French state investment bank Bpifrance sold a 2.5% stake in Orange for approximately €1.1 billion, but maintained its position as the operator’s largest shareholder.

In a statement, the investment bank disclosed it successfully placed 66.5 million shares at a price of €16.57 each, a move made in conjunction with the state.

Following the transaction, it separately holds approximately 7.1% of share capital and 5.9% voting rights.

Acting jointly as the group’s shareholder with the French state, the duo hold a stake of approximately 20.4% and 27% of voting rights. Board representation remains unchanged.

Reuters first reported the French stake was planning to sell a small stake in Orange yesterday (30 July).

“Bpifrance reiterates its support and confidence in the Orange management team and in the strategy pursued within the framework of its Trust the Future plan,” the investment bank added.

Orange CEO Christel Heydemann laid out the five-year strategy in February, focusing priorities on customer growth, AI investment and monetising infrastructure assets.

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Singtel confirmed it was in discussions over selling a stake in Australian subsidiary Optus following media speculation infrastructure investor Morrison is eyeing a holding in the business.

In a brief announcement, Singtel stated it is in talks with interested parties, but added there is no certainty any transaction would occur.

It pointed to a previous statement indicating a willingness to collaborate with “an Australian minority partner” while reinforcing its commitment to Optus following a series of high-profile network outages which damaged the unit’s reputation.

Singtel’s latest statement appears to be a response to an Australian Financial Review report claiming New Zealand-based investor Morrison had entered a seven-week exclusivity period to acquire a 30% stake in Optus.

The outlet reported Morrison is looking for additional investors to take part in the project, pitching a potential deal as a way to “bring Optus home”.

This week, Morrison struck a deal with Orange to set up a data centre joint venture in France at a cost of around €3 billion.

ACMA probe
Separately, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) commenced court proceedings over an Optus network outage in September 2025 which affected users’ ability to contact emergency services.

ACMA alleges Optus breached two separate legal obligations on 1,005 occasions, failing to: give end users who made emergency calls access to emergency services; and ensure those emergency calls were carried to the relevant termination point.

If found guilty, Optus could be in line to pay a maximum penalty of AUD250,000 ($174,413) per contravention.

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Bell Canada highlighted a growing problem with unauthorised removal of legacy equipment, reporting copper theft rose almost 80% year-on-year in H1 2026.

The operator stated the problem is most acute in the provinces of Ontario and New Brunswick but highlighted the dangers copper theft presents in any area due to the impact on critical communication services.

EVP and CTO Mark McDonald said tackling the problem requires “coordinated action” by operators, government, police and recycling companies.

He wants criminals to be held to account and highlighted stolen copper can result in “service outages that can endanger public safety, particularly by disrupting access to emergency services”.

Bell recorded 993 cases of copper theft or vandalism, up 78% year-on-year. It is fighting back by installing alarms to alert local police, upping surveillance and taking legal action against thieves.

It noted some pay-off, with arrests up 32% and brace of recent “favourable” court decisions.

Bell argued there is little monetary value in scrap copper, but emphasised the potentially big societal cost.

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One NZ advised businesses to rethink their approach to responsible AI after research showed consumers are growing worried about the environmental impact of companies’ use of the technology.

Research by the operator involving 1,001 New Zealanders found 45% have concerns over the sustainability of business use of AI, making it a key factor alongside transparency and privacy in overall trust ratings.

Head of corporate affairs and sustainability Nicky Preston said One NZ’s findings “highlight a shift” in attitudes.

“The conversation around AI has largely focused on productivity and innovation to date. But this research shows New Zealanders are starting to consider a broader question”.

Preston noted trust “has always been fundamental to technology adoption” and said sustainability is now part of the “equation”.

One NZ’s research found those worried about environmental impacts believe businesses should prioritise using renewable energy alongside cutting power consumption.

Consumers also want companies to be transparent about the environmental impacts, explain their reasons for employing AI and be open to independent audits.

“Customers and employees increasingly want evidence that organisations are managing AI responsibly through governance, infrastructure choices, supplier decisions and thoughtful deployment,” Preston explained.

The research highlighted consumption of electricity and water as key environmental concerns. Other factors include electronic waste and carbon emissions.

One NZ highlighted more traditional concerns about AI continue to rank highly: it noted respondents are worried about the technology taking jobs away from people, personal data being employed without consent and a lack of human oversight.

