Fierce Network will be reporting live from Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, the telecom industry’s premier global event hosted by GSMA, from March 1, 2026, through March 5, 2026.
The Fierce Network team is covering AI, 5G, emerging 6G innovation, Open RAN, AI-RAN, AI-driven network automation, private networks, cloud-native infrastructure, and the strategies shaping the future of global communications.
Before, during and after the show we are meeting with industry leaders, including: AT&T, AWS, BT, Ciena, Ericsson, Google Cloud, Juniper/HPE, Microsoft, Nokia, NTT DoCoMo, Oracle, Orange, Samsung, T-Mobile, Vodafone and other global operators, vendors and innovators.
Click on the story headline to read the articles.
Bookmark this page to stay up to date for all of our coverage of MWC 2026.
During Mobile World Congress 2026:
Thursday, March 4, 2026
MWC 2026: Here’s what people are saying about open RAN
What’s the status of open RAN? Fierce asked around, and the answers might surprise you.
MWC 2026: Ericsson says AI is a network tool and network driver
Ericsson sees AI as both a tool to improve today’s networks and a driver of future architectures
MWC 2026: Mplify's new mission focuses on NaaS and the 'AI internet'
The group is positioning operators for what it calls an emerging 'AI internet,' not best‑effort networks
MWC 2026: Rakuten Symphony built an OSS to manage coverage, more via satellite
Prompted by sister company Rakuten Mobile working with AST SpaceMobile on a forthcoming D2D system, Rakuten Symphony has made an OSS for managing the ground coverage and more from satellites in space.
MWC 2026: AI‑driven networks move from demos to deployment
AT&T emerged as a central force, backing open, telco‑grade AI models and AI‑ready network architectures
MWC 2026: Amdocs says GenAI success in telco won’t come from magic
Amdocs is positioning domain expertise and open, modular architectures as critical to AI success
Wednesday, March 4, 2026
MWC 2026: Here's what we saw and heard on Day 3
Day 3 at MWC 2026 in Barcelona brought 6G, AI-RAN, Open RAN and standards into focus.
MWC 2026: Can Elon Musk’s Starlink Mobile defy physics?
SpaceX made a splash here with the big unveil of Starlink Mobile, triggering renewed speculation about what Elon Musk really plans to do to shake up the decades-old terrestrial wireless industry.
MWC 2026: For 5G and 6G, the standalone network core is the key
Ericsson talked up the 5G SA core as key to making more money off 5G and eventually 6G at Mobile World Congress 2026.
MWC 2026: US outspends Europe on wireless, CTIA says
CTIA’s latest report highlights a stark investment divide, with U.S. wireless spending more than 2.5 times higher than Europe’s.
MWC 2026: Red Hat drives toward cloud-native and AI-ready telcos
At MWC 2026 in Barcelona, Red Hat deepens global telco partnerships to accelerate cloud-native transformation and build AI-ready networks.
MWC 2026: Oracle positions communications as core AI infrastructure
As AI investment drives gigawatt-scale data centers, Oracle argues that communications networks, 5G platforms and network automation are becoming foundational infrastructure.
MWC 2026: 6G talk heats up, but standards timelines remain cautious
ETSI says 6G standardization is still in the study phase, with final specifications not expected before 2029
Tuesday, March 3, 2026
MWC 2026: Wind River shows how V2X, physical AI can drive monetization
Wind River – the Aptive company, not the movie – is here to help carriers find new revenue streams
MWC 2026: Seen & heard on Day 2
MWC: T-Mobile CTO talks big autonomous network ambitions
MWC: Wind River shows how V2X, physical AI can drive monetization
Wind River is using V2X and physical AI to show service providers how its technologies can help them to monetize 5G.
MWC: T-Mobile CTO talks big autonomous network ambitions
Fierce caught up with T-Mobile President of Technology and Chief Technology Officer John Saw for his take on the latest machinations in autonomous networking.
MWC: Ookla to be acquired by Accenture as part of $1.2B Ziff Davis deal
Ookla revealed that it will be bought by professional services behemoth, Accenture, as part of a $1.2 billion deal to buy Ziff Davis' Connectivity division.
MWC: HPE presses ahead with AI-driven networking strategy following Juniper integration
HPE's EVP, president and GM, Rami Rahim, told Fierce Network at MWC 2026 that the integration with Juniper is progressing quickly, with no disruption to customers and accelerating product innovation.
MWC: SoftBank expects to deliver 6G services in a massive 400 MHz band
SoftBank's Koichiro Furueda told Fierce Network at MWC 2026 in Barcelona that the initial 6G services will require a massive 400 MHz band in order to operate.
MWC: Skylo bets on standards to make satellite just another cell site
Skylo positions satellite as extension of carrier networks, not a separate connectivity layer
Monday, March 2, 2026
MWC 2026: Seen & heard on Day 1
The biggest show in the telecom industry kicked off under sunny skies, but the pallor of war in the Middle East hung heavy over the mood at the Fira de Barcelona.
MWC at war: Travel delays due to Iran conflict ensare some attendees
Canceled and delayed flights, originating from the Middle East and beyond, blocked people from traveling to Barcelona.
MWC: Google Cloud targets telco networks, operations and more with AI
Google Cloud is pushing to help telcos achieve Level 4 to 5 autonomy — aka a network that identifies, diagnoses and fixes its problems without humans.
MWC: Starlink Mobile unveils plans for V2 satellites and more
SpaceX President and COO Gwen Shotwell and SVP of Starlink Mike Nichols gave a keynote on Monday at MWC
MWC: Tejas says 6G will require many more basestations than 5G
The Indian vendor said that many more radios would be required to support 6G sensing applications.
