What’s up with… Drone detection, AI and super apps, AI voice

• Telefónica and Elisa pitch 5G-enabled drone detection
• Orange aims to hook rivals’ users with new free AI service 
• KDDI joint venture launches AI voice service

In today’s industry news roundup: Mobile operators are teaming up with drone detection specialists to offer services that can be used by military, state and enterprise users; Orange launches a new AI service that is free not only to its own mobile customers in France but to those of its rival service providers too; Altius Link, a joint venture between KDDI and Matsui, unveils an AI voice service targeted at the customer care sector; and much more!

Drone detection is an increasing area of focus for the mobile sector and, as integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) technologies mature, such capabilities will loom even larger, especially given the current state of the world. The latest moves come, separately, from Spanish giant Telefónica and Baltic telco Elisa.  

Telefónica has been selected by the Ministry of Defence in Slovakia to “provide the advanced communications infrastructure required to operate the new Controlled Experimentation Centre for 5G technologies, established by the ministry under a Nato mandate at a military site in Slovakia.” According to this Telefónica announcement, “the project includes the design, supply, deployment, integration and maintenance of a complete private 5G network to support the operations of deployed personnel and facilitate the testing of new use cases in a real-world environment. These include AI and extende-reality capabilities, secure communications, as well as the use of drones and counter-drone capabilities against non-allied drones.” The project was carried out in collaboration with: Spanish private network core platform developer Atika Technologies; Nokia, which will provide the 5G radios; XRF, a Spanish command-and-control tech specialist; and Zebra Technologies, which will supply the devices. Javier López Gutierrez, director of defence and security at Telefónica España, stated: “The launch of this Controlled Experimentation Centre is highly significant as it will enable us to explore the full potential of 5G technologies and their evolution towards future generations of mobile technology (xG) in real-world defence scenarios. This project will enable us to deliver more and better services by validating new digital capabilities that will accelerate the adoption of innovative solutions by the military, help improve effectiveness, security and interoperability in this field, and strengthen national sovereignty through a key initiative for the defence sector.” The selection of Telefónica followed a recent Nato exercise between Spain and Slovakia that saw the Spanish telco interconnect the command posts of both countries through a combination of radio-link and satellite connectivity technologies in what it calls a “tactical 5G bubble”. 

Elisa and fellow Finnish firm Sensofusion have formed a joint venture called Masthead that, by combining Sensofusion’s drone detection technology with Elisa’s extensive mobile network infrastructure in Finland and Estonia, will aim to provide drone detection solutions for state institutions and enterprises. “The rapidly changing security environment and increased drone activity have created a growing need for broader and more effective detection capabilities,” noted Elisa in this announcement. “The joint venture will enable multimodal drone detection capabilities to be deployed across a wider geographical area by making use of existing infrastructure. Its solutions are intended to support authorities and critical infrastructure operators by improving real-time situational awareness and the ability to detect and track drones,” it added. Elisa’s CEO, Topi Manner, noted: “Both the public and private sectors in Finland and Estonia have identified a need to strengthen the countries’ drone detection capabilities. Masthead addresses this demand by bringing Sensofusion’s sensor technology to Elisa’s digital infrastructure. We are very pleased to have the opportunity to launch a joint venture with Sensofusion, marking the next step in our continued collaboration.” 

Orange is aiming to lure its rivals’ customers, as well as provide an enhanced service to its existing mobile users in France, with the launch of Orange IAs, a “free service, available to everyone, providing access to leading AI models”, such as Anthropic’s Claude, Google’s Gemini, Mistral and OpenAI’s GPT. “Available free of charge to all individual users, whether they are Orange customers or customers of another operator, the service enables users to select the model they wish to use, be guided towards the one best suited to their needs, or compare several responses. A single account and shared conversation history make it easy to move from one model to another,” noted Orange in this announcement. The Orange IAs service is available to the mobile customers of Orange and Sosh (the telco’s digital-only low-cost mobile service in France) via two new “super apps” simply called Orange and Sosh, which allow users to access all their main services (plan management, bills, usage and devices, as well as email, TV, news and cybersecurity services) via a single app. Orange and Sosh customers can also access a premium service (for €10 per month), Orange IAs Plus, which “provides access to more advanced models, higher-quality image generation, document analysis for files of up to 20 Mbytes, and telephone support from Orange IAs specialists. Customers can monitor their usage in real time through a dedicated gauge, view an estimate of the carbon impact of their usage, and activate Eco mode, which automatically selects the AI model with the lowest CO₂ emissions.” Jérôme Hénique, CEO of Orange France, stated: “With the new Orange and Sosh super apps, we are creating far more than a gateway to our services. These next-generation apps, open to all individual users, bring together the essentials of digital life and enable people to discover multiple artificial intelligence models. Our ambition is to ensure that everyone can easily find the service or AI that is right for them, and make it their own at their own pace, with Orange’s support.”

