Tech Interviews

NETWORKS MUST EVOLVE BEFORE AI CAN SCALE

Published

54 minutes ago

June 24, 2026

Rohit Chowdhary, Head of Advanced Consulting Services at Nokia, sat down with The Integrator to share insights into the company’s vision for enabling the AI Supercycle. He outlined how Nokia’s end-to-end portfolio spans everything from AI-ready connectivity and energy-efficient 800G data centre networking to intelligent, self-optimising home Wi-Fi experiences powered by AI.

A key focus of the discussion was Nokia’s shift from strategic advisory to real-world execution through its dedicated Automation Excellence Practice, helping operators translate ambitious transformation roadmaps into measurable outcomes. The conversation also highlighted the growing importance of integrated, intelligent and secure networks that can support rising AI workloads, eliminate infrastructure bottlenecks and unlock tangible business value, while maintaining the highest standards of security, privacy and resilience

Could you begin by telling us about your role at Nokia and the journey that brought you here?

I lead Nokia’s Advanced Consulting Services business across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. My journey with Nokia spans nearly seventeen years, beginning at a time when consulting was largely focused on network transformation initiatives. Over the years, I have worked closely with operators around the world on transformation programmes, analytics adoption, customer experience management and digital modernization.

As the industry evolved, so did our consulting focus. Following the Nokia and Alcatel Lucent merger, we established what is today known as Advanced Consulting Services. The organization now spans several domains, including Security, Business monetization, Cloud and Technology transformation, Autonomous Networks, and Data & AI.

More recently, we launched an Automation Excellence Practice. The idea was simple. Customers often appreciated our strategic blueprints but needed practical expertise to implement them. Today, we have specialized engineers who combine telecom expertise, AI capabilities and software development skills to turn strategic visions into real automation pipelines, AI-driven workflows and production-ready use cases. Our role is to help customers move from concept to measurable business outcomes.

Nokia is often associated with connectivity, but the company is increasingly talking about AI readiness. How does Nokia’s infrastructure portfolio support this transition?

AI is creating what we describe as an AI Supercycle. It is transforming everything from data centres and cloud infrastructure to network architectures and edge computing. Supporting this shift requires a complete ecosystem rather than isolated technologies.

Nokia’s portfolio addresses this across multiple layers. On the network side, we continue to innovate in radio technologies, including AI-RAN capabilities developed alongside strategic partners such as Nvidia. We also have a strong optical networking and IP portfolio that enables the high-capacity connectivity required between data centres, edge locations and cloud environments.

One area that excites me is our innovation in data centre networking. We are introducing highly efficient coherent optical technologies and advanced switching platforms that significantly reduce infrastructure footprints while improving performance and energy efficiency. These innovations are becoming increasingly important as organizations invest in AI factories, AI grids and large-scale inference environments.

Beyond connectivity, we also provide intelligent automation layers through our Autonomous Networks platforms, enabling operators to manage complex, multi-vendor environments more efficiently and intelligently.

What are some of the biggest infrastructure bottlenecks you see operators and enterprises facing as AI adoption accelerates?

One of the biggest challenges is understanding that AI infrastructure is not just about compute power. Organizations often focus heavily on GPUs and processing capabilities, but connectivity can quickly become the limiting factor.

You can deploy the most powerful AI infrastructure available, but if the network cannot support the required data movement between racks, data centres and edge locations, performance suffers. This is where intelligent networking becomes critical.

At Nokia, we are helping customers design what we call AI-ready connectivity. This includes high-capacity optical networking, intelligent routing and the seamless interconnection of compute environments. As AI workloads become increasingly distributed, the ability to move data efficiently becomes just as important as the ability to process it.

On the consumer side, Nokia has been showcasing AI-driven Wi-Fi management capabilities. How does this improve the end-user experience?

The home network has become far more complex than it was a few years ago. Consumers expect flawless connectivity across multiple devices, applications and services.

Our AI-enabled Wi-Fi solutions continuously monitor network performance and user experience. They can identify coverage gaps, detect congestion, analyze interference patterns and even recommend or automatically implement corrective actions.

The goal is to create a self-optimizing network environment where many issues can be resolved autonomously before they impact the user. This reduces support requirements for service providers while delivering a more consistent and reliable experience for customers.

The Middle East is witnessing an unprecedented surge in data centre investments. How do you see this shaping Nokia’s opportunities in the region?

The Middle East has emerged as one of the most dynamic markets globally for AI infrastructure investments. Governments and enterprises are actively investing in sovereign AI capabilities, advanced data centres and digital ecosystems.

This creates significant opportunities, not only for Nokia but for the broader technology industry. The success of these initiatives depends on having secure, scalable and efficient connectivity between compute resources, cloud environments and end users.

