Ericsson Year in Review 2025: Part Two - July to December

The second half of 2025 saw momentum continue in AI, autonomous networks and 5G success. Here is part two – July to December – of our look back on another busy news year for the company.

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Dec 30, 2025

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Ericsson Year in Review 2025: Part Two - July to December

July: Strengthening global network leadership

Ericsson continued to reinforce its position as the global radio access network (RAN) leader, securing the top spot in Omdia’s Market Landscape RAN Vendors 2025 report. The recognition reflected sustained performance in network quality, innovation, and large-scale deployments across markets.

Commercial momentum followed across multiple regions. Bharti Airtel selected Ericsson core solutions in its fixed wireless access (FWA) services rollout in India, strengthening network capacity and customer experience for its users. Liberty and Ericsson launched the first 5G standalone (SA) mobile network in Costa Rica and Central America, creating a foundation for differentiated connectivity and new use cases. Turning to Kuwait, Ericsson partnered with Ooredoo to deploy advanced charging capabilities on cloud native infrastructure, which enables flexible 5G monetization and new service models.

Ericsson technologies enabled key milestones for operators advancing 5G performance and automation at scale. In Australia, Telstra deployed Ericsson’s Automated Carrier Aggregation across more than 50 live 5G Advanced sites in North Sydney, improving connection consistency while reducing manual configuration effort. Meanwhile, AT&T became the first communication service provider (CSP) to run a third-party RAN automation application on a live production network via the Ericsson Intelligent Automation Platform, marking tangible progress toward open, programmable networks.

Beyond traditional telecom use cases, Ericsson showcased the versatility of 5G in demanding environments. At SailGP UK, Ericsson delivered seamless 5G connectivity across multiple sites, supporting real‑time data, broadcast workflows, and operations under race‑day conditions.

Ericsson expanded its 4G and 5G network equipment partnership with SoftBank Corp., supporting coverage across multiple regions in Japan and accelerating SA readiness and enabling efficiency through AI.

The month culminated with Ericsson’s second‑quarter 2025 financial results, highlighting steady execution and improved profitability as the company invests in automation, 5G SA, and core capabilities to drive long‑term value.

August: Driving the next wave of innovation

August marked a month of strategic focus and future-facing progress for Ericsson. The company completed the sale of iconectiv, reinforcing its commitment to core connectivity and digital infrastructure while streamlining the portfolio for long-term growth.

Ericsson demonstrated concrete advances in open and high-performance networks. A major milestone saw AT&T, Ericsson, and 1Finity complete the first Open RAN call using third‑party radios, a tangible step toward open, interoperable, and flexible network architectures.

Investment in capability building remained a parallel priority. Ericsson expanded skill development programs in India to train students in 5G and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, supporting the long-term talent pipeline for industry growth. In parallel, Ericsson and its partners launched Sferical AI, a Sweden-focused initiative to boost national competitiveness by accelerating AI-driven innovation across industries.

Further industry recognition came as Ericsson led Omdia’s Market Landscape: Core Vendors 2025 report for business performance, highlighting strong execution in core network solutions amid an evolving market landscape.

The month concluded with a forward-looking research focus, as Ericsson participated in the International Symposium on Personal, Indoor, and Mobile Radio Communications 2025 in Türkiye, showcasing advancements in 6G research and AI-enabled RAN technologies developed through local and global collaboration.

September: Scaling 5G, AI and innovation ecosystems

September highlighted Ericsson’s efforts to strengthen skills and ecosystem development across multiple regions. In the Philippines, Ericsson and partners launched phase two of the Teaching with Technology program, equipping educators with self-paced online and virtual reality-based training modules to advance digital skills and support national socio-economic transformation.

Similarly in Malaysia, Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) and Ericsson launched Educate 21st Century Technologies program to deliver 5G, AI, IoT, and automation training to 40,000 municipal and government employees, addressing urban connectivity challenges and advancing national digital ambitions.

Meanwhile, in Thailand, Ericsson and the Digital Economy Promotion Agency extended their strategic partnership to accelerate industrial digitalization with advanced, secure 5G solutions in support of the nation’s economic transformation ambitions.

Ericsson continued powering next-generation mobile broadband and 5G SA networks worldwide. Zain Bahrain expanded its coverage and network capacity using Ericsson’s RAN products, enhancing service for customers across the Kingdom.

In South Africa, MTN became the first operator globally to complete automated in-service software upgrades on its Ericsson Packet Core Gateway, showcasing robust cloud-native infrastructure and seamless network performance.

In a major UK market development, Ericsson partnered with VodafoneThree to deploy a trusted, high-performing 5G SA network, supporting enterprise and industrial digitalization.

In further industry recognition, Ericsson was named a Leader in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for CSP 5G RAN Infrastructure Solutions for the fifth consecutive year, highlighting the company’s strong execution, portfolio depth, and 5G innovation.

In AI and network innovation, Ericsson became the first enterprise 5G vendor to add agentic AI to NetCloud, enabling private 5G networks to self-manage and optimize while simplifying deployment and private network adoption.

Finally, Ericsson Canada and Concordia University extended a five-year alliance grant to develop security solutions for cloud-native mobile networks while creating 16 graduate research positions.

October: Breaking ground in autonomous networks

Progress toward autonomous, intelligent networks accelerated, as DNB became the world’s first operator to receive TM Forum validation for Level 4 autonomy in 5G Service Assurance, powered by Ericsson’s AI‑enabled Intent‑based Operations. The milestone positions Malaysia to support enterprise‑grade and AI‑driven services at scale.

