Orange advances towards full ownership of Spanish JV

What happened: Orange signed a binding agreement to acquire the remaining 50 per cent stake in its Spanish JV MasOrange from partner Lorca for €4.3 billion, moving towards full ownership of the business.

Why it matters: The transaction follows an initial agreement reached at the end of October and is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions, with completion expected in the first half of 2026. Orange said the deal would accelerate its strategy and strengthen its position in Spain, its second-largest European market. The operator added the deal “confirms its long-term industrial commitment” in the country and its “confidence in MasOrange and its management to create value for all stakeholders”. CFO Laurent Martinez said the acquisition “marks a decisive step in strengthening Orange’s leadership in Europe”, citing MasOrange’s scale of more than 30 million customers. MasOrange was created last year through a merger of Masmovil and Orange’s Spanish operation, following Lorca’s acquisition of Masmovil in 2020. Thomas Railhac, partner at Lorca backer Cinven, said the deal punctuates MasOrange’s “transformational growth story” of becoming Spain’s largest mobile operator, with its enterprise value rising from €5 billion to more than €20 billion.

US halts technology trade talks with UK

What happened: The US suspended technology-related trade talks with the UK, halting progress on a bilateral “technology prosperity deal” agreed during US President Donald Trump’s state visit to Britain in September.

Why it matters: According to the BBC, Trump’s administration paused discussions last week amid frustration over the pace of wider trade negotiations as the US lobbies for concessions beyond the scope of the technology partnership. The agreement, designed to boost cooperation in areas including AI, quantum computing and nuclear energy, reportedly also included £31 billion in investments from US heavyweights including Microsoft, Nvidia and Google. Despite the setback, a spokesman for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told the publication the UK remains in “active conversations with US counterparts at all levels of government”, while cautioning that “negotiations of this kind are never straightforward”. Allie Renison, director of communications company SEC Newgate UK, told the BBC the impasse reflected the countries’ “slightly piecemeal approach” to trade deals. “Instead of having everything done at once, different areas are being linked to different parts,” she said, adding that concerns in other trade areas were feeding into technology talks. While questions remain over the pledged investments, Renison argued the disruption was unlikely to be more than “a bit of posturing in the wider negotiations”.

Ericsson, stc strike deal to drive digital in Saudi Arabia

What happened: Ericsson signed a five-year agreement with stc to support the development of Saudi Arabia’s digital infrastructure, with a focus on 5G hardware and software, cloud-native technologies and advanced AI capabilities.

Why it matters: Under the agreement, stc will use Ericsson’s latest portfolio to accelerate its 5G expansion and advance the rollout of standalone (SA) 5G, 5G-Advanced and massive MIMO. The operator said SA 5G features, including network slicing, will enable it to deliver differentiated connectivity across a range of consumer and enterprise use cases, supporting its aim to develop a “scalable, resilient and future-ready mobile network”. The partnership also aims to support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 government programme, alongside longer-term readiness for 6G and self-optimising networks. Abdullah Alowini, supply chain VP at stc, said the agreement will help accelerate enterprise innovation and support the country’s ambition to “build a globally competitive digital economy”. Ericsson and stc have a long-standing partnership, which has included the rollout of one of the country’s first 5G networks in 2019. The deal also strengthens Ericsson’s presence in a strategically important market, following its announcement earlier this year its new Middle East and Africa headquarters will be in Riyadh.

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UPC Slovakia is one of the country’s largest providers of TV, broadband and fixed services, reaching more than 600,000 households in 80 cities. Its fibre network supports broadband speeds of up to 2.5Gbps.

The price equates to around seven times UPC Slovakia’s estimated 2025 adjusted EBITDA, Liberty Global noted in a statement on the sale.

O2 Slovakia is part of e& PPF Telecom Group. GSMA Intelligence estimated mobile connection numbers for Q3 place it as the second largest mobile operator in the market, behind Orange’s local operation.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval.

For Liberty Global, the move comes as it continues to review its assets. In August, CEO Mike Fries signalled the company was exploring deals, following the spin-off of Swiss operator Sunrise last year.

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According to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg, Yao will report directly to Tencent president Martin Lau and head the company’s newly formed AI Infrastructure Department.

The AI Infrastructure Department, Tencent’s new research and development unit, sits within the company’s Technology Engineering Group (TEG), which has established two fresh units to focus on large-model training, inference platforms and full-stack data and machine learning services as competition intensifies across the sector.

Yao was also appointed head of TEG’s large language model development, reporting to the group’s president Lu Shan. He reportedly joined Tencent earlier this year after a nearly two-year stint at OpenAI. Yao’s previous roles include positions at Google, Microsoft and Princeton University while his research background spans AI agents and large-scale systems.

South China Morning Post reported that as part of its AI overhaul, Tencent also dissolved its Machine Learning Platform department and redistributed staff across the newly created teams. In addition, the company renamed its existing data platform team and reassigned staff to better align data services with model training and deployment.

At a recent earnings call, Lau reportedly said Tencent was recruiting more top-level AI researchers to strengthen its Hunyuan model family.

Yao’s appointment comes as global competition for AI talent intensifies. Earlier this month, Meta Platforms made headlines for recruiting a senior Apple design expert while OpenAI nabbed a Google executive to lead as its VP of corporate development.

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The study, which surveyed around 2,000 businesses and decision-makers across the US and Europe, found networks must evolve rapidly to keep pace with increasingly complex AI workloads. In the US, 88 per cent of respondents said infrastructure limitations could restrict AI’s scale, compared with 78 per cent in Europe.

According to Nokia, AI is “redefining network requirements”, with traffic patterns shifting away from traditional downlink-heavy consumer use towards uplink-intensive data flows. Applications such as autonomous vehicles, smart factories and remote healthcare generate large volumes of data at the edge that must be sent upstream for processing, placing pressure on networks originally designed for browsing and video streaming.

In Europe, 86 per cent of enterprises believe today’s networks are not yet ready for mass AI adoption. While two-thirds of enterprises surveyed already have AI in live use, more than half are already experiencing downtime, latency and throughput constraints. Security concerns are also rising as more than 80 per cent of businesses across sectors believe AI is introducing risks, with cybersecurity emerging as the top AI use case.

Competitiveness is another pressure point. Nearly 29 per cent of European enterprise leaders warned infrastructure constraints could force them to move AI workloads abroad, potentially undermining the continent’s digital sovereignty.

Reshaped industries
To address these concerns, respondents called for regulatory simplification, spectrum availability and greater investment in energy-efficient, AI-ready networks across the continent.

