Telecom Weekly: AI‑Driven Networks, Coherent Optics and Global Infrastructure Moves

This week’s stories illustrate how AI is moving from hype to concrete deployments, while new coherent pluggable optics signal a shift in how carriers will scale high‑capacity transport. Operators from Europe to Asia are committing sizable capex to AI‑centric infrastructure, and satellite ambitions are heating up regulatory battles that could affect worldwide broadband strategies. Together, these trends underscore an industry accelerating toward smarter, more flexible, and globally interoperable networks.

Coherent pluggable optics take center stage at OFC LA – Cignal AI declares the market has entered a fully pluggable coherent era, promising cheaper, higher‑capacity transport.
GSMA at MWC 2026 highlights shift from AI hype to agentic AI deployments – Operators are moving toward practical, autonomous AI solutions and sovereign infrastructure.
Deutsche Telekom rolls out voice‑first AI interface – Magenta AI embeds voice capabilities for customer service and network control, making voice the default AI interaction.
Vodafone upgrades German last‑mile with Aurora’s AI‑friendly platform – Remote‑PHY, DAA and virtual CMTS technologies bring AI‑ready connectivity closer to users.
China Unicom earmarks over 35% of 2026 capex for AI computing – Expands data‑center capacity to 45 EFLOPS as AI demand surges.
Bernard Borghei discusses a billion‑dollar bet on next‑gen wireless infrastructure – Podcast reveals plans for a new, modular infrastructure platform built on decades of tower expertise.
Blue Origin files for 51,000 satellites, sparking a regulatory showdown – FCC filing could reshape satellite broadband competition and orbital data‑center concepts.