Altius Link, a joint venture formed in 2023 by Japanese telco KDDI and IT firm Matsui, has launched its AI Voice Service, which “provides everything from the introduction of AI operators that can converse naturally with people and complete telephone answering tasks, to training and operation tailored to [a] company’s business needs”. It noted: “This service aims to transform the operational models of contact centres and customer support by leveraging the strengths of both AI and human operators in collaboration. Its goal is not simply to increase the AI ​​replacement rate but rather to achieve sustainable customer service and enhance the customer experience.” The launch builds on the collaborative concept for building and deploying AI contact centres announced in May 2026 by Altius Link, KDDI and AI-native voice agent developer Recho.

The European Commission and the Moldovan Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalisation have hosted the first High-Level Connectivity Platform Meeting on Digital, which set the groundwork for “stronger digital connectivity between Europe and Central Asia, via the Black Sea region, the South Caucasus and Turkey, in the form of an Integrated EU Secure Connectivity Offer. Under the Connectivity Agenda Platform, which was launched in June, the Integrated EU Secure Connectivity Offer will “facilitate strategic investment projects in trusted digital infrastructure with partner countries by bringing together European industry expertise, EU public financing instruments and security standards along the Middle Corridor. This will make the region safer, better connected and more resilient, benefitting both citizens and the economy,” according to this EC announcement. It added: “The commission has exchanged statements of intent with partner countries, private sector partners, member state organisations and international financial institutions, which will mobilise up to €623m for investments and technical support in 5G networks, space-based connectivity, artificial intelligence and datacentres. This will support the implementation of the Cross-Regional Connectivity Agenda, presented at the Cross-Regional Security and Connectivity Ministerial Meeting in October 2025 and part of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy. The agenda aims to strengthen transport, energy and digital links between the European Union and Central Asia through the South Caucasus and the Black Sea region by coordinating strategic investments and regulatory cooperation.”

BT is stalling the launch of its Starlink-enabled satellite broadband service until the “noise” around the recent disruption to the SpaceX service in Ukraine – for which the US government and Starlink have both been blaming each other – has calmed down, the UK national operator’s CEO, Allison Kirkby, told the Financial Times (subscription required). The planned service, which aims to provide a broadband service to customers in remote areas of the UK, was announced a year ago and was originally scheduled to launch in the second half of 2026. Kirkby noted that the service will still be launched but at a later date than initially planned.

Broadband networks have been under strain this week as gamers pre-loaded Grand Theft Auto VI (all 190 Gbytes of it) on 10 November ahead of the game’s full release on 19 November. UK operator Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) noted that the pre-load activity resulted in “a record-breaking day on VMO2’s broadband network, smashing both its biggest-ever traffic peak and highest-ever daily data volume”. The previous version of the game – Grand Theft Auto V – was launched 13 years ago, so (apparently) excitement levels are high. The operator added: “In the first hour of pre-loading, Virgin Media O2 recorded a 51.6% increase in broadband traffic between midnight and 1am on Tuesday 10 November compared to the previous week, as downloads got underway. By 9am, the total volume of data downloaded was 73.3% higher than during the equivalent period last Tuesday 3 November.”  

The Juan XXIII Foundation, Nokia and Telefónica are collaborating on a social innovation initiative called ‘Immersive Supervision for People with Intellectual Disabilities’, which aims to improve “the independence, safety and quality of life of this group through immersive telepresence technologies, thereby alleviating feelings of unwanted loneliness”, Telefónica has announced. “The initiative forms part of Nokia’s commitment to developing technological solutions that generate a positive social impact, putting innovation at the service of inclusion, accessibility and the reduction of digital divides. Through this project, the company has driven the design, rollout and evaluation of an immersive telepresence solution in real-life independent living settings, working alongside the Juan XXIII Foundation and Telefónica as ecosystem partners to validate its impact on people’s lives,” the Spanish telco added. 

Ooredoo Group is to use Bango’s Digital Vending Machine platform to enable subscription bundling across the operator’s markets in the Middle East, North Africa and South-east Asia, which collectively serve about 150 million customers. The deployment “will enable Ooredoo’s operating companies to further expand the range of leading subscription services that can be bundled with mobile and fixed plans,” noted Bango in this announcement. “Across the group, operating companies will have greater flexibility to tailor offers to their individual markets, including subscriptions built into plans, optional add-ons, promotional offers and discounts,” it added. René Werner, group chief commercial officer at Ooredoo Group, noted: “At Ooredoo, we are committed to building a dynamic digital ecosystem that evolves with our customers’ needs. Our partnership with Bango adds another scalable capability that will enable our operating companies to further expand their subscription bundling propositions, bringing greater choice and value to customers across our markets.”

– The staff, TelecomTV