In the US, respondents highlighted the need to optimise bi-directional data flows, expand fibre capacity and deploy low-latency edge infrastructure. Despite leading global AI adoption, most US respondents remain concerned infrastructure upgrades may lag behind.

“The first wave of the AI supercycle has already reshaped industries and accelerated innovation,” noted Pallavi Mahajan, chief technology and AI officer at Nokia. According to her, the research shows “a clear understanding across the ecosystem that future waves will demand more advanced, AI-native networks”, with “connectivity, capacity, and low-latency performance” becoming increasingly critical.

Looking ahead, the Finnish vendor called for closer collaboration and more predictable regulation to enable timely network investment as AI demand accelerates.

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In a field test in the Akmolinskaya region, Beeline Kazakhstan CEO Evgeniy Nastradin and Kazakhstan’s deputy prime minister Zhaslan Madiyev successfully placed a WhatsApp audio call to Veon Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu using a standard 4G smartphone with a Beeline SIM. The pair also exchanged SMS messages and WhatsApp texts over the satellite link.

The operator hailed the milestone as particularly significant for Kazakhstan, the world’s ninth-largest country by land area where remote and sparsely populated regions present long-standing coverage challenges.

Madiyev stated the technology will prove crucial for national resilience, making it possible to stay connected “in places where traditional infrastructure is unavailable: in the mountains, the steppe, forests, and across long distances”. “For our country, given its geography, this is more than just a convenience – it is an important safety measure,” he added.

Last month, Veon’s Ukrainian operator Kyivstar switched on Starlink’s D2D service in the country, marking a Europe first and attracting 300,000 users in the first 24 hours of its launch. “First in Ukraine and now in Kazakhstan, we are demonstrating how terrestrial networks and satellite platforms can operate as one integrated system,” explained Terzioglu.

Beeline Kazakhstan plans to introduce Starlink D2D connectivity for customers starting with SMS services in 2026, subject to regulatory approval.

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In a letter to employees, Netflix co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos said the company’s stance on the tie-up “hasn’t changed”, arguing it would “offer consumers more choice and value” and “fuel our long-term growth”.

Earlier this month, the streaming group struck a a $72 billion deal with WBD for its TV, film studios and streaming assets. Days later, Paramount launched a hostile $108.4 billion bid for the entire company, arguing Netflix’s deal offers “inferior and uncertain value”. Peters and Sarandos described the rival move as “entirely expected”, but stressed that Netflix has “a solid deal in place”.

On regulatory scrutiny, the executives said they remains confident in securing approvals, arguing the deal is “great for our shareholders, great for consumers and a strong way to create and protect jobs in the industry”. They pointed to data from American media audience measurement company Nielsen showing that Netflix’s US view share would rise from 8 per cent to 9 per cent post-transaction, “still well behind YouTube (13 per cent) and a potential Paramount/WBD combination (14 per cent)”.

However, attorneys have cautioned that regulators may not view Netflix and YouTube as direct competitors, given the differences in their content and business models, Reuters reported.

Netflix also played down fears over job cuts, stating WBD would bring “businesses and capabilities we don’t have”, resulting in “no overlap or studio closures”.

The group said a dedicated internal team is managing the transaction while the broader business remains focused on its longer-term growth ambitions.

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Under the deal, Orange Money customers can generate a virtual Visa card directly through the operator’s Max it app. The card can be funded at any time from an Orange Money account and used for secure online payments on local and international websites. A physical card option is expected to follow at authorised Orange Money outlets.

The tie-up builds on existing deployments of the service in Botswana, Madagascar and Jordan, where the partnership has now been renewed. It also follows a successful new launch of the Orange Money Visa virtual card in the West African country of Cote d’Ivoire.

The partners now plan to expand the service into additional markets including Guinea, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Orange Money CEO Thierry Millet said the tie-up “will help make Orange Money a widely accepted payment method” across the continent.

Ismahill Diaby, VP and general manager for Western and Central Francophone and Lusophone Africa at Visa noted the partnership will help “bring the advantages of the digital economy to millions of people across Africa”.

“By combining Visa’s trusted technology with Orange Money’s local reach, this partnership offers a simple, secure way for more people and small businesses to pay online – helping them participate confidently in everyday commerce,” he added.

Orange serves more than 173 million customers across 17 African countries, with 45 million active Orange Money accounts.

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Sitting on the shores of Songshan Lake in Dongguan, Huawei’s 300-acre Ox Horn Campus opened in 2018 and is divided into 12 zones modelled after European towns and cities including Budapest, Prague, Oxford and Burgundy. With lifelike European architecture, iconic landmarks and lakeside lawns, the site blends leisure with function. While employees can enjoy an impressive array of facilities including restaurants, libraries, hotels, an art gallery and even an on-campus tram system, the immersive facility unexpectedly houses the company’s most intensive research programmes.

Alan Fan (pictured), head of Huawei’s intellectual property rights department, told MWL: “At our core, we are an innovation company. Our sustained investment in R&D, protected and propelled by a robust IPR framework, is what fuels our progress.”

The tour moved between several of the village clusters, with research teams spread across multiple buildings that combine offices, labs, meeting halls and research units. The Ox Horn campus brings together teams working across computing, AI, optical networks, wireless systems and intelligent driving.

The company’s R&D efforts span foundational mathematical logic, algorithm theory, core signal-processing frameworks and applied domains such as advanced wireless communications, optical networking and systems integration. Within wireless research, Huawei pointed to advanced work in areas such as massive MIMO and AI-assisted radio resource management, all aimed at improving spectrum efficiency and network coverage.

AI and computing form a major pillar of the vendor’s innovation. Huawei continues to invest heavily in its computing platforms, with research covering model training, inference efficiency and distributed computing architectures. These efforts underpin the company’s wider push into AI across networks, cloud infrastructure, devices and automotive platforms.

According to Fan, the company’s intense research focus is what “drives us toward our goal to build a fully connected, intelligent world and deliver greater value for customers and society”.

Innovation in action
During the visit, Huawei pointed to a number of industrial deployments born from its innovation efforts. One example is its work with Tianjin Port in China, where the company’s Smart Port Solution, integrating technology including intelligent twins, autonomous driving, 5G, cloud computing and IoT, created a centralised autonomous system connecting the various port functions. “We created a next-generation ‘intelligent port brain’,” noted Yang Rong, General Manager of Tianjin Port Second Container Terminal Co, adding it optimised loading plans, equipment management and dispatch services. Huawei claims the port houses “the largest driverless fleet seen to date, comprised of 76 vehicles”.