Preston said the findings indicate the businesses likely to be the most successful in using AI would be those which show they are “thinking carefully” about social and environmental impacts.

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Bain Capital and Tillman Global Holdings revealed a $1.5 billion investment in Eaton Fiber to accelerate the expansion of Verizon fibre broadband to more than 1 million locations outside the operator’s existing US footprint.

Eaton Fiber is an affiliate of Tillman which serves as Verizon’s exclusive wholesale fibre-building partner

The investment fully funds Eaton Fiber’s acquisition of Ripple Fiber, a fibre-optic internet provider, alongside the next phase of Eaton Fiber’s network expansion.

The Ripple Fiber deal marks the first step in a buy-and-build strategy aimed at bringing Verizon fibre broadband to more locations through a combination of organic construction and further acquisitions.

Ripple Fiber’s existing shareholders, Platform Investment Partners and KLT, will continue backing the Eaton Fiber platform alongside Tillman and Bain Capital.

The deal builds on a commercial agreement between Verizon and Eaton Fiber fannounced in October 2025, under which the latter funds, builds, maintains and operates fibre network infrastructure, while Verizon serves as the exclusive retail provider for residential and small business fibre services, handling sales, marketing and customer service.

Verizon CEO Dan Schulman stated expanding Verizon fibre’s reach is central to the company’s growth and convergence strategy, describing the partnership as a capital-efficient model to extend its fibre broadband experience beyond its core footprint.

As part of the transaction, Verizon will acquire Ripple Fiber’s existing customers, who will transition to Verizon’s fibre broadband platform over time with uninterrupted service, along with a small portion of Ripple Fiber’s network and related assets adjacent to or partially within Verizon’s existing footprint in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Tillman co-president and Eaton Fiber co-founder Sachit Ahuja said the Ripple Fiber acquisition strengthens Eaton Fiber’s relationship with Verizon, while Bain Capital’s long-term capital provides additional resources to accelerate deployment.

Ripple Fiber founder and chief executive Greg Wilson said the acquisition positions the company to accelerate its mission of connecting homes and businesses to fibre using its experience operating wholesale networks.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Eaton Fiber has secured committed debt financing from a syndicate led by Societe Generale and SMBC, alongside existing financing partner Future Standard Digital Infrastructure.

Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile US are actively beefing up their fibre holdings through joint ventures, wholesale agreements and outright purchases of fibre-rich companies to support the convergence of mobile and fibre-based broadband services.

The post Verizon fibre partners to invest $1.5B in Eaton Fiber appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Verizon CEO Dan Schulman revealed in the company’s Q2 earnings call it had struck a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for data centre connectivity, while teasing other agreements will be announced before the end of the year.

Schulman said it will provide dark fibre connectivity for Google’s data centres, before adding it expects to announce other deals which together will be worth “multiple billions of dollars in revenue over the next several years”.

Details about the Google partnership were not disclosed in its second quarter earnings statement.

Over the period, Schulman stated its results provide “clear, compelling evidence” a recent shake-up to its consumer plans “is driving a structural inflection point across our entire business”.

“We are accelerating across our key metrics, achieving a step-change in churn reduction while lowering our customer acquisition and retention costs,” he said, while adding its core connectivity business is gaining momentum and the emergence of AI infrastructure revenue was helping reshape its growth trajectory.

Simplified service plans and a new loyalty rewards programme helped the company draw 184,000 postpaid phone net additions during the quarter, representing the highest gains in the segment in the past five years. Mobile and broadband net additions tallied up to 550,000, up 230,000 year-on-year.

Total revenue was broadly flat at $34.4 billion. Mobility and broadband service revenue hit $23.4 billion, a 2.8% increase, but this was offset by a nearly 20% decline in equipment revenue due to lower upgrade volumes.

Net income dropped 22.9% to $3.9 billion, primarily driven by a $1.8 billion hit in pre-tax special items including a $746 million loss related to its international wireline and managed network services business.

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Airtel Africa CEO Sunil Taldar announced London as the preferred location for listing shares in its mobile money division, with the IPO expected to take place later this year.

In a trading update, the chief said he believed the UK capital city would provide access to a broad international investor base and “support our ambition to unlock the long-term value of one of Africa’s leading fintech platforms”.

Talking-up the impact of the service on its markets, he noted it continues to expand financial inclusion with “strong engagement”, highlighting Airtel Africa’s growing product range and an increase in digital adoption throughout the region.

