MWC Shanghai 2024: Huawei adopts commercial 5G-A for the mobile AI era

In 2024, major operators in Asia and the Middle East have already begun deploying 5G-A networks, and some have launched differentiated experience packages based on this technology. Over the past five years, commercial 5G has achieved remarkable success and has had an unprecedented impact on the global mobile industry. This year marks the beginning of the Mobile AI Era thanks to the commercial launch of 5G-A and other AI devices. The combination of both will usher in the era of mobile AI, making smart services ubiquitous and bringing significant changes to society. Currently, the number of global 5G users has exceeded 1.8 billion, and operators are already enjoying the first dividends of 5G. For consumers, new calling, cloud phones and naked-eye 3D experiences have raised new requirements for speed and latency.

By addressing critical issues of policy and cybersecurity standards, participants at MWC reaffirmed their commitment to driving sustainable growth and fostering a resilient digital ecosystem. As these regions continue on their path of digital transformation, ongoing collaboration and strategic partnerships will remain essential in overcoming challenges and unlocking new opportunities in the global telecom landscape.

The GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communications Association) supports mobile companies by advocating for industry policies, creating global standards, and fostering collaboration. It drives innovation, promotes best practices, and facilitates partnerships that help operators navigate technological advancements and regulatory challenges effectively. The GSMA Open Gateway initiative represents a significant leap forward in the mobile industry’s journey towards fostering innovation and enhancing connectivity. By leveraging open network APIs, this initiative aims to create a more collaborative ecosystem where developers and businesses can seamlessly integrate and innovate.

“Open Gateway helps unleash the potential and makes easy to offer services globally. In the Arab world, we have operators that have launched 5G but we also have operators that still use 4G. There is a massive investment in 5G and GSMA will help to unleash the potential of the network, drive new services and help operators to monetize that,” said Mr. Jawad Abassi, Head of MENA at GSM. “In the GCC we still need to improve mobile connectivity, there are two major gaps, the first one is the coverage gap that depends on the quantity of population and then there is the users’ gap, people who live within a reliable mobile network but don’t use it, we need to tackle the user gap,”

MENA and Central Asian Telecom Stakeholders Address Policy and Cybersecurity Standards at Mobile World Congress Shanghai 2024

With the increasing digitization of economies and societies, cybersecurity emerged as a critical priority for telecom stakeholders. MENA and Central Asian countries are actively enhancing their cybersecurity capabilities to safeguard against emerging threats such as cyberattacks, data breaches, and digital fraud.

One of the central themes of the conference was the development of effective policy frameworks that support innovation while ensuring regulatory compliance and consumer protection. Participants emphasized the importance of adaptive regulatory environments that foster competition, investment, and technological advancement.

“At Huawei, we have embedded our AI capabilities into our cloud, so if you go to Huawei cloud you will be able to assess our AI-enabled applications as well as LLMs that can be used for the different applications, so you can develop your models based on some of the baselines skills we have already developed, said Aloysius Cheang, Chief Security Officer, Huawei Middle East and Central Asia.