which is focused on scaling AI-powered software development across organisations. Key features of the programme include advanced productivity measurement tools, workflow redesign strategies and change management support.

The tie-up follows Accenture’s recent arrangement with Anthropic rival OpenAI to train thousands of the consulting company’s employees on ChatGPT Enterprise.

The post Anthropic, Accenture deepen ties to drive AI appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Under the plan Meta will give users a choice between consenting to share all of their data to enable personalised advertising, or opting to share less and limit the volume of targeted advertising.

“The European Commission acknowledges Meta’s undertaking to offer users in the EU an alternative choice of Facebook and Instagram services that would show them less personalised ads, to comply with the Digital Markets Act,” the EC stated.

The two options will be available to users in the European Union from January 2026. After implementation, the EC will collect feedback and evidence from Meta and other stakeholders to assess the impact and adoption of the new model.

In April 2025 Meta came under fire for its consent-or-pay model rolled out in November 2023 across Facebook and Instagram, which forced users to choose between consenting to personal data usage or paying for an ad-free experience.

The set-up failed to offer an alternative that used less personal data, a measure required by the DMA. As a result, the EC slapped a €228 million fine on the social media giant.

Reuters reported the DMA violation applied to Facebook and Instagram from November 2023 to November 2024.

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In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump said the US would allow the sale of the chips to China and other countries under conditions which allow for “continued strong national security”.

President Trump added Chinese President Xi Jinping responded positively to the move.

The policy does not include Nvidia’s advanced Blackwell and Rubin chips, but also covers AMD, Intel and other US chipmakers.

It requires checks by the Department of Commerce to ensure national security.

The move could keep China-based companies more reliant on US technology standards instead of using domestic AI chips from vendors including Huawei.

Opening sales of its more advanced chip creates huge upside for Nvidia, which excluded sales of its H20 chips to China in recent financial outlooks.

The H200 chip offers significantly more memory bandwidth than the H20, enabling faster data processing for AI applications. However, it is less capable than Nvidia’s flagship Blackwell chips.

Nvidia reconfigured the H200 for China following US export controls on AI chips introduced in October 2023 during President Joe Biden’s term.

The decision by President Trump is similar to deals Nvidia and AMD reached with the US government in August to restart sales of H20 chips to China.

In September, a regulator in China reportedly ordered domestic technology companies to stop buying Nvidia AI chips to support local alternatives.

Reuters reported the prospective compromise follows a recent truce in the US-China trade and tech war, brokered by President Trump and President Xi.

The news agency also reported US senator Elizabeth Warren opposes selling the H200 chips to China.

On 3 December, Warner criticised Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang for lobbying President Trump to approve the sale of advanced AI chips to China.

“This risks turbocharging China’s bid for technological and military dominance and undermining US economic and national security,” Reuters reported the senator as saying.

Additional reporting by Joseph Waring

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Following a recapitalisation initiative in June, the vendor restructured its organisation into two segments: packet core, messaging and security; and voice, radio access technologies.

Previously, Mavenir stated it was scaling back its efforts on radio unit hardware due to the slow uptake of open RAN.

The company’s new roadmap is designed to accelerate the transition from AI-integrated networks where AI augments specific functions, to AI-native networks. The latter includes embedding intelligence into the core architecture for full automation and real-time optimisation.

As part of the new operating model, Mavenir appointed employees to key roles effective immediately: Uli Dopfer as EVP and CFO, overseeing finance, strategic planning, and HR; Michael Cooper,  EVP and GM of packet core, security and messaging, and digital enablement R&D; Santhosh Kumar, EVP and GM of platform and cloud, platform engineering and cloud transformation; Sachin Karkala, EVP and GM of IMS and RAN with a focus on AI-native evolution; Dejan Leskaroski, EVP and CRO; Michael Cooper, EVP and GM of packet core, security and messaging and digital enablement R&D; Santhosh Kumar, EVP and GM of platform and cloud, leading platform engineering and cloud transformation; and Sachin Karkala, EVP and GM of IMS and RAN.

Mavenir also noted EVP and CFO Terry Hungle; Bahram Jalalizadeh, EVP, head of sales and marketing; Ashok Khuntia, president of core networks; and Anup Mahajan, SVP of engineering, will leave their jobs at the end of January 2026.