In its fiscal Q1 2027 (the quarter to end-June), it had a mobile money customer base of 56.5 million, up 23% year-on-year, and processed a total of $61.4 billion, almost 52% higher.

ARPU from the service stood at $2.40, up 14%.

Although the executive did not expand on the current status of the plan beyond the timeline and location, Bloomberg reported earlier this year the operator could net between $1.5 billion and $2 billion from the share sale.

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T-Mobile US CEO Srini Gopalan (pictured) insisted its second quarter earnings are proof its strategy is working, highlighting the success of customer-focussed initiatives which are leading to a surge in adoption of its premium packages.

Gopalan stated the company’s strategy is simple: “give customers the best network, the best value and the best experience, all in one place.”

“That’s how we eliminate trade-offs for our customers, and that’s what sets us apart, and our results represent another proof point that our strategy is working,” he added.

Since taking on the role in November 2025, Gopalan has changed the reporting structure in results announcements to no longer reveal changes in wireless customer additions.

However, it recorded net account additions of 277,000 in Q2, a 13% decrease year-on-year but up quarterly by 60,000.

Speaking to Reuters, COO Jon Freier stated a push towards more lucrative subscriber plans, which include customer loyalty incentives, unlimited data and device upgrades, is beginning to pay-off.

“We are seeing new customers really kind of adopt our most premium plans at a rate of about 60% of total sales,” he said.

Total sales for the quarter increased 8% to $22.8 billion, with total service revenue up the same amount to just shy of $19 billion. Net income was broadly flat at $3.2 billion, due to the impact of related costs on its UScellular merger.  

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Fibre proved fruitful for BT Group in the opening quarter of its fiscal 2027 (the period to end-June), becoming the key generator of broadband revenue as the operator booked record levels of connections and uptake.

BT added 514,000 FTTP connections in the three-month period alone, leaving it with a total of 23.4 million. The operator declared it is experiencing record demand for fibre services at its Openreach and consumer businesses.

In wireless, BT asserted EE “maintained its mobile leadership”, pointing to the receipt of a consumer award with category-topping figures in reliability, coverage and performance.

Its 5G network coverage hit 77% of the population.

CEO Allison Kirkby (pictured) declared it a “solid start” to the fiscal year, with gains in consumer customers increasingly backed by BT’s selection for “mission-critical” connections.

She said the consumer business is benefiting from ongoing investment in BT’s brands and services. It is also “stabilising” service revenue in its Business division on “sales order growth from major customers”.

Kirkby was of course positive about a recently-forged JV with Verizon and said BT is unparalleled in the “scale and pace” of work to upgrade the “digital backbone” of the UK.

BT’s numbers leave it “on track to deliver our targets, including cashflow of circa £2 billion”, the CEO explained.

The rising cost of finance impacted pre-tax profit, with the figure for continuing operations dropping from £526 million in fiscal Q1 2026 to £505 million. Revenue was flat at £4.3 billion.

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Telus lured a former executive back to the company from the world of private equity, as it lined up the team it hopes will drive a transformation of its core telecom business.

David Fuller is set to become EVP and group president of Telus Communications on 1 September in an executive shuffle to advance a rejig of the Canadian operator’s business by focusing capital on high margin products, services and customer segments.

Telus president and CEO Victor Dodig (pictured, right) said he has “no doubt” Fuller would “engage and focus our team”, branding the executive “one of the most talented and experienced telecom executives in Canada”.

Fuller ended a 15-year tenure at Telus in 2019 and is returning from a role with Silverlight Capital Partners. He is not long out of the Canadian telecoms sector, though, having been president of Rogers Wireless between 2021 and 2022.

Current Telus Business Solutions president Navin Arora is to become EVP and group president of its Global Platform business, which covers health, agriculture, consumer goods and digital services.

Arora is also to head up enterprise corporate strategy, along with Telus Global Ventures, corporate development and data centre planning.

Dodig described Arora as being given a “critical” position involving “driving value” from the various business units involved.

Current Telus Consumer Solutions EVP Zainul Mawji is to leave, ending a spell of more than 20-years with the company. Dodig said she played key roles in a fibre expansion project and providing products spanning its “residential, security, automation and health lines of business”.

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AT&T reported a 2.3% year-over-year revenue increase to $31.6 billion in Q2, driven by net adds across fibre, fixed wireless access (FWA) and post-paid phone subscribers.

