Nokia and Taiwan Mobile Expand 5G Partnership

Taiwan Mobile and Nokia have signed a 5G expansion agreement to accelerate the mobile operator’s transition towards a AI-native mobile network across Taiwan.

As part of the agreement, Taiwan Mobile’s network will be augmented by deployments of Nokia’s AirScale portfolio, which includes next-generation baseband and radio solutions, alongside advanced software to enable new 5G services and monetisation opportunities.

The partnership focuses on integrating AI across mobile networks to manage increasing volumes of traffic generated by AI applications.

It will support Taiwan Mobile’s work to boost network performance, increase automation and improve the sustainability of its operations.

“Our collaboration with Nokia is a key pillar in our strategy to build a high-performance, resilient and sustainable network that powers our fast-growing and ever-expanding Telco+Tech businesses,” says Jamie Lin, President of Taiwan Mobile. 

“By integrating AI across our network for better energy optimisation, resilience and service innovation, we are creating a platform that supports next-generation applications delivered with industry-leading experiences for our customers. 

“This long-term partnership that focuses on win-win enables us to accelerate our leadership position as the go-to partner in the AI era and unlock new exponential growth opportunities.”

Upgrading network infrastructure

The new agreement will expand Taiwan Mobile’s 5G capacity and optimise its network performance by deploying advanced radios and next-generation baseband systems.

These upgrades are designed to support enhanced throughput, improve spectrum efficiency and deliver premium user experiences.

The integration of AI-driven network management will help reduce operational complexity, lower the total cost of ownership and enable predictive maintenance. In addition, it will support the introduction of new 5G capabilities such as network slicing and Reduced Capability (RedCap) 5G technology.

“We are extending our long-standing partnership with Taiwan Mobile, helping accelerate its journey toward AI-native networks,” says Mark Atkinson, Head of Radio Access Networks, Nokia.

“Our advanced radio and baseband solutions and AI-driven software deliver intelligent automation, enhanced performance and improved energy efficiency, setting the foundation for 5G-Advanced and beyond. 

“The future-ready network enables Taiwan Mobile to deliver increasing volumes of AI traffic, provide new types of services and progress toward its sustainability targets.”

Deploying AI capabilities

The roll-out introduces several AI-driven features covering network intelligence, infrastructure, sustainability and resilience.

To improve network intelligence, Nokia will provide AI-powered software that enables real-time automation and predictive analytics to boost operational efficiency.

This deployment includes Predictive Hardware Analytics (PHWA) and Nokia’s MantaRay SON self-organising networks solution, which uses AI algorithms to automate and improve operations.

For infrastructure, Nokia's next-generation baseband and radio solutions will increase network capacity and uplink performance to support AI application traffic.

Driving sustainable operations

To address sustainability, advanced AI-powered energy management algorithms will enable traffic-aware optimisation and proactive power savings.

These features will help the operator reduce its energy consumption and meet its environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets.

Network resilience will also be strengthened through AI-enabled self-healing and traffic-steering capabilities that allow the network to adapt to changing conditions.

Taiwan Mobile bought its local rival T-Star back in 2023, while FarEasTone did the same with Asia Pacific Telecom, causing the mobile market to consolidate from a five-operator market to just three.