Hungle will become special advisor to the board of directors while Jalalizadeh will continue as a consultant. 

Mavenir president and CEO Pardeep Kohli stated with the new executives and sharper strategic focus the company is “well-positioned to deliver innovation and exceptional value for our customers”.

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“I will be doing a one rule Executive Order this week,” he stated in a Truth Social post. “We are beating all countries at this point in the race, but that won’t last long if we are going to have 50 states, many of them bad actors, involved in rules and the approval process.

The Financial Times reported Trump is facing opposition from members of his own political party and supporters over the order, who contend the President is favouring big tech such as Apple, Meta Platforms and Amazon which have donated to various projects.

“You can’t expect a company to get 50 Approvals every time they want to do something,” Trump stated. “That will never work!”

While he did not provide any additional details on his forthcoming executive order, Reuters reported Trump has threatened to withhold federal funding from states which do not comply or file lawsuits against them.

The news agency noted President Trump’s order will likely face opposition from various states.

In July, the Trump administration revealed its AI action plan, designed to solidify the US’ position as the global leader in the face of competition from countries such as China.

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Fowler will report directly to CEO Kate Johnson and will oversee global technology and product strategy, focusing on evolving the company’s network, digital platforms and product portfolio.

The executive is familiar with the company, having served as member of Lumen’s board of directors since 2023 and contributed to the company’s transformation strategy. Fowler will step down from the board when his commences his new position.

Fowler stated Lumen “has a unique opportunity to strengthen its position as the trusted network for AI”.

Prior to this appointment, Fowler was EVP and CTO at Nationwide Insurance, where he led modernisation and digital transformation efforts. He also held senior technology roles at General Electric and began his career at AT&T and Accenture.

Ward is exiting the company to become president and chief architect at Salesforce but will remain at Lumen until 23 January to ensure a smooth transition.

The post Lumen Technologies names next CTO appeared first on Mobile World Live.

The social media giant is partnering with major news outlets including CNN, Fox News, Fox Sports, Le Monde Group, People, The Washington Examiner, and USA Today to provide global breaking news, entertainment and lifestyle stories on its Meta AI chatbot.

Meta Platforms plans to add news partnerships and features in the future.

The company stated in a blog when users ask Meta AI questions, they receive direct links to partner articles “to help you discover timely and relevant content tailored to your interests”.

“We’re committed to making Meta AI more responsive, accurate and balanced.”

“Real-time events can be challenging for current AI systems to keep up with, but by integrating more and different types of news sources, our aim is to improve Meta AI’s ability to deliver timely and relevant content and information with a wide variety of viewpoints and content types.”

During the company’s Q3 earnings call in October, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the chatbot had more than 1 billion active monthly users and he expects usage to increase as it improves its AI models.

Rival OpenAI has also struck various content deals to train ChatGPT to answer questions and provide summaries of news articles.

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Under terms of the deal, WBD shareholders will receive $27.75 a share in cash and stock in Netflix for an enterprise value of approximately $82.7 billon.

The deal is slated to close following the separation of Warner Bros Discovery’s global networks division, Discovery Global, into a newly public company, which is projected for completion in Q3 2026.

Netflix stated Discovery Global will include entertainment, sports and news television brands around the world such as CNN, TNT Sports in the UD, and Discovery, free-to-air channels across Europe, as well as digital products such as Discovery+ and Bleacher Report.  

Netflix was founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph. It initially operated as a DVD-by-mail rental service before launching its streaming service in 2007. Netflix currently reaches 301.6 million global customers

If the deal passes regulatory muster, Netflix will also own WBD’s film and television studios, HBO Max and HBO.

Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters stated the WBD deal “will improve our offering and accelerate our business for decades to come”.

The transaction would unite two entertainment leaders, merging Netflix’s in-house movies and series with WBD shows such as The Big Bang Theory, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Wizard of Oz, and the DC Universe.

The deal will need to gain regulatory approval from the administration of US President Donald Trump and other entities.

US Senator Mike Lee posted on X two days ago (3 December) the transaction will “raise serious competition questions”.

“Learning about Netflix’s ambition to buy its real competitive threat, WBD’s streaming business, should send alarm to antitrust enforcers around the world,” Less stated.