Meanwhile, at the Yimin open-pit mine in Inner Mongolia, a fleet of 100 autonomous electric mining trucks powered by Huawei’s 5G-Advanced network entered large-scale operation earlier this year. Operating under extreme conditions, the vehicles are supported by speeds of 500 Mb/s uplink and low latency to enable continuous, coordinated fleet operation, real-time 8K video transmission and remote truck control.

Separately, Huawei’s Pangu AI models, slated for copying rival AI models earlier this year, now support more than 400 scenarios across over 30 industries. In intelligent driving, vehicles powered by its advanced driving system travelled more than 1.4 billion kilometres with assisted driving activated in 2024.

R&D ambitions
Indeed, Huawei’s latest R&D numbers reflects the scale ambition of its ambitions. In 2024, Huawei invested CNY179.7 billion ($25.5 billion), or 20.8 per cent of total revenue, while cumulative R&D investment over the past decade has now surpassed CNY1.2 trillion. More than 113,000 employees, or 54.1 per cent of the workforce, are engaged in R&D roles.

The company also remains one of the world’s largest patent holders, with more than 150,000 active granted patents globally. At its Innovation and Intellectual Property Forum in Beijing last month, the company revealed it raked in $630 million in patent licensing revenue.

Huawei’s research push continues despite ongoing pressure from US export controls, which have limited its access to advanced manufacturing tools and partners.

Chief legal officer Liuping Song acknowledged the impact during a media roundtable, noting the company’s chip production “has been affected” and that its process technology will “remain behind the industry” for some time.

He stressed the company is prioritising end-to-end capability over any single component, arguing that customers ultimately care about the performance of the entire computing cluster rather than individual chips, adding Huawei’s strengths in connectivity can offset manufacturing constraints.

Looking ahead, Fan said the company expects its patent revenue to rise in 2026, pointing to increased “recognition in the industry of our technologies”, including Wi-Fi, 5G, audio and video.

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Paramount launches $108B WBD bid to rival Netflix

What happened: Paramount Skydance launched a hostile $108.4 billion bid to acquire the entirety of WBD, including its Global Networks segment and traditional TV assets, days after Netflix agreed an $82.7 billion deal for parts of the company.

Why it matters: In a statement, Paramount described its proposal as a “superior alternative” to Netflix’s transaction, arguing it delivers $18 billion more in cash and avoids “inferior and uncertain value”. It also warned Netflix’s deal could face a “protracted multi-jurisdictional regulatory clearance process”. Dave Ellison, chairman and CEO, added Paramount provides a “more certain and quicker path to completion”. The bidding war for WBD intensifies regulatory scrutiny around competitiveness and consolidation in streaming. US President Donald Trump stated the Netflix, WBD tie up “could be a problem” given Netflix’s hefty market share, while US Senator Mike Lee cautioned the deal would “raise serious competition questions”. Roger Entner, founder and analyst at Recon Analytics, told MWL a combined group would become the “dominant gateway for both production and distribution of premium filmed entertainment”, with “spillover effects on adjoining markets”.

Australians seek alternatives as social media ban takes hold

What happened: Australia’s ban on under-16s using major social media platforms came into force this week, prompting a surge in alternative app downloads as younger users sought ways around the new rules.

Why it matters: Demand for VPN services also spiked, with Top10VPN reporting a 103 per cent rise compared with the previous 28-day average. Under the law, platforms including TikTok, Instagram and Facebook must block underage accounts or face penalties of up to AUD49.5 million ($33 million). Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese argued the move is a “profound reform” aimed at “pushing back against big tech”, framing the legislation as a response to families affected by serious online harms. He added “the world is watching and following”, stating that the move will “continue to reverberate around the world in coming months”. Although some social media platforms have complied, Reddit filed a free speech lawsuit against the country. Researchers have also warned of potential risks; Professor Jessica Ringrose of University College London argued an outright ban is “problematic” because it “neglects young people’s rights and voice” and may erode trust, making children “less able to access support”. She said stronger media-literacy policies, supported jointly by schools and parents, are better suited to addressing fast-moving issues such as AI, privacy and consent.

Nvidia H200 China chip sales cleared

What happened: In a regulatory U-turn, the US government cleared Nvidia to resume exports of its H200 AI chips to approved customers in China, imposing a 25 per cent levy and vetting by the Department of Commerce to ensure national security.

Why it matters: The decision reverses earlier restrictions on advanced AI chips and follows a recent easing in US-China tech tensions. President Donald Trump announced the move on Truth Social, stating the US would permit sales under conditions ensuring “continued strong national security”. The approval excludes Nvidia’s latest Blackwell and Rubin lines, but also covers products from AMD and Intel. The H200 offers significantly more memory bandwidth than Nvidia’s previously permitted H20, giving Chinese buyers access to faster AI processing while remaining below top-tier US hardware. Indeed, the shift creates a major commercial opening for Nvidia, which had removed China-related H200 revenue from recent financial outlooks. The Wall Street Journal estimated Nvidia could stand to gain up to $5 billion in quarterly orders without geopolitical restrictions. The clearance may also slow Chinese adoption of domestic alternatives from vendors such as Huawei. However, some critics argue the policy risks accelerating China’s progress toward advanced AI systems. According to Reuters, US senator Elizabeth Warren warned the decision “risks turbocharging China’s bid for technological and military dominance and undermining US economic and national security”. This week, Nvidia also rebuffed media reports claiming Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek had used banned Blackwell chips to train its latest model.

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In its latest Online Nation 2025 report, the regulator found that visits to ChatGPT increased by 156 per cent year-on-year in August, contributing to 1.8 billion UK visits in the first eight months of 2025, up from 368 million in same period of 2024.

Rival AI chatbots also saw traction, though from smaller bases.

Google’s Gemini saw UK visits rise 146 per cent, while Anthropic’s Claude grew 138 per cent and Perplexity increased 100 per cent in the year to August 2025. Ofcom did not break out how many visits these figures equated to.

Ofcom said search practices are moving away from conventional link-based pages toward AI-powered, chat-style interactions, finding early evidence that users who see AI summaries are less likely to click through to original content, reducing publisher traffic.

In addition, the adoption of AI summaries from services such as Google’s AI Overviews has become embedded into mainstream search use. Ofcom noted that 30 per cent of keyword searches now deliver AI-supported responses, encouraging passive user adoption.

Looking ahead, the regulator predicted genAI “will continue to become an increasingly important component of search” as “rapidly evolving AI-tools, fast user adoption and unprecedented levels of investment” spur growth and innovation.