While slightly below analysts’ estimates, the small increase was driven largely by growth in Advanced Connectivity fibre and wireless revenues, including the impact of AT&T’s first-quarter acquisition of Lumen’s mass markets fibre business.

The operator added more than 1 million Advanced Connectivity customers during the quarter. Advanced Connectivity service revenue grew 5.1% year-over-year to $23.5 billion.

AT&T rolls its fibre broadband, FWA, post-paid phone and business fibre services into its Advanced Connectivity category.

It recorded 646,000 total consumer and business internet net adds, comprised of 367,000 fibre and 279,000 FWA connections, marking a record quarter for combined fibre and fixed wireless additions.

Post-paid phone net adds totalled 432,000 to top analysts’ projections of 338,500, according to FactSet.

AT&T chair and CEO John Stankey (pictured) noted on the earnings call those additions mark the strongest consumer post-paid wireless account growth in more than three years. Post-paid churn of 0.86% was down slightly from 0.87% a year ago.

Stankey has long been a proponent of a converged strategy of wireless and fibre services as a key differentiator for the company.

“At the end of the second quarter, 42.5% of our advanced home Internet customers also have a post-paid wireless account with AT&T,” he said on the earnings call. “This convergence rate reached 45% when excluding customers within our acquired footprint from Lumen.

“These are high lifetime value subscribers, and our strong customer growth is a key driver of our accelerated financial growth during the second quarter,” he added.

The operator added more than 1 million total consumer and business fibre locations, bringing its total to 38.6 million. Stankey said it remains on track to exceed 40 million fibre locations by the end of 2026 and more than 60 million by 2030.

Income from continuing operations rose 3.6% to $5.0 billion, while adjusted EBITDA climbed 5.2% to $12.3 billion.

Stankey stated the results demonstrate the company’s structural advantages heading into the next era of connectivity, and confirmed AT&T is accelerating planned share repurchases to approximately $10 billion this year.

SpaceX
The AT&T chief was asked about forging a wholesale agreement with Elon Musk-owned SpaceX but he stated AT&T does not see a need for satellite service as a core part of its distribution strategy because it already handles more than 98% of traffic across its converged customer network.

“I don’t feel a need right now that I need to have a satellite partner as a main distribution vehicle for me because I don’t think it addresses a part of the market that I can’t get to on my own,” he said.

Stankey pointed to the joint venture AT&T formed with Verizon and T-Mobile US, stating it allows the operators to work with multiple satellite operators, including SpaceX, Amazon, and AST SpaceMobile, for the small percentage of coverage which falls outside their terrestrial networks.

“By the time we get into next year, we will have solved for that other 2% and we will be in the market doing what customers want, which is providing them the assurance that they can buy from one provider and always be on the internet,” he said.

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KDDI predicted a greater role for drones in disaster response after completing tests operating a craft connected through satellite rather than its terrestrial mobile network.

It noted tests conducted in May using SpaceX’s Starlink satellites advance the potential role for drones in disaster recovery by removing gaps in the reach of mobile networks from the operational equation.

KDDI stated the satellites were confirmed as a viable means of connecting remotely operated drones, boosting potential use cases for public and private sector organisations.

It expects search and rescue, environmental monitoring and infrastructure inspection to be among the use cases the expanded drone operations could deliver.

The operator worked with specialist division KDDI Smart Drone on the trial and stated the pair are committed to developing a set-up enabling access to remotely-controlled craft anywhere in Japan in under ten-minutes.

KDDI plans to further develop its remote drone operation capabilities by authenticating the best combination of network connectivity and refining the handoff between mobile and satellite networks.

It aims to create a reliable beyond-visual-line-of-site remote drone operation system which could be tailored to specific use cases and geographies.

The post KDDI remotely controls drones over Starlink appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Verizon revealed a plan to sell 274 company-owned retail locations and lay off an additional 500 corporate employees as part of an ongoing restructuring effort under CEO Dan Schulman.

A representative for Verizon confirmed to Mobile World Live (MWL) the layoffs will impact roughly 3,000 retail and corporate employees.

Following the retail divestment, which is scheduled to take effect on 16 August, Reuters reported Verizon’s corporate-owned store footprint will shrink to 1,000 locations.

Verizon stated in a note to employees it is actively collaborating with the franchise owners running its 5,000 independent outlets to ensure high customer service standards are maintained across all locations, according to the news outlet.

