• NTT teams up to explore optical links to satellites
• US government invests $155m in WIOCC
• Bell Canada strikes AI MoU with Saskatchewan state

In today’s industry news roundup: Japan’s NTT teams up with French optical ground station specialist Cailabs to attempt all-optical links from terrestrial datacentres all the way to orbiting satellites; the US International Development Finance Corporation announces a number of infrastructure investments including $155m for African wholesale WIOCC; Bell Canada signs an MoU to expand its Bell AI Fabric infrastructure in the province of Saskatchewan; and much more!

NTT Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Cailabs, a France-based company that designs and manufactures advanced photonics products and optical ground stations for high-capacity satellite-to-ground communications, to “explore strategic collaboration in the field of space-to-ground optical communications”, the giant Japanese telco has announced. NTT stated: “In recent years, with the expansion of satellite constellations and the increase in demand for data communications, the importance of high-capacity, low-latency communication infrastructure between satellites and the ground has grown. To achieve this, the utilisation of optical communication technology is expected to complement conventional wireless communication.” The partners aim to “advance direct optical connectivity between satellite networks and terrestrial data infrastructure” by integrating NTT’s “digital coherent and network control technology” into the optical ground stations (OGS) designed by Cailabs. They also plan to connect a select number of optical ground stations to nearby NTT datacentres via the Japanese telco’s all-photonics network (APN). “This initiative applies the IOWN [innovative optical and wireless network] technology promoted by NTT to the space business sector and represents a new step toward realising the IOWN vision,” stated NTT. Jean-François Morizur, CEO of Cailabs, stated: “Connecting optical ground stations directly to terrestrial optical networks is a critical step towards making satellite optical communications operational at scale. By combining NTT’s expertise in advanced optical networking with Cailabs’ experience in designing, manufacturing and deploying optical ground stations, this collaboration will explore an end-to-end architecture connecting satellites, ground infrastructure and datacentres. Our shared objective is to help turn high-capacity optical communications into scalable infrastructure for future satellite services.” 

African infrastructure firm WIOCC Group has secured up to $155m in funding from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), as Washington continues to invest in projects it sees as key to supporting the expansion of US companies (especially those that might also attract investment from China). DFC will invest the money to help WIOCC “build the next generation of digital infrastructure for Africa’s growth of trusted networks”,  said the agency’s CEO, Ben Black. DFC, Saudi Arabia’s Vision Invest, and the African Finance Corporation (AFC) will reportedly provide the equity investment into South Africa-based WIOCC, which manages subsea and terrestrial cable systems as well as datacentres across the African continent. Earlier this month, WIOCC announced it had received backing from the AFC and the Vision Invest fund to the tune of $300m. WIOCC is the preferred partner for ​US technology companies expanding ​in Africa, according to the ⁠agency, because it operates an open-access, carrier neutral wholesale connectivity platform in more than 30 countries. The move is part of Washington DC’s continuing efforts to offer an alternative to Chinese technology: President Trump, during his first term, launched a “clean network” initiative and has continued this into his second term.

WIOCC wasn’t the only telecom project to receive backing in a raft of DFC announcements. The US agency also announced plans to provide financing to NEQSOL-owned Vodafone Ukraine to help it strengthen its critical infrastructure during the ongoing war with Russia. “US companies operating and investing in Ukraine will also benefit from access to secure and reliable 5G infrastructure built increasingly around trusted technology,” the agency said in its announcement. The DFC did not disclose the value of the financing for Vodafone Ukraine, which will be provided through the refinancing of existing debt, but reports from the Ukraine News Agency claim the figure could be worth as much as $350m over the first five years of the loan term. Vodafone Ukraine did not share any further details but confirmed the loan has been approved by the DFC board.

Bell Canada and the government of Saskatchewan have struck a “non-binding memorandum of understanding” that would enable the telco to expand its Bell AI Fabric infrastructure in Saskatchewan “with the phased development of up to 900 megawatts (MW) of additional capacity, creating a path to a 1.2 gigawatt (GW) Canadian AI infrastructure hub in the province”. Bell Canada noted that the additional capacity would come from partner-developed power generation from natural gas and that, as with other Bell AI Fabric projects, the proposed facilities will use closed-loop cooling technology that requires no municipal water. “At full buildout, total capital investment associated with this project, including datacentre infrastructure, tenant compute and related power generation could exceed C$50bn [US$35.7bn], while supporting 800 to 1,200 construction, engineering and technical jobs, and creating up to 600 permanent operations and management roles. As many as 3,000 additional offsite and community jobs could result from a large datacentre deployment of this nature based on precedents in other markets,” the operator added. Mirko Bibic, president and CEO of Bell Canada, stated: “Canada’s next generation of economic growth will be built on Canadian infrastructure. By creating a path to 1.2 GW of AI capacity in Saskatchewan, Bell AI Fabric will give governments, businesses, researchers and innovators the secure, sovereign foundation they need to deploy AI at scale and compete globally. AI infrastructure is critical infrastructure, and we are proud to be building the additional compute capacity required to power Canada’s future economy.”