Our role is to help customers build these foundations. Whether it is data centre interconnectivity, optical networking, intelligent routing or autonomous operations, Nokia’s technologies are designed to support the scale and performance requirements of AI-driven economies.

As data volumes continue to grow, security and data sovereignty are becoming increasingly important. How is Nokia addressing these concerns?

Security is deeply embedded into Nokia’s strategy and innovation roadmap. As a European technology company, trust, resilience and security have always been fundamental principles in how we design and operate our solutions.

While we continue to invest heavily in AI innovation, we are equally focused on strengthening security capabilities across our portfolio. This includes advanced network security architectures, AI-driven threat detection and preparations for future technologies such as quantum-safe networking.

We are actively engaged with industry bodies, standards organizations and ecosystem partners to help define the next generation of secure digital infrastructure. As AI becomes increasingly pervasive, security must evolve alongside it, and that is an area where Nokia continues to invest significantly.

Looking ahead, what excites you most about the future of AI-driven networks?

What excites me most is the convergence of AI, automation and connectivity. Networks are evolving from passive transport layers into intelligent platforms that can learn, adapt and optimize themselves.

The future will be defined by autonomous operations, AI-native networks and real-time decision-making at scale. Organizations that successfully combine these capabilities will unlock entirely new business models and levels of operational efficiency.

For us, the opportunity is not just about deploying technology. It is about helping customers transform the way they operate, innovate and create value in an increasingly AI-driven world.

Tech Interviews

Securing the Future of Enterprise AI: WSO2’s Middle East Strategy

Published

1 day ago

June 23, 2026

Integrator Web-Admin

Exclusive interview with Uday Shankar Khizepat – Vice President and General Manager for ME

How is WSO2 sailing through in the region amidst the uncertainty?

The Middle East continues to be one of the most dynamic technology markets globally. While there is uncertainty in the broader geopolitical and economic environment, we see that organizations across the region remain committed to their digital transformation programs and continue to invest in the areas of API modernization, application integration, Identity and access management, data connectivity, cloud transformation and AI enablement. This is because digitization is now a business necessity rather than a discretionary investment.

For WSO2, this has translated into continued demand for solutions that help enterprises modernize systems, securely manage digital identities, integrate increasingly complex technology landscapes, and adopt AI responsibly. We are seeing particularly strong interest from government, financial services, telecommunications, and energy sectors, where organizations are focused on improving operational agility while maintaining security, compliance, and resilience.

Any new products / solutions that have been introduced for the region?

One of the most significant developments for us is our vision for the Agentic Enterprise and the introduction of WSO2’s Agentic Enterprise Fabric. Rather than treating AI as a standalone capability or bolt-on feature, we have embedded AI capabilities into the very fabric of our platform.

The Agentic Enterprise Fabric enables organizations to securely connect data, APIs, applications, identities, and AI agents across the enterprise. This creates a foundation where intelligent agents can operate with the right context, governance, and security controls while delivering measurable business outcomes.

The WSO2 Agent Manager is an open platform for the full life-cycle of enterprise grade AI agents. The WSO2 AI gateway helps in governance by monitoring the usage, applying guardrails, optimizing costs & exposing APIs as MCP tools so that AI agents can safely interact. The WSO2 agent ID helps to register, authenticate, authorize and audit AI agents as first class identities.

This approach is resonating strongly in the Middle East, where organizations are moving beyond AI experimentation and looking for scalable, enterprise-grade AI implementations that can be governed and integrated into existing business processes.

What are the key solutions that have kept WSO2 ahead of its other competitors in the region?

Our differentiation comes from helping customers address key critical challenges simultaneously: APIs, integration, identity, and AI adoption.

Our API management platform helps companies ship, govern and monetize APIs, AI and MCP across any gateway or any cloud. Our integration capabilities enable organizations to connect legacy and modern systems quickly, helping accelerate digital initiatives. Our identity and access management solutions provide the security and trust layer needed for large-scale digital services. Last but not the least, our Agentic Enterprise Fabric brings AI into the core of the enterprise architecture rather than layering it on top as an afterthought.

All of this combined with our open-source heritage, flexible deployment options, and ability to support sovereign cloud and hybrid environments, gives customers the freedom to innovate with zero lock-in. This flexibility is critical in the Middle East region, where organizations increasingly prioritize digital sovereignty, data control, and long-term technology independence.

What are your plans for the coming few months in the region?

Our commitment to the growth and development of the Middle East region remains. We have just completed registering our office in KSA which reiterates our focus on deepening our engagement with customers and partners across the GCC and wider Middle East. We are investing in helping organizations move from AI pilots to production-ready deployments, while continuing to support large-scale modernization and digital transformation initiatives.

We also plan to strengthen our partner ecosystem, expand our presence in key markets, and work more closely with organizations pursuing digital sovereignty initiatives. As governments and enterprises accelerate their AI and digital agendas, we see significant opportunities to help them build secure, connected, and intelligent digital platforms for the future.

