Barcelona-Mobile World Congress -February 26, 2024: Telenor announced today it
is collaborating with NVIDIA to bring AI across the Nordic region, transform
internal operational efficiencies and the communications network, and create new
AI opportunities and partnerships with startups, enterprises, and government
entities. With this collaboration, Telenor plans to become a sovereign AI cloud
partner of NVIDIA, enabling generative AI across Nordic markets at the national
level. In addition, Telenor aims to implement innovative AI solutions across its
operations, from customer service to network optimisation.
As part of the collaboration, Telenor will leverage NVIDIA's expertise in AI,
cloud, and network technologies to create new opportunities for internal
efficiencies and improve customer solutions. With initial operations at the
national level in Norway, Telenor will enable generative AI across the region,
signifying a leap forward for community and developer initiatives.
Telenor's AI ambitions are firmly rooted in its AI-first program, which was
announced today, that prioritises value-driven use cases across business areas,
data modernisation, and responsible AI development in an inclusive, safe,
secure, and sustainable way, as well as human capital upskilling. Telenor
believes in a human-centric approach to AI development and use, working to raise
ethical standards with regards to digital inclusion, sustainability, and
security, as well as mitigating risks.
In the initial year of collaboration, Telenor plans to invest approx. NOK 100m
in NVIDIA infrastructure to drive AI adoption for its internal consumption and
external business customers' needs. The collaboration will offer Telenor access
to the latest NVIDIA hardware and AI enterprise software to help drive Telenor's
AI ambitions and support a number of AI use cases across Telenor's operations.
The intended investment reflects Telenor's ambition to lead in the AI space as a
tech-driven telco. Furthermore, the collaboration will enable Telenor to explore
the next generation of software-defined, high-performance network solutions,
powered by the NVIDIA Aerial software development kit, so it can simultaneously
utilise 5G RAN and AI technologies on a single infrastructure.
"We are thrilled to start collaborating with NVIDIA, a global leader in AI,
cloud, and networking technologies, to accelerate our transformation into a
cloud and AI-first company. This collaboration with NVIDIA will help Telenor
deliver cutting-edge solutions to our customers, drive innovation and efficiency
across our operations, and contribute to the development of the AI ecosystem in
Nordics. Through this collaboration, we intend to create a highly sustainable
and efficient AI centre and pave the way for a more connected and intelligent
future," said Amol Phadke, EVP and GCTO of Telenor Group.
"Generative AI is transforming the way telcos operate globally, enabling
efficiencies while improving sustainability. Our collaboration with Telenor will
help power the next generation of software-defined, high-performance network
solutions to bring sovereign AI to the Nordic region, as well as support the
building of a green AI centre that will foster ethical and responsible AI
applications," said Chris Penrose, global head of business development for
telco, NVIDIA.
Building a Green AI Centre for the Future
Telenor's goal is to work with partners to build some of the most secure and
energy-efficient data centres in Europe, differentiating the company's offering
and positioning it as a leader in environmentally conscious AI solutions.
Telenor intends to develop a green AI centre for the Nordics, providing AI
infrastructure for businesses and researchers while minimising the environmental
footprint and targeting zero emissions. Through this, Telenor will have the
opportunity to deliver enhanced services and experiences to its customers while
reducing costs and complexity. The AI centre, to be built in Norway, would
leverage Telenor's next-generation data centres, as well as NVIDIA AI platforms
to create a highly efficient solutions. The centre would foster collaboration
and innovation among the AI community to support the development of ethical and
responsible AI applications. The centre also intends to work with academia
across Norway to enable the latest AI research.
Media contact:
David Fidjeland, Director Media Relations, Telenor Group
E-mail: david.fidjeland@telenor.com (mailto:david.fidjeland@telenor.com)
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