Telecom Leaders Struggle to Scale AI Despite Revenue Ambitions — HCL Technologies Limited

Event summary

60% of telecom leaders view AI as a key revenue driver, but only 25% believe their organizations are ready to operationalize AI at scale.
Nearly 70% of respondents agree that connectivity services are increasingly commoditized, reinforcing the need for differentiated digital services.
Nearly 80% of telecom leaders launched fewer than five new digital products or services in the past year.
Ecosystem collaboration, particularly with hyperscalers and AI platform providers, is seen as essential for accelerating innovation and monetization.

The big picture

The telecom industry is under pressure to evolve beyond commoditized connectivity services, with AI seen as a critical driver for future revenue. However, the slow pace of innovation and operational challenges highlight the difficulty in transitioning to AI-native, autonomous, and cloud-native services at scale. The strategic shift from traditional telcos to AI-driven TechCos is still in its early stages, with cost optimization dominating success metrics.

What we're watching

Execution Gap: How telecom leaders will bridge the gap between AI ambitions and operational readiness, particularly in legacy infrastructure and skills.
Innovation Velocity: Whether telecom companies can accelerate product engineering and time-to-market to launch more digital products and services.
Ecosystem Collaboration: The pace at which partnerships with hyperscalers and AI platform providers will drive meaningful innovation and monetization.