Online activity
Overall online engagement also continues to rise as UK adults spent an average of four and a half hours online each day in 2025, up 10 minutes from last year. More than half of that time was spent within services owned by Alphabet and Meta Platforms.

Yet, Meta edged ahead of Alphabet in total time spent, with online adults averaging 1 hour 10 minutes per day on Meta-owned apps. Facebook and Messenger were used by 93 per cent of online adults and WhatsApp by 90 per cent, while Instagram continued to grow in reach and engagement.

However, Alphabet-owned YouTube remains the dominant individual platform across the country. Users accessed the video platform for an average of 51 minutes per day on smartphones, tablets and PCs, with Ofcom noting YouTube overtook Google Search in reach.

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According to Bloomberg, Apple’s app store rankings showed TikTok-backed Lemon8 as the most downloaded free app in Australia, followed by private photo-sharing service Yope and Coverstar, which positions itself as “the safest alternative to TikTok” for children aged 9 to 16.

Market intelligence company SensorTower reportedly found Coverstar’s usage in Australia jumped 488 per cent compared with the same period last year, while Chinese-owned app Rednote recorded a 37 per cent increase in weekly active users.

At the same time, demand for VPNs, a potential method for bypassing restrictions, rose 103 per cent in the country compared with the daily average of the previous 28 days, Top10VPN statistics showed.

Profound reform
Australia’s controversial new law obliges social media platforms including TikTok and Meta Platforms’ Instagram to prevent under-16s from holding accounts or face fines of up to AUD49.5 million ($33 million). Australia is the first democracy to impose such restrictions as a response to growing concerns around online harm, cyberbullying and exposure to inappropriate content.

While major platforms including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok have begun enforcing the rules by blocking attempts to create underage accounts, several have warned the law risks pushing minors into dangerous online spaces. Elon Musk’s X also confirmed compliance, stating: “It’s not our choice – it’s what the Australian law requires.”

Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese argued the ban is “pushing back against big tech, saying that social media companies have a social responsibility”. 

He noted the new law marks “a profound reform which will continue to reverberate around the world in coming months,” adding it “will change lives for Australian kids” and allow them “just have their childhood”.

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Starting with India, the four-year investment runs from 2026 to 2029 and marks Microsoft’s largest commitment in Asia. It builds on a previous $3 billion investment announced in January, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

The announcement followed a meeting between Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella (pictured, left) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi (pictured, right) to discuss India’s AI roadmap. Microsoft said its strategy aligns with the government’s ambition to move from digital public infrastructure to AI public infrastructure at national scale.

A central focus will be hyperscale capacity. Microsoft plans to bring its India South Central cloud region in Hyderabad online by mid-2026, which the company said will be its largest data centre region in the country. It will also expand its existing data centre regions in Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune.

Beyond infrastructure, the company also plans to accelerate AI adoption on public platforms. It will integrate advanced AI capabilities into government platforms, extending AI-enabled services such as multilingual access and AI-assisted job matching to more than 310 million informal workers.

In addition, Microsoft is scaling up workforce development, doubling its AI skilling target to 20 million people by 2030. Union minister of electronics and information technology Ashwini Vaishna said, “Microsoft’s landmark investment signals India’s rise as a reliable technology partner for the world.”

Canadian ambitions
In Canada, Microsoft’s CAD19 billion investment runs from 2023 to 2027, with more than CAD7.5 billion earmarked for the next two years.

The company will expand its Azure Canada Central and Canada East data centre regions, strengthening domestic data residency and sovereign cloud capabilities for government and enterprises.

The company also unveiled a five-point digital sovereignty plan focused on cybersecurity defence, ensuring data sovereignty, strengthening privacy protections, supporting domestic AI developers and ensuring the continuity of cloud services amid geopolitical uncertainty.

As part of this effort, Microsoft has now launched a dedicated Threat Intelligence Hub in Ottawa, bringing together threat intelligence experts and applied AI security research to work closely with Canadian government and law enforcement partners.

Microsoft expects the new digital and AI capacity in the country to begin coming online in the second half of 2026. Brad Smith, vice chair and president, said “we believe Canada has what it takes to help lead the world in responsible AI innovation and adoption”.

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The study warned that spectrum costs have tripled over the past decade, now accounting for 8 per cent of operators’ recurring revenues.

This creates a “vicious cycle” that constrains network investment at a time when Europe is already lagging behind global peers including North America, the Gulf states and Greater China on next-generation connectivity. Only 2 per cent of Europeans currently use standalone (SA) 5G services, compared with 77 per cent in China and roughly a quarter in the US.

More than 500 spectrum licences are due for renewal in Europe over the next ten years. These licences underpin existing 3G and 4G networks that serve much of the continent’s 470 million mobile internet users and will be central to future coverage and capacity.

Under existing policies, operators are on track to pay about €105 billion in spectrum costs through 2035. The GSMA argued that high spectrum fees are constraining investment, with the European Union’s (EU) upcoming Digital Networks Act (DNA) offering a “timely opportunity” to act.

Operators are struggling
The industry association estimated that reforming renewal frameworks could cut costs by up to €30 billion, while even moderate changes could unlock around €20 billion.

The report said those savings could be redirected towards upgrading all existing 5G networks to SA 5G, delivering speed increases of up to 23 per cent and potentially adding as much as €75 billion to Europe’s GDP over the next decade.

“Providing high-quality connectivity to Europe’s citizens and improving the continent’s competitiveness requires a lot of investment that many operators are struggling to source or justify,” said John Giusti, chief regulatory officer at the GSMA.

“Rather than continuing to use spectrum as a windfall opportunity, policymakers should be more ambitious with their approach to renewals and allow these funds to be directed to support Europe’s ongoing digital goals,” he added.

Looking ahead, the report also highlighted that spectrum decisions today will shape the road to 6G, warning Europe will need at least 2GHz of mid-band spectrum by 2030 to avoid network congestion.

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The company predicted adoption will be underpinned by three core technologies: 5G RedCap, designed to simplify and streamline connectivity, 5G Massive IoT and 4G LTE Cat-1bis, which supports low-cost, low-power IoT devices.

Omdia highlighted 5G RedCap as key to enabling cost-efficient connectivity as operators prepare to phase-out 4G networks after 2030. Aimed at mid-tier devices that do not require ultra-low latency or high bandwidth, RedCap began gaining traction this year following its integration into the latest Apple Watch models.