Reuters reported during previous retail transitions, approximately 70% of affected retail staff secured employment with the incoming franchise partners

Wave7 Research analyst Jeff Moore told MWL after the retail stores are sold, 20% of them will be corporate owned while the remaining 80% will be dealer outlets.

“This takes hundreds of employees off of Verizon’s books and puts them onto the books of various Verizon dealers,” he said.

The mobile operator cut about 15,000 jobs in November 2025 as part of Schulman’s restructuring efforts, and sold 179 corporate-owned stores to franchise operators.

Following the 2025 layoff, the operator proceeded to trim several hundred additional positions in May 2026 as part of its multi-year operational overhaul.

In January, Schulman announced a plan to cut $5 billion in operating expenses in 2026, with a large portion coming from layoffs.

In June, Verizon introduced simplified service plans, dropped activation and upgrade fees and launched a new loyalty programme aimed at reducing churn.

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Bell Canada completed construction of its first sovereign direct-to-device (D2D) satellite ground station, a milestone in a strategy to offer connectivity beyond the reach of its traditional wireless network.

The facility in the province of Quebec connects with AST SpaceMobile satellites, with testing underway as the operator works to build the infrastructure required to provide D2D services.

Bell stated the companies completed integration testing covering “text messaging, broadband data connectivity”, and voice and video calls.

Video streaming, IoT and public alert tests are scheduled for the coming weeks.

The milestone builds on demonstrations Bell and AST SpaceMobile ran in 2025.

In addition to connecting customers in rural or remote locations, Bell stated the service is expected to support use cases including emergency response, environmental monitoring, resource development, energy production and transportation.

The company is continuing to build ground station infrastructure elsewhere in Canada, with additional sites under construction in the provinces of Ontario, Alberta, and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Bell explained the facilities would provide nationwide D2D coverage while ensuring customer traffic runs through domestic infrastructure and data remains sovereign.

EVP and CTO Mark McDonald said the ground infrastructure “is designed to support a full suite of D2D capabilities including messaging, data connectivity, voice calling and video streaming”.

AST SpaceMobile CCO Chris Ivory pointed to Canada’s geography as a driver for the project, explaining the work with Bell would provide seamless connectivity “beyond the reach of traditional terrestrial networks”.

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Reliance Industries-owned Jio Platforms filed for an IPO in Mumbai, reportedly with intentions of raising around INR360 billion ($3.8 billion) to pay down debt in its telecoms business.

Billionaire owner Mukesh Ambani (pictured) said at Reliance Industries’ annual shareholder meeting its board had approved a prospectus, which has now been filed with Indian regulators.

Th prospectus did not reveal the size of the listing or a fundraising target, but Reuters reported the sum it is looking for, noting this would be equal to 2.9% of its equity and value the entire business at around INR12.3 trillion.

The previous largest IPO amount raised was the INR278.7 billion generated by Hyundai Motor in a listing in 2024.

Jio Platforms includes the company’s Jio Infocomm telecoms arm and houses its AI, cloud and enterprise network offerings.

Reuters stated around INR275 billion of any sum raised would go towards repaying Jio Infocomm debt.

Ambani said the proposed listing “will demonstrate to the world that India can build technology companies of global scale, global capability and global value”.

Jio entered the Indian market in 2016 and shook up the competitive landscape with low-cost data plans, which attracted millions of users.

In its prospectus, the company stated it had 524.4 million subscribers at end-March, including 268.5 million 5G customers.

The company previously attracted funding from global investors including Meta Platforms, Google and private equity players.

Should the IPO size prove correct, the target is lower than previously mooted: in 2025, Bloomberg reported it was looking to list 5% of its mobile unit, to raise around $6 billion.

Starlink rival.
Also at the shareholder meeting, Jio Platforms revealed it is exploring building its own satellite constellation, a move which would directly rival SpaceX’s Starlink.

Bloomberg reported Jio Platforms’ MD Akash Ambani said it is considering deploying a low Earth orbit satellite network along with exploring partnerships to lease capacity from global providers to “accelerate service availability while building our own long-term sovereign capability”.

The approach would allow Jio to lay the foundation for a satellite broadband play, while working to build ground stations to support the network.

Starlink has partnered with Jio, but is yet to launch services in India due to regulatory roadblocks.

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South Korean operator KT moved the goalposts in customer loyalty initiatives, promising to take 1,200 of its most-dedicated subscribers for a night out at a musical based on the work of late artiste Kim Kwang-seok.