MWC: Qualcomm unveils X105 5G Modem with AI
The X105 is leading the path to 6G development and testing, according a Qualcomm spokesperson
MWC exclusive: Render Networks takes agentic AI into the field
Render Networks' ClearWay agentic AI is designed to automate and govern execution across large-scale infrastructure deployments, including fiber broadband and electric grid modernization
Opinion: MWC26 and the great AI illusion
Today’s hyperscaler AI is a powerful pattern prediction, but without grounding, causality or consequence, it isn’t true intelligence.
GSMA seeks to tailor AI models for telco requirements
GSMA is building a coalition to tailor AI models specifically for telco requirements.
MWC report: Open RAN Coalition closing up shop
The organization was formed to promote policies that advanced the adoption of open and interoperable open RAN solutions
ServiceNow aims to simplify roaming issues for NTT Docomo, StarHub
NTT Docomo and StarHub tapped ServiceNow’s CRM to establish an inter-carrier model for autonomous resolution of roaming issues
Sunday, March 1, 2026
MWC: Nokia promises commercial AI-RAN in 2027
Nokia executives said on "Day zero" of MWC that commercial AI-RAN is on the way.
MWC: AI and the push to restore ‘respect' for the telco
AI needs the network — and hopes are high it belongs to telcos in the run-up to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona
ZaiNar gets physical with 5G positioning
"At MWC, you're going to hear a lot about location services that are coming out over the next couple of decades," said ZaiNar CEO Danny Jacker in conversation with Fierce.
After Mobile World Congress 2026:
Stay tuned!
Before MWC 2026:
MWC 2026: Welcome to Hall Zero!
At the conclusion of last year’s show, we reported that this year’s show is set to feature a newly constructed exhibition hall, which at least one show-goer jokingly called “Hall Zero.”
Fierce Network editorial team heading to Barcelona for MWC 2026
What on earth is Giga-MIMO?
Giga-MIMO may sound like it should belong in Toho Studio’s list of Kaiju monsters, but it in fact refers to the next iteration of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna arrays for forthcoming 5G-Advanced — and even 6G — deployments.
What Fierce Network is watching for at MWC 2026: AI, 5G and network transformation
At MWC 2026, Fierce Network is focused on the themes that will shape operator strategy and vendor roadmaps over the next 12 months: AI-native networks, open RAN performance and scale, 5G standalone (SA), cloud convergence, edge AI deployments and the growing role of satellite connectivity.
Ericsson’s AI bet: The intelligent fabric vs the AI factory
Ericsson’s pre-MWC media day, which takes place each year ahead of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, featured Erik Ekudden, Ericsson’s CTO, who outlined what’s ahead for the communications industry.
Taara debuts Lightbridge Pro, touts five nines uptime
Despite network outages that are all too common, Taara, the Google X Moonshot spin-out that uses free space optics (FSO) to deliver connectivity, is betting that five-nines reliability is still a thing.
Q&A: Quantum without the hype - Making security real before Q-Day
Fierce Network spoke with Dr. Sameh Yamany, CTO of Viavi Solutions, about what network operators, security leaders and infrastructure vendors need to do today to secure their networks before Q-Day
Q&A: 6G is coming - Qualcomm’s John Smee on AI, connectivity and the future of everything
John Smee, SVP of Engineering, told Fierce what 6G means in 2026, how enterprises and service providers should prepare and why AI and device connectivity will redefine the network experience.
Dell’Oro: Optical transport revenue hit $16B in 2025, fueled by hyperscalers, neoclouds
Optical transport came back with a bang in 2025, with Dell’Oro noting revenue rose to $16 billion on account of cloud spend for data center interconnect (DCI).
Airspan launches its MobileAccess DAS platform across Europe
With less than two weeks to go before Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Airspan Networks is launching its MobileAccess Digital DAS platform across Europe and the United Kingdom.
Opinion: My cheat sheet for Mobile World Congress 2026
Mobile World Congress 2026 will end some of the debates that have been going on for years, with demos that show the practicality of key changes.
The weirdest AI use cases Fierce Network is watching right now
AI is a breakthrough that is revolutionizing business and society. In this ongoing tracker, the editorial team is taking turns writing about strange, surprising and slightly unsettling AI trends and use cases — and then ranking their potential ROI for telcos on a scale of 1-5.
Exclusive: T-Mobile’s John Saw explains kinetic tokens and why they matter in 6G
T-Mobile’s CTO told Fierce Network that physical AI requires a new type of token and telecom operators are in a prime position to distribute them.
HPE touts latest Juniper routers to provide ‘full-stack’ for AI
With its portfolio of compute, storage, networking and security, HPE is set to compete heavily against Cisco
Airspan launches AirUnity small cell portfolio
Airspan’s new small cell portfolio is designed to help mobile operators and enterprises expand 4G and 5G coverage and capacity
Dell debuts ruggedized outdoor server for cloud RAN and edge AI
Ahead of Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Dell introduced the ruggedized Dell PowerEdge XR9700, which it claims is the first outdoor x86 server for cloud RAN and edge applications.
First Orion expands carrier support beyond T-Mobile and US
With DT, First Orion is offering branded calling services to enterprise customers across Germany.
Celona CEO on top markets, robots and the appeal of private 5G
Celona has three major global markets but expects to add more top markets in six to nine months.
The Five Nine Podcast: What to Expect at MWC Barcelona 2026
Fierce Network's editorial team says MWC 2026 hot topics will be a mix of AI advancements, Giga-MIMO, satellite connectivity and quantum.
This article is a recap of our coverage of Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona. We will continue to update this article throughout the show.
For context on how last year’s themes evolved, revisit our MWC 2025 coverage hub.