Nokia and NVIDIA introduced a platform for telecom operators to build and govern AI agents across network operations, as operators report results from live and laboratory tests of AI-assisted radio functions.
Nokia said operators could develop agents for radio, core, transport and cloud systems. The platform is designed to let operators choose where operational data, models and policies reside, including on their own premises, in the cloud or in a hybrid setup. Nokia says operators would stay in control, with rules governing agents during testing and execution. It named etisalat UAE, MEO and Airtel as operators working to identify uses and integration timelines. The announcement did not give a commercial availability date.
Separately, the companies are developing AI-RAN, which places AI workloads alongside radio access network functions. The setup pairs Nokia’s anyRAN software with NVIDIA’s Aerial RAN Computer to apply AI to 5G signal processing, including channel estimation, beamforming and scheduling.
Nokia also reported an AI-RAN call on T-Mobile’s live network at a commercial cell site in Bellevue, Washington, following earlier laboratory testing. In Helsinki, Elisa said its trial handled voice and mobile data while processing video analytics over its 5G Advanced network. The Finnish operator plans further validation on a live commercial network in 2027.
Deutsche Telekom said laboratory comparisons in Bonn and Oulu recorded uplink throughput 10% to 15% higher with AI-based channel estimation. The company plans to check the result in a field trial under real-world radio conditions. BT plans to put its first AI-RAN sites on the live EE network in Birmingham in 2027, where it will assess capacity, reliability and spectral efficiency under customer traffic.
Nokia set a 2027 commercial availability target for its separate AI-RAN platform in July, with software offered by subscription. BT’s planned sites and Deutsche Telekom’s field trial are among the next steps in testing the technology outside the laboratory.
