The Strategic Role of Telecom Providers Across the AI Value Chain 2026

3Pathway enablers Scaling AI-led strategies requires foundational and pathway-specific capabilities spanning technology, operations, governance and ecosystems. Successful execution in any AI-led transformation depends on the right enablers – capabilities that allow telcos to participate in and scale each strategic pathway. They allow telcos to develop specific capabilities to build, scale and commercialize offerings along the value chain. Each strategic pathway requires a distinct set of enablers to participate and scale. For example, offering AI-optimized IaaS requires the ability to build, test and operate the underlying technology reliably; commercializing specialized vertical solutions requires talent, tooling and sales motions. We have grouped enablers into two layers: –Foundational enablers spanning AI strategy and value realization, data and AI foundation, and trust, security and compliance are essential for scaling AI across all pathways. They address common barriers like fragmented data, inconsistent governance and operational complexity that trap AI in pilots. These enablers ensure AI delivers measurable outcomes. A disciplined approach to AI value generation governs use case selection and value tracking across network, customer and enterprise domains. Meanwhile, an AI fabric establishes a unified data/AI backbone with governed data products, shared model/tooling standards and reusable components, and change management and responsible AI embed clear accountability, guardrails and AI- enabled workflows to facilitate safe adoption. Operators must also apply a clear decision lens to what they should build, buy or deliver through partners, balancing trade-offs such as investment capacity, legacy technology debt, regulatory constraints, talent availability and the need for differentiation. –Pathway-specific enablers shape how far a telco can extend beyond the connectivity core into AI-powered managed services and, ultimately, sovereign roles. They encompass the internal (infrastructure, product and sales, operating model, talent) and external (partnerships and ecosystems) capabilities needed to execute on the strategic pathways in this paper. Each pathway builds on the last – modern telco capabilities create the cloud- and AI-native network and operating base required for assured performance, AI techco capabilities add the product, platform and delivery discipline to run SLA-grade services at scale, and the national sovereign champion layers on sovereign infrastructure, governance and ecosystem orchestration aligned to government and regulated-sector requirements. Successful execution in any AI- led transformation depends on the right enablers – capabilities that allow telcos to participate in and scale each strategic pathway. 20 The Strategic Role of Telecom Providers across the AI Value Chain