Ericsson and Vodafone announced a major five-year programmable networks partnership, positioning Ericsson as Vodafone’s primary RAN partner across multiple European markets and advancing open, automated, and energy-efficient 5G SA networks to deliver differentiated performance and user experience.

In core networks and monetization, Ericsson deepened its role in enabling next-generation digital services, as T-Mobile selected Ericsson Charging Evolved and the Telco DataOps Platform to support real-time, intent-driven monetization.

While in the Middle East, e& entered multi‑year 5G Core modernization agreements and broader connectivity programs with Ericsson, laying foundations for immersive services and mission‑critical IoT.

Turning to the aerospace industry, Airbus advanced factory digitalization with secure Ericsson Private 5G deployments across its Hamburg and Toulouse plants, planning to extend coverage globally to enable use cases such as augmented reality (AR), predictive maintenance, and digital traceability.

Regional ecosystem development remained central to Ericsson’s strategy, with the company showcasing 5G and AI-powered innovations at India Mobile Congress 2025 and launching a national fintech hackathon in India through its new Fintech Developer Hub, strengthening developer innovation and digital inclusion.

AT&T and Ericsson launched a cloud‑based IoT Marketplace to simplify service sales, provisioning, and billing through a unified interface, helping to accelerate revenue realization for IoT offerings.

On 6G, Ericsson joined forces with Nokia and Fraunhofer HHI to advance next-generation video coding standardization, with a proof-of-concept evaluated positively by global standards bodies to support immersive media and future mobile video experiences.

Ericsson’s technology leadership was also showcased by several industry recognitions. Building on earlier RAN leadership, the company topped the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for CSP 5G Core Network Infrastructure Solutions for the second consecutive year, reflecting portfolio depth and cloud‑native readiness.

Independent analysts also acknowledged Ericsson’s indoor connectivity leadership in GlobalData’s 2025 enterprise small cells report, recognizing our commitment to innovation and meeting the diverse needs of CSPs, neutral hosts, and enterprise worldwide.

The achievements were underpinned by strong financial reporting, as Ericsson delivered Q3 2025 results reflecting improved margins, strong core network growth, and enhanced financial flexibility, reinforcing the company’s ability to invest in automation, platforms, and next-generation connectivity.

November: Building the foundations for 6G

Ericsson’s commitment to future network innovation was highlighted by the launch of a 6G lab in Budapest, Hungary, one of the company’s largest research and development (R&D) hubs, collaborating with local institutions to advance sustainable, resilient, and human-centric networks. Similarly, in India a new R&D unit in Bengaluru was announced to accelerate 5G software development and strengthen Ericsson’s broader research in 5G, 6G, AI, and advanced chip technologies.

Alongside R&D investments, Ericsson strengthened business and ecosystem partnerships across multiple regions. In Europe, Telia extended its RAN collaboration across Sweden, Norway, Lithuania, and Estonia, enhancing network performance and infrastructure for advanced industrial and public-service use cases. Meanwhile in Canada, Ericsson joined Saab and Calian to develop interoperable, dual-use communication systems that support national defense innovation, joint research, and high-value job creation.

At MWC Doha 2025, Qatar, Ericsson showcased how AI-driven automation, mission-critical networks, and differentiated connectivity are shaping the next era of digital transformation.

Enterprise connectivity also gained momentum as Singtel launched its 5G+ mobile workspace featuring Ericsson’s Enterprise Virtual Cellular Network, enabling secure, zero‑touch laptop connectivity, unified lifecycle management, and more efficient operations for an increasingly mobile, AI‑ready workforce.

These developments aligned with broader market trends outlined in the November 2025 Ericsson Mobility Report, which highlighted growing adoption of differentiated connectivity services, 5G subscription growth, and the expanding role of 5G-powered FWA in connecting billions worldwide.

December: Partnerships and major deals

Ericsson completed Europe’s first major rail communications upgrade for Swiss operator SBB, connecting legacy systems to next-generation infrastructure and enhancing onboard 4G for 1,000 trains. The deployment ensures uninterrupted nationwide railway communication ahead of Swisscom’s 3G decommissioning.

Ericsson advanced network monetization and ecosystem adoption through a strategic partnership with LotusFlare, accelerating the deployment and commercialization of network application interfaces. The collaboration includes Ericsson’s minority stake in LotusFlare to expand the global platform for connecting and monetizing network services.

Ericsson partnered with MasOrange to implement AI-driven automation and open network management via Ericsson Intelligent Automation Platform, enhancing network performance, energy efficiency, and sustainability while accelerating the deployment of such network technology to meet growing market demand.

Staying with MasOrange, Ericsson mission critical communications leadership garnered more headlines, this time in Madrid, Spain, where the company is partnering with the city council and MasOrange Group to provide public and emergency responders (police, fire service, ambulance) with secure, advanced connectivity

There was more evidence of Ericsson’s abilities in private 5G, through the successful partnership with BT at the Port of Tyne in the North East of England.

Meanwhile, in Bahrain Zain is to benefit from Ericsson’s Local Packet Gateway solution with Edge User Plane technology. Over in Tokyo, Ericsson, Softbank Corp and Qualcomm Technologies conducted a field trial on Softbank’s 5G SA network to demo ultra-low-latency, high-reliability communication required for next-generation XR experiences.

The year closed with two major and strategically significant deals: a five-year Master Frame Agreement with stc to advance Saudi Arabia’s digital infrastructure and the announcement that Ericsson 4.5 GHz Massive MIMO AIR 3255 radios are operational in DOCOMO’s 5G network in Japan.

Thanks for reading, writing about and sharing our announcements and achievements at Ericsson in 2025. Ericsson wishes all readers a happy New Year and a successful 2026.

Here is part one of the Ericsson News Year in Review 2025 - January to June.