• Major telcos, vendors invest in AI-RAN developer ODC
• Satellite Connect Europe boasts D2D milestone with Vodafone unit
• SoftBank Corp goes all in on Ericsson’s core 

In today’s industry news roundup: AT&T, Nokia and Nvidia are among the companies investing in AI-RAN developer ODC; Satellite Connect Europe has put direct-to-device video calls to the test with Vodafone Ireland; Ericsson has landed a plum core deal in Japan; and much more!

New York-based AI-RAN tech developer ORAN Development Company (ODC) has raised $45m in a Series A round of funding, with AT&T, MTN, Telecom Italia, Cisco Investments, Nokia and Nvidia among the companies pumping funds into it. The investment round and support of its investors “accelerates the deployment of an AI-native, open-architecture platform – and the definitive US-based RAN stack – that structurally unifies communication, sensing and edge intelligence. ODC is currently partnering with top-tier global customers and expects to ramp [up] these and other commercial engagements throughout 2026,” stated the company, which is developing what it calls its “US-based Odyssey RAN software platform”. As part of its development plan, ODC is integrating Nvidia’s AI Aerial platform to allow it to move “beyond traditional connectivity to enable AI-RAN at the forward edge. This infrastructure serves as the essential fabric for the AI-native era, transforming today’s cell sites into high-performance compute hubs capable of orchestrating everything from agentic AI and real-time generative inference to the physical AI applications that define national infrastructure resilience.” For further details, see this announcement. 

Satellite Connect Europe, the wholesale joint venture between Vodafone Group and low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite operator AST SpaceMobile, has completed Ireland’s first direct-to-device (D2D) video call, via an AST SpaceMobile satellite using a standard smartphone, in partnership with Vodafone Ireland, which signed up as a D2D service delivery partner earlier this month. Sabrina Casalta, CEO of Vodafone Ireland, stated: “This milestone is a powerful demonstration of how technology can make a real difference for people. By integrating satellite and mobile networks, we are extending connectivity beyond traditional limits – helping to keep customers, communities, businesses and emergency services connected, particularly in remote areas and during times of disruption, using their everyday smartphone.” The test video call “highlights continued progress toward integrating satellite broadband connectivity with existing mobile networks as part of the planned global rollout of the AST SpaceMobile constellation. This is another step in the delivery of direct-to-device satellite mobile broadband for Europe’s mobile network operators,” noted Satellite Connect Europe in this announcement. 

The news came as AST SpaceMobile reportedly submitted a request to the ITU to almost double the size of its planned constellation. AST SpaceMobile is seeking permission to be able to increase its authorisation from 243 satellites to 543, which suggests growing confidence on the part of the operator that there is enough business from mobile operator partners for it to increase its fleet investments. 

Ericsson has landed a multi-year framework agreement with influential Japanese operator SoftBank Corp to deploy the vendor’s next-generation core network solutions, a move that will “expand and modernise SoftBank’s core network infrastructure and accelerate 5G standalone (SA) adoption”. The agreement includes the full scope of Ericsson’s Core Networks’ portfolio, including its dual-mode 5G core solution running on Ericsson’s Cloud Native Infrastructure Solution (CNIS). The deployment will include subscriber data management through Ericsson’s User Data Consolidation (UDC) solution, policy control, and cloud-based IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) solutions. Hideyuki Tsukuda, executive vice president and CTO at SoftBank Corp, stated: “Ericsson’s advanced cloud-native technologies and automation solutions are an extremely important foundation for achieving the ‘fusion of AI and networks’ that we are promoting. Through this renewal of our core network, it becomes possible to significantly heighten the autonomy and efficiency of network operations, in addition to accelerating the transition to 5G SA. SoftBank will build a robust and flexible next-generation infrastructure, continuing to provide new value to customers while driving innovation in the telecom industry.”

AT&T has collaborated with Boldyn Networks to expand mobile coverage on parts of the New York subway service. The US operator’s network now extends to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)’s 4  and 5 lines, running between Bowling Green and Fulton Street stations, and the Crosstown G line between Bedford-Nostrand Avenues and Hoyt-Schermerhorn Street stations. It is the latest in a series of 5G transportation upgrades for AT&T, which also recently included network expansions to the Joralemon Street Tunnel, and is the latest development in its partnership with neutral host provider Boldyn, which is working with the MTA to expand its distributed antenna system (DAS) cellular network to more underground areas.

Ethio Telecom has added another 21 cities in Ethiopia to its 4G network, which now spans over 70% of the population in the African country. The rollout introduces enhanced mobile data capabilities in a mix of regional and developing cities, as part of the operator’s efforts to broaden network coverage beyond the country’s primary metropolitan areas. It comes after Ethio Telecom unveiled network expansion agreements with the likes of Ericsson, ZTE, Huawei and Nokia at MWC earlier this month that will help the operator hit its goal of expanding 4G to 95.5% of the Ethiopian population.

– The staff, TelecomTV