“The implementation of 5G RedCap in the latest range of Apple Watches has signalled the starting gun for RedCap adoption,” said Alexander Thompson, senior analyst for IoT at Omdia. He added that enterprises will see “a wider and wider selection of connectivity technologies” emerge, supporting a broader range of applications.

Further growth is forecasted in 2026, when enhanced RedCap (eRedCap) modules are expected to launch, expanding mid-tier connectivity options and helping to drive cellular IoT adoption through the next decade.

Automotive is set to become one of the largest cellular IoT segments over the forecast period. Omdia expects connected vehicle subscriptions to rise from around 500 million today to approximately 1.2 billion by 2035, increasing the sector’s share of total connections from 13 per cent to 21 per cent. A large portion of this growth will come from Asia and Oceania, fuelled by rising demand for intelligent, 5G-connected vehicles.

The rise of software-defined vehicles is “made possible by cellular connected vehicles, which is why we expect to see vehicles represent 1 in 5 cellular connections by 2025,” added Andrew Brown, IoT practice lead at Omdia.

The findings are drawn from Omdia’s Cellular IoT Market Tracker, which analyses shipments, revenues and installed connections by region, technology and application through to 2035.

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The plan, backed by the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), would require device makers to activate Assisted GPS (A-GPS) on all smartphones to give authorities more precise location data during legal investigations, Reuters reported. According to documents seen by the news outlet, the proposal would remove users’ ability to switch off location services.

Today, law enforcement agencies rely largely on cellular tower data that can only provide approximate locations. Technology experts cited by Reuters said continuous A-GPS access could allow authorities to track users to within about a metre.

The COAI also urged the government to require device makers to disable location tracking alerts on users’ smartphones, warning they can tip off targets of investigations.

Regulatory overreach
Lobby group India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA), which represents Apple and Google, warned the government there is “no precedent anywhere else in the world” for compulsory, device-level A-GPS surveillance. In a confidential letter to the government in July, the group reportedly argued the technology “is not deployed or supported for location surveillance” and described the proposal as a potential “regulatory overreach”.

The industry association flagged risks to national security, noting that smartphones are widely used by military members, journalists and judges, who could be exposed if precise location data were misused or compromised.

The ICEA also told authorities that location tracking notifications are essential to maintaining transparency and trust, arguing that privacy protections should take priority.

India’s IT and home ministries are reviewing the proposal, but no decision has been made. A meeting with senior smartphone industry executives scheduled for this week has apparently been postponed.

The proposal follows a separate privacy controversy last week after the government scrapped a mandate requiring smartphone makers to preload a state-backed cyber safety app on all devices, a move that drew criticism from companies including Apple over privacy risks.

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NYT claims Perplexity ignored repeated requests over the past 18 months to stop using its articles until a licensing agreement could be negotiated.

According to the filing, Perplexity continued to “grab large chunks”, in some cases entire articles, to repurpose them in AI-generated responses offered to users. NYT argued this use does not qualify as fair use because the output directly competes with their own offerings. The publication claimed the AI start-up “provides commercial products to its own users that substitute for NYT, without permission or remuneration”.

The lawsuit also accused Perplexity of harming NYT’ s brand by sometimes presenting fabricated content through AI “hallucinations” and attributing it to the newspaper.

NYT previously issued a “cease and desist” notice to Perplexity AI in October 2024 and again in July this year demanding the startup cease its use of the publication’s content. At the time, Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas told the Wall Street Journal the company was “very much interested in working with every single publisher including The New York Times” and had “no interest in being anyone’s antagonist”.

In December 2023, NYT also sued OpenAI and its partner Microsoft, arguing their AI systems had been trained on millions of its articles without compensation, a claim the companies have denied.

Cristiano cash

Separately, billionaire footballer Cristiano Ronaldo (pictured) took an undisclosed stake in Perplexity AI, also signing a global sponsorship agreement with the company.

The partnership includes a new interactive fan hub on Perplexity’s platform, offering curated content and engagement tools for Ronaldo’s global following.

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South Korea’s Industry Ministry signed a memorandum of understanding with the chip company covering talent development, technology exchange, university partnerships and expanded R&D collaboration.

The plan includes the launch of a dedicated “Arm School”, which aims to produce around 1,400 high-level chip-design specialists between 2026 and 2030, targeting master’s and doctoral level students as well as industry workers.

Kim Yong-beom, presidential chief of staff for policy, said the school would become “a valuable asset in strengthening Korea’s relatively weak fabless and system-chip sectors”, local news outlet Korea JoongAng Daily reported.

The government is reportedly weighing the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology as the leading candidate to host the new school. A joint working group between Arm and the Industry Ministry will also be established.

Industry minister Kim Jung-kwan said the agreement creates a foundation to train the “key human resources who will be responsible for the future of our AI semiconductor industry”, adding the government plans to deepen collaboration with global technology companies “in preparation for the AI era”.

According to Reuters, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said during a meeting in Seoul on Friday that chip demand will skyrocket as AI advances, adding that superintelligent AI would eventually be “10,000 times smarter than people”.

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Samsung joins Huawei in multi-fold phone market

What happened: Samsung Electronics unveiled its first multi-fold smartphone, the Galaxy Z TriFold, featuring a 10-inch inner display that folds twice using two hinges and a 6.5-inch outer cover screen.

Why it matters: Samsung said the inner display “performs similarly to three 6.5-inch smartphones” for multitasking, while also enabling large-screen media use. The KRW3.6 million (around $2,500) device intensifies competition with rival Huawei in the emerging foldable device category. Amanda Newman, director of business development at Orbit, said the Galaxy Z TriFold “serves as a signal that Samsung intends to maintain its lead in flexible display engineering”. She added that while volumes will be limited, “the point is not scale but demonstrating multipanel folding technology before competition accelerates in 2026”. Foldables still account for only about 2.5 per cent of global smartphone shipments, but quarterly volumes recently hit a high, Newman noted. Although Huawei entered the category first with the Mate XT series, she argued that Samsung, which holds around 64 per cent of the segment, is betting on improved durability, better software and larger displays enabling multitasking through desktop-style DeX environments. “With Apple preparing its first foldable, the next year will test whether the category can finally expand beyond early adopters,” she concluded.

AT&T follows rivals in dropping DEI initiatives

What happened: AT&T joined rivals T-Mobile US and Verizon in committing to shutter its DEI initiatives, stating in a filing to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) it “will not have any roles focused on DEI” and would terminate related policies.

