Doha: At the third keynote session titled “Powering Intelligent Economies: From Infrastructure to Impact”, convened on Wednesday as part of MWC Doha 2025, officials from telecommunications companies described artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure as the backbone of the region’s economies. They highlighted the role of the digital revolution in reshaping the global economy, driving profound transformations, and creating unprecedented opportunities across various sectors.

According to Qatar News Agency, during the session, the keynote speakers weighed in on a unified vision that digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence will become the cornerstone of Middle East and North Africa economies, with telecommunications companies transitioning from their traditional role to leading the digital transformation, shaping smart ecosystems that drive innovation and growth and reinforce national development strategies.

Hilal Mohammed Al Khulaifi, Group Chief Legal, Regulatory, and Governance Officer at Ooredoo Group, emphasized that the world today is undergoing a digital revolution that generates a tremendous amount of high-value data, contributing to significant productive gains. Al Khulaifi referred to World Economic Forum estimates, which project the addition of more than USD 10 trillion in value through digitization across five key industries over the next decade. He affirmed that McKinsey Global Institute projections previously estimated the potential to add USD 13 trillion to global output by 2030, emphasizing that the figure is certainly larger today.

Al Khulaifi elaborated on the current reality of telecommunications companies, which still suffer from underutilization of their data due to regulatory obligations, noting that Qwant has adopted a new model based on separating certain operations into more flexible independent units, most notably the establishment of a data centers company, with the aim of developing products and services that support the next generation of highly advanced digital enterprises. He emphasized that governmental transformations toward digitization and the integration of artificial intelligence are increasing the demand for advanced infrastructure, noting that Qwant is already experiencing positive impacts from this new strategy.

For his part, John Giusti, Chief Regulatory Officer for GSMA, stated that the mobile industry contributed USD 350 billion to GDP in the Middle East and North Africa region last year, with projections for the contribution to surge to USD 470 billion by 2030. Giusti further emphasized that mobile networks have become the primary driver of digital transformation in the region, noting that the telecommunications sector provides critical infrastructure for the deployment of artificial intelligence and its applications across various sectors.

Citing the Qatari experience, he elaborated that Lusail Smart City represents a globally advanced model, in addition to the smart ambulance systems of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), which have reduced response times and enhanced healthcare quality.

Hatem Dowidar, Group Chief Executive Officer of e and , urged the attendees to reflect on the new role of telecommunications companies, which are transitioning from traditional connectivity to integrated digital platforms that enable smart economies.

For his part, Ali Taha Koc, CEO of Turkcell, stressed that telecommunications firms no longer operate within their traditional framework but have become architects of the digital ecosystem, explaining that Turkcell is leading innovation in Internet of Things, cloud services, 5G technologies, and AI-powered energy solutions. He underlined that the new era will make operators the nervous system of artificial intelligence, with their role focusing on ensuring ultra-reliable, high-speed connectivity, as well as protecting and ethically leveraging data.

Koc revealed that 42 percent of telecommunications operators globally are already using artificial intelligence, while another 49 percent plan to adopt it, indicating that 90 percent of the sector is pivoting toward wide-scale integration of AI in its operations. He emphasized that these transformations will redefine the healthcare, education, manufacturing, and energy sectors, noting that factories will increasingly rely on edge computing and 6G, while supply chains will become intelligent systems that adapt automatically to shocks and predict requirements.