‘AI emerges as next frontier for telecom growth’

Doha, Qatar: As artificial intelligence (AI) advances from experimental technology to enterprise backbone, the global telecom industry is positioning...

Doha, Qatar: As artificial intelligence (AI) advances from experimental technology to enterprise backbone, the global telecom industry is positioning itself at the forefront of its adoption.

At the Mobile World Congress (MWC Doha) 2025, industry leaders highlighted how AI, especially agentic and sovereign AI models, is rapidly becoming the next frontier for telecom growth, reshaping both revenue opportunities in the B2B market and the internal operations of operators themselves.

“So, number one, for sure, it’s a great opportunity for the region to host MWC and to see the evolution of the telco industry towards a technology-centred industry,” Emmanuel Durou, Deloitte’s Technology, Media & Telecoms Leader for the Middle East, told The Peninsula.

He credited MWC and its host GSMA for helping operators shift “from the communication service provider towards value-added services, towards new technology offerings, including cloud, and more and more AI and agentic-AI driven.”

Durou outlined two major areas of disruption and opportunity for operators, one in the market and one within their own organisations. On the external opportunity side, he said telcos are now well-positioned to capitalise on the commercial potential of AI, particularly in B2B markets. “We believe that it’s time for the telcos to get on the revenue-generating opportunity of AI,” he said. In the Middle East, operators have a strategic advantage in becoming “the key leading players, supporting the B2B space with sovereign AI, thanks to their infrastructure, trusted brands, and reputation for secure services.”