KT is targeting the offer to attend The Days at customers who have subscribed to its mobile, internet and TV services for at least five years, pitching the move as a cultural twist on traditional loyalty rewards.

The seating capacity of the D-cube Arts Centre hosting the musical is 1,242, meaning KT’s move is essentially a complete takeover for the night of 25 July.

KT also plans to offer those attending commemorative photographs and theatre programmes.

The operator is also offering an experience at the KT Wiz Park involving baseball, inviting applications from customers keen to enjoy some luxury camping and watching a game at the venue.

KT emphasised the musical and baseball offers are somewhat extreme examples of ongoing lifestyle benefit programmes providing various discounts on services.

Kim Young-geol, SVP and head of KT’s Customer Business Division, said the operator arranged “this Invitation Dream event to express our gratitude” to long-term customers.

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AT&T named former McAfee executive Jennifer Biry as its next CFO, replacing Pascal Desroches who is set to retire at the end of the year.

In a regulatory filing, AT&T explained Biry will first take the position of deputy CFO, effective 6 July 2026, before assuming the role as senior EVP and CFO from 1 January 2027.

Biry has served as CFO and COO of security company McAfee since October 2023. Before that, she had a long career at AT&T spanning 22 years in numerous positions across sales, finance and strategy.

As part of this tenure, Biry had an 18-month stint as CFO of WarnerMedia when it was owned by AT&T.

Desroches has been CFO of the US operator for five years, taking on the position in 2021. Before this, he held positions across the WarnerMedia group.

During his time as AT&T’s finance chief Desroches has led a cost cutting drive and moved to simplify the operator’s balance sheet, while taking on major investment in 5G and fibre.

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The TM Forum added satellite to an existing framework for digital networks in recognition of forecasts space-based connectivity is poised to become a significant earner over the next 10 years.

Companies including Rakuten Group, Huawei and Netcracker Technology are joined by operators Telekom Deutschland and Vodacom Group among the initial members of the Open Digital Architecture (ODA) for Satellite initiative.

The standards organisation stated the full potential of satellite for services including IoT and direct-to-device connectivity is being held back by various incompatibilities between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, highlighting billing systems and requirements for specialised devices as examples.

Dr Ryan van den Bergh, managing executive for group technology strategy, architecture, spectrum and assurance at Vodacom, said “greater interoperability and simpler integration” are needed to capitalise on the “significant opportunities” to use satellite connectivity as a complement to ground-based networks.

The TM Forum’s existing ODA covers digitalisation measures spanning automation and intelligence. It stated the satellite element adds standard frameworks, operating models and governance for companies working in the terrestrial and non-terrestrial sectors.

It expects the architecture to lay the groundwork for “seamless multi-orbit service delivery” along with speeding integration and boosting the overall value of space and land-based infrastructure.

Willie Stegmann, the body’s EVP for composable IT and ecosystems, said ODA for Satellite is “a call to action” for the telecoms industry.

The group is “overcoming challenges and unlocking avenues for growth…before operating models, customer ownership and value chains are defined elsewhere”.

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AT&T Business expanded the reach of its 400G wavelength connectivity into 16 additional US metropolitan areas, extending the service as enterprises face mounting pressure to support AI-era traffic at scale.

With the 400G wavelength edgeless handoff capability now live across 440,000 properties serving more than 2.3 million business tenants, the mobile operator is targeting rapid deployment within 15 days where eligible.

AT&T stated the 400G rollout is designed to connect AI workloads from any location to the cloud, with security embedded in the network rather than added on top.

The company’s edgeless design approach anchors 400G at key interconnection hubs where cloud, network and enterprise traffic converge. It is currently in more than 130 carrier hotel locations nationwide.

The architecture is intended to deliver consistent handoff and predictable performance without requiring traditional network edge builds at every location or data centre.

Amrit Singh, industry principal for information communications technology at Frost & Sullivan, stated AT&T’s wavelength services reflect the infrastructure rigour required for the AI era, citing the company’s fibre reach and a successful 1.6 Tb/s single-carrier wavelength trial.

For enterprises scaling AI across multiple sites, AT&T noted the ability to avoid stitching together multiple smaller circuits as workloads grow is a key benefit for the service.

Branch locations, campuses and edge environments requiring high-capacity connectivity to centralised compute and cloud services are among the primary use cases for the service.