Why it matters: AT&T had already begun scaling back DEI in March through funding cuts and management restructuring but had not yet dismantled the programme entirely. The latest move comes as the operator seeks regulatory approval for a $1 billion deal to acquire spectrum licences from UScellular. FCC chair Brendan Carr welcomed the pull back in a post on X, underlining a growing link between regulatory approval and corporate policy under US President Donald Trump’s administration. The approach has already impacted major transactions; earlier this year, Verizon secured approval for its $20 billion acquisition of Frontier Communications a day after ending its DEI programmes, while T-Mobile took a similar approach ahead of its UScellular asset purchase in July.

India reverses mandate on state-owned security app

What happened: India’s government dropped a controversial mandate that would have required smartphone makers to preinstall its state-owned cybersecurity app, Sanchar Saathi, on all new devices.

Why it matters: The government’s reversal follows widespread criticism, including from Apple, which told authorities earlier this week it would not comply with the order over privacy and security concerns. Initially, the government defended the order, insisting it was necessary to help citizens verify device authenticity and report possible misuse. However, the Ministry of Communications has now said the reversal is due to improved uptake of the app, which was originally intended to reach “less aware citizens” faster. Communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia clarified that users “may deactivate or delete” the app, reversing an earlier mandate that made it unremovable, adding it “is not surveillance, it is a citizen safety tool”. Canalys senior analyst Sanyam Chaurasia told MWL that allowing users to delete the app cushioned the original mandate and improved the impact on device experience and OEM strategies. However, he warned that the long-term “inflection point” will depend on how effectively data privacy, user consent and transparency are addressed. “Until strong safeguards and legal clarity are in place, this is likely to remain a developing policy experiment rather than a hard, industry-wide operating requirement.”

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During a media roundtable hosted in London to launch the 7^th edition of its annual Security Navigator 2026 report, Charl van der Walt, head of security research at Orange Cyberdefence, said today’s online environment marks a “society wide crisis” as more organisations suffer cyberattacks that “impact critical infrastructure, telecommunications, defence contractors, satellite systems and more”.

A key driver of this shift is the growing “balkanisation” of cyberspace, where technology ecosystems are fragmenting along geopolitical lines. “Almost everything that we do in security, in some way, goes back to the US,” he said, referring to vulnerability disclosure, threat intelligence, law enforcement action and standards.

He added that only a handful of nations, primarily the US and China, can build full sovereign technology stacks, increasing Europe and smaller countries’ “dependency to this supply chain”. While Europe is attempting to rebalance through initiatives such as releasing its own vulnerability databases, Van der Walt said the “asymmetry is huge”.

Orange Cyberdeference CTO Vivien Mura added that AI is another pain point, stating the technology “is an opportunity, but it also introduces new risks”. Attackers “use AI to speed up the coding development of malwares,” shortening the time between vulnerability disclosure and exploitation. The report also found misuse risks linked to the rapid adoption of chatbots across organisations, which Mura said is expanding the attack surface.

Web of interdependence
Van der Walt noted attackers now operate within a “dense web of interdependence where a single weakness can enable mass compromise”. He said the dataset from the report reflects direct engagement with real-world attacks and defences. “One of the aspects in which we can truly be unique is that we are we are on the ground with clients… and this year, more than ever, to surface their voices.”

The latest Security Navigator threat detection research was based on analysis of 139,373 detected security incidents recorded over an 11-month period between October 2024 and August 2025.

The report found that the number of distinct cybercrime groups has nearly tripled from 33 to 89 since 2020, driven in part by the commoditisation of cybercrime “as a service”, which has lowered the barrier to entry for attackers.

The company also recorded a 45 per cent surge in cyber extortion victims between October 2024 and September 2025 compared to the previous research period, with two-thirds of victims now small and medium-sized businesses. Cyber extortion was heavily concentrated in sectors central to supply chains and essential services. Manufacturing and professional industries alongside scientific and technical services together accounted for nearly 40 per cent of observed cases, followed by wholesale trade, construction and healthcare.

For the first time, the report also included a law enforcement dataset covering activity between 2021 and mid-2025, showing global cooperation on the rise. Orange Cyberdefense chief Hugues Foulon called for accelerated collaborative efforts, stating “the fight against organised cybercrime requires a global alliance, both public and private, to confront a threat that knows no borders”.

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Under the initiative, Kyivstar and Ukraine’s WINWIN AI Center of Excellence will develop a sovereign Ukrainian LLM designed to reflect the country’s language, dialects, history and cultural contexts while ensuring sensitive data is stored and processed within the country.

Google’s open-source LLM was selected following what the partners described as an extensive technical evaluation with an emphasis on national security. Danylo Tsvok, chief AI officer at the ministry and WINWIN CEO, said the selection process focused on “how well it already handles Ukrainian-language texts and how controllable it is during additional training” to “minimise linguistic and ethical risks in our LLM”.

“Choosing Gemma for the Ukrainian LLM gives us the best balance between performance and resource use, as well as high-quality training,” explained Mykhailo Nestor, Kyivstar’s director of digital product development. He highlighted Gemma’s support for more than 140 languages including Ukrainian, its ability to handle large volumes of information in a single interaction and multimodal support for both text and image-based tasks. Flexibility in model sizes was also highlighted as an advantage for tailoring deployments to different sectors.

Gemma has already been used as a base for Ukrainian-language models MamayLM and Lapa LLM from open source AI community Hugging Face.

Kyivstar will now work to optimise Gemma for Ukrainian language and train the model on curated national datasets, supported by dedicated benchmarks. Once live, the LLM is expected to support AI-powered services across sectors including government, education, healthcare and finance.

The partners added that Google’s selection further strengthens the country’s economic ties with the US following Kyivstar’s listing on the Nasdaq stock exchange earlier this year.

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Powered by ByteDance’s large language model, the assistant enables users to voice activate tasks including content searches and ticket booking.

ZTE’s Nubia M153 smartphone will be the first device to feature the new tool, positioned as a prototype device priced at CNY3,499 ($495). The handset is available for pre-order in limited quantities.

According to South China Morning Post, the Android device features a 6.78-inch display, a 50MP rear triple camera system and runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor. A dedicated side-mounted AI button activates Doubao.

However, ByteDance and ZTE cautioned the software “cannot guarantee the functional completeness of a mature mobile product” and may lag behind flagship devices. The pair committed to fortnightly updates through March 2026.

According to Reuters, ByteDance said it has no plans to develop its own smartphones and is in discussions with multiple vendors to integrate its AI assistant across additional models in the future.

TikTok-parent ByteDance has emerged as a leading AI player in China on the back of its chatbot Doubao, which reportedly recorded 159 million monthly active users in October, well ahead of rival offerings from Tencent and DeepSeek.