German internet exchange DE-CIX has launched a neutral internet exchange (IX) in Austria, which will run on compact edge containers housing local data, rather than using a traditional datacentre model. ALPSiX is located in the state of Carinthia and is Southern Austria’s first neutral IX, according to DE-CIX, which claims it will act as a key interconnection hub for the Alps-Adriatic region. To build and fund the facility, which is due to go live before the end of 2026, DE-CIX has partnered with Carinthian state-owned BIK Breitbandinitiative Kärnten at sites in Klagenfurt and Villach, while the local government is investing €5.7m into the project. DE-CIX will manage the technical operation for ALPSiX, integrating the region into its carrier and datacentre-neutral interconnection ecosystem, which spans 60 locations worldwide. The facility will offer international interconnection to hubs, such as Munich and Vienna, as well as offering closer digital infrastructure for the 300,000 residents and 15,000 businesses based in the area.

King Charles has fired a warning at AI executives over the “existential dangers” posed by the technology falling into the wrong hands. The monarch, who is king of the UK and 14 other Commonwealth realms, has become the latest voice to express concerns over the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence. He aired his concerns at an industry summit held at Dumfries House in Ayrshire, Scotland, which was also attended by UK AI Minister Kanishka Narayan, representatives from AI giants including Nvidia, OpenAI and Anthropic, and even an advisor to the Pope. “Those who have created these technologies are now increasingly warning that AI risks developing darker capacities – perhaps even to take life,” the King told the executives, according to the BBC. “The task before you is not merely to advance technology but to ensure that it remains firmly in the service of humanity, community and the natural world,” he told the group, which included Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and DeepMind founder Sir Demis Hassabis, both of whom also spoke. The King’s speech came in the wake of a number of recent and increasingly high-profile warnings about the dangers of AI. Bill Gates is one of a number of tech figures to express concerns about the impact AI will have on humanity, while OpenAI itself was behind a letter signed by more than 100 companies warning of the security risk AI poses, as reported here. In addition, Microsoft has just published its AI ‘Code of Conduct’, which it has made public in order to seek feedback. 

Spanish satellite firm Sateliot has been named by the European Space Agency (ESA) as one of the contributors that will study “future oriented” direct-to-device (D2D) and secure IoT connectivity use cases for the ESA’s planned Iris2 (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security via Satellite) satellite service. As part of the consolidation phase of the Iris2 project, Sateliot will be tasked with defining how non-terrestrial network capabilities, built on 3GPP satellite standards, can extend resilient, sovereign communications to European governmental users. This includes scenarios such as continuity of service to emergency and remote connectivity where terrestrial networks struggle. “Being selected by ESA for contributing to the low-LEO layer of Iris2 with our project Rescue-Net helps [to consolidate] the architecture and future network concepts required for European sovereignty. Our job is to detail how standard 5G connectivity from space can give governments a resilient, independent link when it matters most, providing continuity of service in emergencies in places where terrestrial networks are unavailable,” stated Jaume Sanpera, CEO of Sateliot. Iris2 is the European Union’s planned multi-orbit satellite constellation that will offer secure, autonomous and sovereign connectivity for EU governments, embassies and emergency services. The ESA has set a goal of deploying Iris2, which will provide satellite services to EU states via 282 satellites (264 low-earth orbit, or LEO, satellites and 18 medium-earth orbit, or MEO, satellites), in 2029. 

BT Business, the B2B division of BT Group, is enabling the British Transport Police (BTP) to operate national beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drones by providing the force with its Drone SIM solution, supported by the mobile connectivity that the UK telco’s radio access network enables at altitude. “Operating across more than 20,000 miles of railway, BTP faces the challenges of responding quickly to incidents of trespass, welfare and operational disruption, many of which occur in remote locations,” noted BT in this announcement. “Working together, BT and BTP have developed and launched a scalable Drone as First Responder capability that allows drones to be launched remotely from strategically located drone-in-a-box stations and piloted from BTP’s operations centre in London Bridge. BTP currently operates 7 drone-in-a-box locations across the rail network, with plans to expand with up to 14 sites over the next two years,” the operator noted. “Using BT’s Drone SIM, which operates on the industry-leading EE mobile network, operators can securely maintain command-and-control connectivity and stream real-time UHD video, even beyond Wi‑Fi coverage and in complex RF [radio frequency] environments. This supports the delivery of live aerial intelligence and faster operational decision-making,” it added. 

– The staff, TelecomTV