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Mobile World Live brings you our top three picks of the week as Apple reset its AI ambitions at WWDC, OpenAI edged closer to a stock market debut and French operators agreed a €20.4 billion deal to carve-up SFR.

Apple lands Siri AI at WWDC as Cook takes a bow

What happened: During its annual WWDC event, Apple reset its AI strategy, unveiled a revamped AI-powered Siri and spotlighted new child-safety controls as Tim Cook delivered his final keynote as CEO.

Why it matters: Apple SVP of software Craig Federighi said, “truly helpful AI must be centred around you and your needs”, positioning privacy, personal context and deeper app integration as core pillars of the AI-enhanced Siri. The launch gives Apple a chance to overwrite a damaging run of Siri AI delays described internally as “ugly and embarrassing”. Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said “Apple had to address its shortcomings in AI, and WWDC provided some answers”, but added the company must deliver “a meaningfully better everyday experience, not just parity with rivals”. He noted many features will already be familiar to Android and third-party AI app users, adding iPhone users are “more likely to upgrade for better battery life, an improved camera or a bigger screen rather than to get AI”. However, challenges have already emerged. The AI-upgraded Siri and Apple Intelligence features have already been delayed indefinitely in the European Union (EU) over competition laws and blocked in China over local AI regulations.

On child safety, Wood called Apple’s push “a welcome and timely move” as concerns about online harm grow among regulators but said “stronger cross-industry safeguards need to be built into operating systems at a deeper platform level”. Cook’s farewell added weight to the event as he declared the iPhone will “continue to be the centre of people’s digital lives”, adding, “the best is still ahead”.

Apple lands Siri AI at WWDC as Cook takes a bow

OpenAI lines up stock market debut

What happened: OpenAI confidentially filed paperwork for a US IPO, becoming the latest AI company to move towards a listing as the sector’s biggest players race to raise fresh funds.

Why it matters: The ChatGPT-maker stated it had submitted a draft registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), adding, “we expect it to leak so we’re just announcing it”. It did not disclose the size, price or timing of the listing and cautioned a debut may not be imminent “because there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company”. OpenAI explained the decision involves “a complicated set of trade-offs”, but the filing gives it “the option to go public sooner if that ends up being best”. Reuters reported the company is targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion, with a debut possible as early as September. The filing puts OpenAI into a crowded and expensive AI listings race; rival Anthropic confidentially filed for its own US IPO last week, while SpaceX launched a blockbuster listing. Aviva Investors’ head of multi-asset Sunil Krishnan told the BBC all firms all have a “vast need for cash” as “no one wants to be last” in a space where access to capital could prove crucial as companies fund AI chips, infrastructure and model training. Harrison Rolfes, senior research analyst at PitchBook, argued OpenAI’s $1 trillion listing is “a bet on a company that has never been profitable, in a market it is currently losing, with a cost structure it cannot change for at least another year”. He added this is “all while racing a direct competitor through the same SEC process in the same quarter.” Rolfes concluded: “There is no scenario where OpenAI pricing after a profitable Anthropic favours OpenAI.”

OpenAI lines up stock market debut

Bouygues, Orange, Free agree €20B SFR carve up

What happened: Bouygues Telecom, Free-Iliad Group and Orange signed a memorandum of understanding with Altice France to acquire and carve up SFR in a deal valuing the operator at €20.4 billion, setting the stage for a major reset of France’s telecoms market.

Why it matters: Under terms outlined in April, Bouygues will take 42% of SFR’s assets, Free-Iliad 31% and Orange 27%. SFR’s consumer mobile and fixed broadband operations will be divided between the three operators, while Bouygues will take control of the B2B unit. Completion is targeted for H2 2027, subject to regulatory clearance. Kester Mann, director, consumer and connectivity at CCS Insight, noted the move marks the biggest potential shake-up in French telecoms since Iliad entered the mobile market in 2012, cutting the number of major operators from four to three and reshaping competition. He said the agreement appears “a successful outcome for all parties” as Bouygues, Orange and Iliad all gain “important new assets in their pursuit of greater scale”, while removing a key rival will “reduce the competitive intensity of the market”. However, the biggest challenge will be to regulators show the deal will deliver “positive outcomes to the French market”. He noted that while that would once have been “a herculean task”, recent approvals in the UK and Spain suggest Europe’s stance on consolidation is softening.

Bouygues, Orange, Free agree €20B SFR carve up

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