Last year, Apple held preliminary talks with ByteDance and Tencent to explore integrating their generative AI capabilities into iPhones sold in China.

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The Alphabet-owned company originally filed a complaint with the European Commission (EC) last year, accusing Microsoft of anti-competitive conduct that allegedly locked customers into its Azure cloud platform.

Reuters reported that Giorgia Abeltino, head of government affairs and public policy for Google Cloud Europe, stated the company is withdrawing its complaint “in light of the recent announcement that the EC will assess problematic practices affecting the cloud sector under a separate process”.

Last week, the EC opened an investigation into whether structural features of the cloud computing industry are responsible for reinforcing the market power of players including Microsoft’s Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS).

“We continue to work with policymakers, customers, and regulators across the EU, the UK, and elsewhere to advocate for choice and openness in the cloud market,” Abeltino reportedly added.

The EC’s year-long probe could result in cloud players including Azure and AWS being designated as “gatekeepers” under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which would subject them to strict regulations designed to curb market dominance and promote competition.

Settled amicably
Microsoft has previously rebuffed Google’s claims. In July 2024, the company reached a €20 million settlement with trade body CISPE to resolve a separate antitrust complaint over its cloud licensing practices. Following that deal, a Microsoft representative told Mobile World Live it expected the Commission to dismiss Google’s complaint.

“Microsoft settled amicably similar concerns raised by European cloud providers, even after Google hoped they would keep litigating,” the company said at the time. “Having failed to persuade European companies, we expect Google similarly will fail to persuade the European Commission.”

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Nokia targets AI-ready US networks with $4B outlay

What happened: Nokia agreed a $4 billion, multi-year investment plan with US President Donald Trump’s administration to expand its R&D and manufacturing footprint and accelerate the rollout of AI-ready network infrastructure.

Why it matters: The investment directly supports the domestic production of mobile, fixed, IP, optical and defence solutions, while deepening R&D in automation, quantum-safe networks and semiconductors. It builds on Nokia’s earlier $2.3 billion US commitment linked to its Infinera acquisition, alongside $456 million in manufacturing investments by the optical specialist. US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick said the deal marked “another Trump administration win for America”, adding that the spending means “the most innovative technologies that power AI, data centres, and critical national security applications will be developed and built here in the US”. The hefty outlay puts financial weight behind Nokia’s recent strategy revamp under CEO Justin Hotard centred around AI-native networks, as the vendor streamlines into two core infrastructure units and targets higher profits by 2028 to cash in on what Hotard calls the “AI supercycle”.

Samsung, SKT start joint research on AI, 6G

What happened: Samsung Electronics and SK Telecom launched joint research into AI-supported RAN technology in a bid to lay the groundwork for 6G commercialisation.

Why it matters: The work will focus on AI-based channel estimation, distributed MIMO transmission and reception, and AI-RAN-based scheduler and core network technologies that determine when, where and how data is sent. Samsung said the field-focused work with SKT will allow it to verify AI-powered wireless technologies in real-world environments and secure critical AI-RAN technologies at an early stage. Meanwhile, SKT added the convergence of AI and wireless would be “crucial to 6G competitiveness”. Both companies are members of the AI-RAN Alliance, positioning them to impact future 6G standards and roadmaps. Athul Prasad, Samsung’s senior manager of emerging technologies & corporate development, said the pair’s joint proposal on AI-based channel estimation is already an approved official work item at the alliance, underscoring their potential influence on future standards.

Kyivstar activates Starlink D2D in Europe first

What happened: Kyivstar became the first mobile operator in Europe to switch on Starlink D2D connectivity following successful tests earlier this year, enabling SMS services for customers with standard 4G smartphones when terrestrial networks are damaged, unavailable or out of reach.

Why it matters: Ukraine’s digital transformation minister Mykhailo Fedorov called the service “an important step in developing infrastructure that will ensure connectivity even in areas without traditional networks”, citing “constant Russian attacks on infrastructure, blackouts and network damage” amid an ongoing war. Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov said the service enhances national resilience and provides “a vital functionality that is critical for our people”. This week, Kyivstar’s head of cloud & satellite business Ilya Polshakov told MWL at MWC25 Doha that around 400,000 users have registered on Kyivstar’s Starlink network, with around 90,000 to 100,000 SMS messages sent in the first 24 hours since launch. He pointed to successful real-world tests, including banking payment terminals, where reliable connectivity is critical. Voice and expanded data services are planned for 2026, with the operator also set to introduce extended IoT capabilities for future satellite generations. In addition, the project is strategically significant for Kyivstar parent Veon Group, which plans to roll out the service in Kazakhstan from 2026.

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Safety is now top of the agenda, with Johnson revealing the company already has “the first prototype together in our labs” for what it calls cooperative safety, enabling robots to work in close proximity with humans.

It is targeting early 2027 for full commercial availability of the machines.

Johnson acknowledged safety “is not maybe quite as sexy” as other aspects of robotics, but stressed it is “absolutely a must if we are to have these devices operating in our human world”.

She said Agility Robotics is actively participating in drafting emerging global standards for humanoid robots, with early frameworks expected in 2026.

The company is “working on version five” of the robot, with most updates now being in the software.

Johnson said sectors beyond the logistics industry are now exploring Digit’s potential, highlighting interest from pharmaceutical and retail businesses.

Companies are keen to explore how the humanoid robot can counter staff shortages and Agility Robotics is now gearing up to expand production to 10,000 machines per year.

Click here to view the full interview.

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In a petition filed at the Delhi High Court, Apple contested an amendment made in 2024 which allows the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to levy penalties based on a company’s global revenue rather than only its India turnover.

Reuters reported Apple stated in court filings it could face a penalty of up to $38 billion if the sum is calculated at 10 per cent of its average global services revenue in the three fiscal years to 2024.

The news outlet reported Apple believes such a penalty would be “arbitrary” and “unjust”.

Apple argued penalties should be linked only to the revenue of the specific business unit found in breach of antitrust law, warning the current approach risks sweeping in unrelated parts of a company’s global operations.

Abusive conduct
The CCI began investigating Apple’s conduct in the country in 2022 following complaints led by online dating platform Match accusing the company of abusing its dominance in the iOS apps market.

In 2024, the CCI reportedly stated there is evidence Apple engaged in “abusive conduct”, including preventing third-party payment processors from offering in-app purchases.

The company denied wrongdoing and a final CCI decision is pending.