Various news sites reported Comcast and Paramount Skydance also attempted to buy WBD after it announced the sale in October.

Analyst viewpoints
Roger Entner, founder and analyst at Recon Analytics, told Mobile World Live (MWL) the deal will face regulatory scrutiny across the US and European Union because it “significantly increases horizontal SVOD concentration”.

“It could lead to vertical foreclosure of Warner or HBO no longer providing their content to Netflix rivals,” he explained. “There are issues around portfolio and gatekeeper power.”

He noted if the deal is completed, a single company becomes the dominant gateway for both production and distribution of premium filmed entertainment, “with spillover effects on adjoining markets” including theatrical, licensing and consumer devices.

“The Skydance deal would have been much easier to get through as it involves smaller players and not the market leader,” Entner stated. “I just think [WBD CEO David] Zaslav didn’t want to retire and he engineered this to remain a major figure in Hollywood instead of being a major figure on the golf course.”

Forrester research director Mike Proulx told MWL if the “deal makes it through regulatory approval, Netflix will cement itself as the Goliath of streaming services now with the combined weight of HBO Max and the content studios behind it all”.

“This deal changes the calculus of the streaming wars, representing a seismic shift in the entertainment industry,” he said.

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Toronto, Canada-based Lumine Group will acquire Synchronoss for $9 per share, a roughly 70 per cent premium to the stock’s 3 December closing price. The companies stated the deal implies an enterprise value of $258.4 million.

Lumine Group will broaden its reach in North America and globally, accessing Synchronoss’ established customer base and expanding its product offerings.

The deal also marks Lumine Group’s first public company acquisition.

The purchase will include Synchronoss’ white-label cloud platform and its advanced consumer cloud offering.

 It follows Lumine Group’s previous acquisition of Synchronoss’ Messaging and NetworkX businesses in 2023

Synchronoss, which stores more than 200 petabytes of data and serves millions of customers globally, will keep its brand and remain based in Bridgewater, New Jersey.

Founded in 2000, Synchronoss has evolved from a service activation company to a portfolio focused on Tier 1 operator-branded personal cloud services.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals. Synchronoss will be delisted from the Nasdaq stock exchange after the acquisition closes.

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Bloomberg reported Meta Platforms executives are mulling a 30 per cent budget cut for the metaverse sector in 2026 across Meta Horizon Worlds and its Quest VR division.

The news site noted those reductions will most likely include layoffs as early as next month, although a final decision is still pending.

During Meta Platforms’ annual budget meeting last month, Zuckerberg tasked executives to make 10 per cent reductions across the company, but Bloomberg reported it is a similar ask from previous budget cycles the last few years.

The news site’s sources stated the company is making deeper cuts to the metaverse sector because Meta Platforms has not faced the level of competition it previously expected.

Bloomberg reported the bulk of the proposed cuts are mostly likely to take place across its VR group, which accounts for most of the metaverse related expenditures.

Zuckerberg has been a big proponent of creating the metaverse, which is why he changed the company’s name from Facebook to Meta Platforms in 2021.

The company’s Reality Labs is home to its AR and VR technologies, but it has continued to lose billions of dollars.

A representative for Meta Platforms told Mobile World Live the company is shifting some of its investment from the metaverse toward AI glasses and wearables “given the momentum there”.

“We aren’t planning any broader changes than that,” the representative stated.

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Bloomberg reported Dye is being replaced by Stephen Lemay, who lists his title on LinkedIn as UI designer.

Prior to leaving, Dye was VP of human design at Apple. Dye took over Apple’s user interface design team in 2015 after former designer Jony Ive was named chief design officer.

Ive left Apple in 2019 before selling his AI-device company to OpenAI in May for $6.4 billion.

Dye worked on projects such as iPhone, iPad, Mac, Watch, TV, Vision Pro, and the recently introduced Liquid Glass, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Bloomberg stated Dye has also been helping Apple develop a range of smart home devices.

The news agency reported Meta Platforms is building a new studio with Dye in charge of design for hardware, software and AI integration of its interfaces.

Dye reports to CTO Andrew Bosworth, who leads Meta’s beleaguered Reality Labs division which develops wearables such as virtual reality headsets and smart glasses.

Dye will start his job as chief design officer on 31 December.

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