Huawei Spotlights Middle East’s AI-Ready Network Leadership at MWC Shanghai 2026
Huawei has recognized the Middle East’s growing leadership in building AI-ready digital infrastructure at Mobile World Congress (MWC) Shanghai 2026, unveiling a series of innovations in mobile and optical networking designed to help operators meet the rapidly evolving demands of the AI era.
During the event, Huawei convened global operators, industry organizations and ecosystem partners at its Mobile AI Industry Summit, where participants reached a shared industry consensus that enhancing uplink is key for mobile networks to drive innovation and business growth in the Mobile AI era.
To address these evolving requirements, Huawei introduced its new GigaUplink solution, leveraging upgraded multi-antenna technologies with intelligent spectrum, device-network and network collaboration algorithms to deliver a fivefold increase in uplink capacity alongside a 10 dB improvement in uplink coverage. The solution supports the high uplink network initiative jointly released by GSMA and industry partners including Huawei, which established “ubiquitous 20 Mbps and peak 1 Gbps” as the core capability standards for Mobile AI.
Zeng Chuang, President of Huawei Wireless FDD Product Line, said, “Huawei will continue to collaborate with industry partners to build GigaUplink networks for Mobile AI through joint standards, ecosystem and business development. This will promote the iterative evolution of GigaUplink capabilities to deliver better Mobile AI service experiences and drive the mobile industry into the next golden decade.”
The announcements carry particular significance for the Middle East, where operators have consistently ranked among the world’s leaders in advanced 5G deployment. Huawei noted that the UAE has already released U6 GHz spectrum resources, with the world’s first commercial deployment of 5G-Advanced using the Upper 6 GHz band expected during the second half of 2026. The company described U6GHz as one of the most strategically important spectrum bands for supporting Mobile AI, enabling a balance between coverage and capacity while providing a smooth evolution path from today’s 5G-Advanced networks towards future 6G capabilities.
During the summit, industry leaders also agreed that uplink capabilities, latency assurance and network reliability will become defining characteristics of next-generation mobile networks as AI applications continue to reshape traffic patterns from traditional download-centric usage towards increasingly balanced uplink and downlink demand. The discussions also highlighted the importance of closer collaboration across standards bodies, operators and technology providers to accelerate Mobile AI innovation globally.
Huawei also joined industry leaders from GSMA, China Mobile, 3GPP and ecosystem partners to explore the commercial evolution of 5G-Advanced. During the forum, participants introduced new initiatives focused on AI-native core networks, agent-based connectivity and closer collaboration between terminals, networks and digital services to help operators monetise next-generation network capabilities more effectively.
Recognizing that AI will depend equally on high-performance fixed connectivity, Huawei also showcased its latest AI Optical Network (AI-ON) innovations during the AI-ON Summit held under the theme “Networks for AI, AI for Networks.” Huawei unveiled 10 new AI-ON products and solutions, including AI-FTTR products, the industry’s first high-density 50G PON service board for large-scale commercial use, an ultra-large OTN cluster solution and an integrated submarine-terrestrial cable solution, to help operators build AI-centric all-optical target networks.
Kim Jin, Vice President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line, said, “Huawei is advancing its optical-AI convergence strategy to enable the coordinated development of optical and AI technologies. The AI-FAN and AI-OTN product series empowers operators to build AI-centric all-optical target networks, achieving value-driven ultra-gigabit operations and driving the widespread adoption of AI services.”
Huawei said the convergence of AI-native mobile and optical networks will play a critical role in supporting the next generation of intelligent economies, enabling governments, enterprises and consumers to benefit from faster, more reliable and increasingly autonomous digital infrastructure. As countries across the Middle East continue investing in AI and advanced connectivity, the company believes the region is well positioned to help shape the future of intelligent communications.
As the ICT industry moves rapidly toward an era of token monetization, Huawei is working with global carriers and partners to explore 5G-Advanced high uplink and experience monetization, as well as AI-powered business upgrades, through enhanced connectivity and compute.
MWC Shanghai 2026 takes place from June 24 to 26 in Shanghai, China. During the event, Huawei is showcasing its latest products and solutions in Hall N1 of the Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC).