Apple told the High Court it had “no choice but to bring this constitutional challenge now” to prevent the amended rules from being applied retrospectively, after the CCI invoked them in an unrelated case earlier this month.

A court hearing is scheduled for December.

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Under the agreement, Nokia will use its Cloud RAN and AI-ready technologies to upgrade the operator’s network in a bid to support rapid 5G rollout, improve performance and achieve more sustainable network operations.

The Finnish vendor will supply its energy-efficient AirScale RAN portfolio, including Habrok Massive MIMO radios and small-cell solutions, to enhance Telefonica’s coverage and boost indoor connectivity. New baseband solutions will also be deployed to strengthen network performance and reliability.

Nokia’s Interleaved Passive Active Antenna technology will be used to simplify site design and speed up 5G deployment. The contract also includes ongoing maintenance and network optimisation services.

Telefonica will continue to use Nokia’s AI-powered network management platform MantaRay NM to monitor and optimise performance across radio, core and transport networks. The pair stated the tool underpins the operator’s ambition to achieve greater AI-powered network automation in the future.

Nokia CEO Justin Hotard said the deal extension will help strengthen Telefonica’s “performance, efficiency and customer experience across their 5G network”, adding that with Nokia’s technology, the operator will be “positioned for long-term competitiveness as the AI supercycle takes hold”.

Hotard has repeatedly referenced the AI supercycle since taking on the role as Nokia boss earlier this year and this month announced a strategic revamp focussed on AI, cloud and next-generation connectivity.

Matthias Sauder, director networks at Telefonica Germany’s consumer brand O2 Telefonica, noted the deal reflects a “shared commitment to advancing 5G technology and creating a more connected and sustainable Germany”.

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The deal involves Vodacom unifying its dispersed data systems on Google Cloud’s infrastructure and integrating the company’s generative AI models into core business functions to boost efficiency and deliver new services.

Vodacom’s digital overhaul begins with migrating its key data platforms onto Google Cloud to improve governance and unlock real-time insights, followed by deploying the search giant’s AI tools including its Vertex AI platform and Gemini models to enhance customer care, optimise network performance and strengthen fraud detection.

The operator will also target AI product innovations, initially focusing on fintech services to broaden financial inclusion, along with fresh enterprise services and consumer experiences aimed at improving digital education and content access.

Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub said the move is “more than a technology upgrade, it is a deep commitment to Africa’s digital revolution”.

He added Google Cloud’s tools would help “modernise our infrastructure” and “fundamentally shift our operational paradigm”.

The deal builds on Vodacom’s broader connectivity efforts across the continent.

Earlier this month, the operator signed an agreement with Elon Musk’s Starlink to deliver high-speed, low-latency satellite broadband across Africa to tackle coverage challenges in rural regions.

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The deal tasks Google Cloud with delivering its air-gapped Google Distributed Cloud (GDC) platform to the NCIA, which plans to deploy the technology at its Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre (JATEC) to modernise operations and support classified workloads.

Financial details remain under wraps.

Google explained its GDC system would allow the alliance to run modern AI and analytics workloads in “completely disconnected, highly secure environments”, retaining operational control and maintaining strict digital sovereignty standards.

Google Cloud EMEA president Tara Brady noted the partnership would enable the alliance “to decisively accelerate its digital modernisation efforts while maintaining the highest levels of security and digital sovereignty”.

NCIA CTO Antonio Calderon said the agency is committed to using next-generation tools including AI “to enhance NATO’s operational capabilities and safeguard the alliance’s digital environment”, stressing “partnership with industry is a critical component of our digital transformation strategy”.

In September, the NCIA inked a deal to shift mission-critical workloads onto Oracle’s cloud infrastructure in a push for greater sovereignty and security.

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Kyivstar customers with standard 4G smartphones will now be able to stay connected in areas where terrestrial networks are down, damaged or out of reach. The initial phase enables SMS services, with voice and data set to follow in 2026.

The operator highlighted the importance of the technology amid the country’s ongoing war with Russia, stating it will be crucial in regions facing prolonged blackouts, recently de-occupied territories undergoing network restoration and areas used for rescue and humanitarian missions. Businesses operating in hard-to-access areas will also benefit.

Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation Mykhailo Fedorov hailed the launch as “an important step in developing infrastructure that will ensure connectivity even in areas without traditional networks”. He also highlighted the pressures of wartime conditions, pointing to “constant Russian attacks on infrastructure, blackouts and network damage”.

Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov said it marks an upgrade to national resilience, noting the operator’s existing system of batteries and generators already provide up to ten hours of backup coverage during grid failures. With D2D satellite connectivity, he said Kyivstar is “enhancing this resilience significantly” with “a vital functionality that is critical for our people.”

The service is available at no extra cost to subscribers with a 4G smartphone across Ukraine, excluding occupied areas, border regions and active combat zones.

The commercial debut comes ten months after the pair struck a deal to introduce space-based connectivity in the country. In August, the partners conducted a pilot in Ukraine’s Zhytomyr region, where Komarov and Fedorov used standard 4G smartphones to exchange messages through Starlink’s D2D technology.

Following the pilot, Kyivstar said that Starlink’s D2D data service, which will support video communication through messaging apps, remains under development.

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The deal marks Nokia’s first major move since outlining a fresh strategy revamp under CEO Justin Hotard this week, when it unveiled a new Mobile Infrastructure unit designed to advance the vendor’s AI-native network strategy.

The multi-year US plan adds to the vendor’s earlier $2.3 billion US commitment through its Infinera acquisition, in addition to the optical networking specialist’s $456 million manufacturing facility investments.

Around $3.5 billion of the spend is earmarked for US-based R&D, including networking technologies, defence applications, automation, quantum-safe networking and semiconductor technologies. A further $500 million will support manufacturing and R&D expansion in Texas, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Nokia positioned the investment as key to delivering more secure, energy-efficient, AI-ready networks, arguing it will help the US and its allies maintain competitiveness as AI booms.

US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick said: “Nokia’s $4 billion investment is another Trump administration win for America.” He stated the plan ensures “the most innovative technologies that power AI, data centres, and critical national security applications will be developed and built here in the US”.

Nokia CEO Justin Hotard said the project reinforces the company’s position in critical network infrastructure, stating it will “help strengthen the nation’s capacity to deliver greater security, productivity, and prosperity through AI-optimised connectivity at scale”.

Hotard added the expanded US footprint will support research shaping “the future of networking for the years to come”.

Nokia’s new strategy laid out fresh financial targets, leadership changes and a whittling down to two operating segments as it aims to cash in on the global AI boom.

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