The 2025 trends span three important areas of development and innovation in our industry: technology, monetisation and impact.
Technology
5G will continue to drive network transformation in 2025. With new 5G launches in emerging markets, the ongoing rollout of 5G SA and early implementation of 5G-Advanced, operators are forecast to record a total of $180 billion in mobile capex. Deploying future-proof 5G networks will drive further advances in cloud/network integration and emerging technologies such as network APIs, edge, AI, open RAN and non-terrestrial networks.
AI will, of course, continue to be a dominant industry theme, particularly as operators look for ways to leverage AI to drive business growth. GSMA Intelligence insights show that operator network transformation strategies prioritise revenue generation and customer experience over opex and capex savings, by a four-to-one margin. However, the biggest impact from generative AI in 2025 is expected to come from internally focused network operations use cases.
Meanwhile, consumer technology will see a wave of innovation across devices (e.g. AI, foldables, eSIM, satellite) and digital services (e.g. gaming, video, XR, fintech), offering operators and the wider industry new possibilities to reshape customer experiences in a low-growth consumer connectivity market.
Monetisation
Connecting technology innovation to market demand is key to monetising industry investment. In recent years, the rise of digital industries has emerged as a key B2B opportunity in the 5G era, and 2025 will see this grow further. GSMA Intelligence insights suggest enterprises will spend 10% of their revenues on digital transformation through to 2030. This will offer new B2B opportunities for operators, especially for technologies and services beyond connectivity – an important driver of operator revenue growth. The enterprise IoT market will see new developments and innovations, including 5G RedCap launches and a greater focus on mission-critical 5G.
In the consumer market, 5G will reach 2.7 billion connections by the end of 2025 (30% penetration), but monetisation at scale will require further efforts to launch new business models and innovative commercial propositions that link 5G with digital services. Meanwhile, fibre and 5G FWA will drive fixed broadband network transformation, with service innovation (e.g. gigabit internet and bundling) increasingly important to deliver enhanced customer experiences. Three markets will have 5G FWA penetration of 10% or more by the end of 2025: Austria (23%), the US (11%) and India (10%).
Impact
Mobile technology has been a key enabler of socioeconomic development for more than three decades. Further progress is expected in 2025, including addressing the broadband usage gap, advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), accelerating digital inclusion, and supporting the growth of the digital economy. Despite the benefits of connectivity, 39% of the global population are living within mobile broadband coverage but are not using it (the usage gap). Furthermore, 4% are still not covered by mobile broadband (the coverage gap).
Policy and regulatory reform will be key to realising the full potential of mobile technology in terms of digital transformation, economic impact and commercial value. This includes bridging mobile connectivity investment gaps and enabling effective spectrum management. Meanwhile, our industry will have a bigger-than-ever focus on sustainability, including energy efficiency in the 5G and AI era, the rise of the circular economy, and further progress with ESG.