Taiwan Mobile taps Nokia for AI-driven 5G upgrade

The deployment adds AirScale infrastructure to support future mobile services.

Taiwan Mobile has signed a 5G expansion agreement with Nokia to upgrade its network with artificial intelligence (AI)-driven software and next-generation infrastructure, supporting new 5G services and expanding network capacity.

Nokia said in a statement that the agreement will see the deployment of its AirScale portfolio, including next-generation baseband and radio equipment, alongside AI-powered software to modernise Taiwan Mobile's existing network infrastructure.

The agreement is intended to enhance network performance, automation, and sustainability whilst supporting growing AI-related traffic.

“The deployment introduces a comprehensive set of AI-driven capabilities spanning network intelligence, infrastructure, sustainability, and resilience,” the company said.

The software will support real-time automation, predictive analytics, and closed-loop network assurance, whilst predictive hardware analytics and self-organising network technology will automate network operations and optimise performance.

The infrastructure upgrade will increase network capacity and uplink performance to support traffic generated by AI applications.

Nokia said the deployment will also support new 5G capabilities, including network slicing and reduced capability, alongside improved spectrum efficiency and throughput.

The agreement also includes AI-powered energy management tools designed to optimise power consumption based on network traffic.

Nokia said AI-enabled self-healing and traffic steering capabilities will help maintain network services under changing operating conditions.

Mark Atkinson, Head of RAN at Nokia, said the agreement would support Taiwan Mobile's transition towards AI-native networks and provide the foundation for 5G-Advanced.

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

Jamie Lin, President of Taiwan Mobile, said integrating AI across the network would support energy optimisation, network resilience, and the introduction of new services.