What’s your anticipated growth for the digital / tech sector in the coming few years?

The outlook remains very positive and we are optimistic. Over the next three to five years, I believe the region will move from digital transformation to intelligent transformation, where AI becomes embedded in core business operations rather than existing as isolated applications. Organizations that successfully combine AI with strong integration, identity, governance, and data foundations will be best positioned to create sustainable competitive advantages.

This shift will create significant opportunities for technology providers, system integrators, and enterprises alike.

Tech Interviews

Securing the Future of Enterprise AI: WSO2’s Middle East Strategy

Published

5 days ago

June 19, 2026

Integrator Web-Admin

Exclusive interview with Uday Shankar Kizhepat- Vice President and General Manager for ME

How is WSO2 sailing through in the region amidst the uncertainty?

Any new products / solutions that have been introduced for the region?

What are the key solutions that have kept WSO2 ahead of its other competitors in the region?

Our differentiation comes from helping customers address key critical challenges simultaneously: APIs, integration, identity, and AI adoption.

What are your plans for the coming few months in the region?

What’s your anticipated growth for the digital / tech sector in the coming few years?

This shift will create significant opportunities for technology providers, system integrators, and enterprises alike.

Tech Interviews

INSIDE THE RISE OF AI INFLUENCERS WITH IDEA FARM

Published

2 weeks ago

June 11, 2026

Integrator Web-Admin

Exclusive interview with Lewis Davey, Co-Founder Pixelagency.ai Founder & Creative Director at IDEA FARM

You’ve built a career around making brands culturally relevant through human creativity. What convinced you that the next frontier of storytelling might involve entirely virtual personalities?

AI Influencers have been around since 2018, but the technology has made huge strides in the past 18 months – and now hyper-realistic virtual personalities are exploding in popularity. Having worked in PR for 16 years, I think it’s good to be curious and I committed myself to learning about this space and becoming a bit of an expert – I was particularly interested in how brands could leverage AI Influencers as a new marketing channel. At Pixel what we present to brands is how AI Influencers can solve specific business challenges, drive efficiencies, and reach new audiences. This technology is much more than fancy images on Instagram.

Launching the world’s first AI Influencer Talent Management Agency sounds less like a business expansion and more like a prediction. What future did you see emerging that others weren’t paying attention to?

We launched Pixel 18 months ago with the intention of operating like a traditional talent management agency, connecting brands with existing AI Influencers. It’s certainly evolved, as the industry has gained more traction – and we’re banking on all brands owning their own AI Ambassador in the future.

Pixel isn’t just representing AI influencers, it’s helping brands create them. Why do you believe ownership of digital talent will become strategically important for brands?

Custom build AI Influencers is where we think the future is for brands. This is desirable for brands because they have an always-on marketing asset that can be online 24/7, with full creative control and tailored brand messaging. The AI Influencer can slot into their influencer portfolio, working alongside human influencers.

How do cultural sensitivities in the Middle East actually strengthen the case for AI Ambassadors rather than limit them?

I’ve always felt strongly that the Middle East is the perfect market for AI Ambassadors to thrive. There are reputational risks that come with working with real influencers, whereas a brand can have full control over messaging with its own AI Ambassadors. There’s 200 nationalities in Dubai – the other big selling point for AI Ambassadors is they can communicate in hundreds of languages, giving brands a versatile asset to target different demographics.

From a technology standpoint, what sits behind a successful AI Ambassador today, generative AI, language models, synthetic media, behavioural design, or something else entirely?

Of course, technology is important, and through our exclusive deal with The Clueless – the team behind the world’s biggest AI Influencer, Aitana Lopez, we’re bringing the best Gen-AI tools and talent to the GCC. But for me, it’s still the importance of the human behind the AI Ambassador – this is typically talented creatives, or social content creators, planning content schedules, leaning into culture and trends, and engaging with followers. Humans still have an important role in the storytelling element.

What safeguards should exist as AI-generated personalities become increasingly indistinguishable from humans?

It’s a fast-moving industry, and new rules and regulations will undoubtedly continue to come in. The EU will release new legislation in August, which could include the requirement of a watermark. The main one right now, which all our clients follow, is AI disclosure on Instagram. In an industry witnessing significant change, it’s important that responsible operators like Pixel and other partners work together to steer the industry in the right direction.

In an era of misinformation and rapidly evolving news cycles, how valuable is having a communication asset that is always accurate, controlled, and aligned with brand values?

I think it’s super important. During the recent conflict, we saw a segment of human influencers become unreliable, either posting misleading or sensationalised content. That’s troublesome for brands, so owning their own AI Ambassador that aligns with their values is going to become increasingly important. Now is the perfect time for brands in the Middle East to future proof their influencer strategy and consider an AI Ambassador.