One hundred and eighty-one zettabytes of data is expected to be created, captured, copied, and consumed globally in 2025, according to the World Economic Forum, underscoring the urgent need for faster, more efficient, and intelligent communication networks.
Building on this, the extent to which AI is integrated into daily life was highlighted in a speech by NVIDIA’s CEO, Jensen Huang, during an event where he introduced the concept of the "age of AI agentics." Huang was referring to the idea that AI agents could potentially be the new digital workforce, representing a multi-trillion-dollar market.
According to IBM, which first coined the term around 2023, agentic AI refers to an AI tool that is capable of “autonomously performing tasks on behalf of a user or another system by designing its workflow and using available tools.” The system is capable of making decisions, taking action, solving complex problems and interacting with external environments beyond the data upon which the system’s machine-learning (ML) models were trained. IBM notes that “AI agents draw not only from databases and networks but can also learn from user behavior, improving over time,” making them more adaptable and focused than AI tools confined by large language models (LLMs) or small language models (SLMs).
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Laying the Foundation
The Middle East is emerging as a leader in advancing all-optical network technologies, driven by the region's push toward smart cities and sustainable growth and the aforementioned AI capabilities within all-optical networks.
In 2023, etisalat by e& achieved a global first by completing an ultra-high-speed 1.6 Tbps optical solution trial, underscoring the capabilities of environmentally sustainable, high-capacity networks.
In 2024, du completed the Gulf region's first 50G PON trial. This breakthrough integrated 10 Gbps all-optical connectivity with existing optical distribution networks, demonstrating the region's ability to harmonize innovation with existing infrastructure seamlessly. In the same year, Rosenberger introduced structured cabling solutions tailored for the Middle East, enabling the construction of robust, all-optical infrastructures critical for smart city development.
In 2025, the focus has shifted to include more AI-centric qualities within all-optical networks. Supporting this transition is Ericsson’s recently launched generative AI-based NetCloud Assistant, ANA, which simplifies enterprise 5G network administration. Unlike traditional chatbots, which leverage search functions to provide links to existing resources, Ericsson claims ANA can read, understand, and generate new text and graphical content to deliver personalized responses by correlating information from multiple technical documents and unique insights from the customers’ networks.
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Syncing with the AI Era
With these advancements in AI, carriers are compelled to evolve into AI-driven, all-service providers. Meanwhile, other carriers may need to collaborate with third-party providers to offer AI computing and application services. As such, building robust infrastructure networks equipped with AI device-cloud synergy will be the key to business success in the AI era.
“In the intelligent era, the optical industry is faced with a new challenge to enable people to utilize intelligence as easily and freely as electricity,” identified Bob Chen, President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line in an exclusive thought-leadership Telecom Review article. Huawei has been pioneering all-optical 10 Gbps networks in both China and the MENA region and has identified that the 10 Gbps intelligent access network provides ubiquitous and ultra-broadband 10 Gbps bandwidth, enabling users to experience intelligent services anytime, anywhere. On the other hand, the premium transmission network provides high-quality connections required for computing and distributed data center architectures.
In 2023, Huawei, along with the UAE Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), Omdia, etisalat by e&, MTN South Africa, and others, released the 10 Gbps City Initiative as a use case for the 10-gigabit era. The 10 Gbps City Initiative aims to fully connect cities with 10 Gbps speeds, providing a ubiquitous network experience, accelerating the digital-intelligent transformation of industries and new applications, and boosting overall digital productivity.
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The Essence of All-Optical Networks
Relatively new technology like optical transport networks (OTNs) is seen as the ideal technology to bridge next-generation IP and legacy time division multiplexing (TDM) networks as it acts as a converged transport layer for newer, packet-based, existing TDM services to meet work-load heavy digital growth demands of the 5G era.
Since the 1980s, synchronous optical networking/synchronous digital hierarchy (SONET/SDH) has met service and bandwidth needs by providing protection and performance monitoring while supporting a flexible and transparent mix of traffic protocols, including internet protocol (IP), fiber channel, Ethernet, and generic frame procedure (GFP). While the deployment of dense wavelength division multiplex (DWDM) networks served to increase existing fiber bandwidth, it lacked the protection and management capabilities inherent in SONET/SDH technology. Optical transport networks combine the benefits of SONET/SDH technology with the bandwidth expandability of DWDM. OTN applies the operations, administration, maintenance, and provisioning (OAM&P) functionality of SONET/SDH to DWDM optical networks.
Interestingly, in the age of AI, vendors and operators alike seek to make the most of intelligent network operations in terms of service monetization and premium customer experience journeys. Supporting this motivation, Huawei recently launched its AI-centric F5.5G all-optical network, extending optical switching to data centers and metro edges, building exceptional networks for optical access by monetizing coverage, bandwidth, and experience and embedding AI capabilities into the management and control platform. Similarly, Nokia and Ericsson are working closely with operators on AI-driven network management and automation as well as cognitive network solutions.
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Future Outlook
A recent report by Statista forecasts that revenues from the technology services market in the UAE will increase by approximately USD 3.8 billion in 2025. The company’s report emphasized that this projected growth reflects the UAE’s continued progress in developing its AI sector and increasing reliance on network infrastructure. The ubiquity of AI applications will see inevitable growth in terms of automation, making instant data-driven decisions and delivering customer experiences once deemed impossible.
Aligned with this vision, as part of its National Frequency Plan, the TDRA has initiated the allocation of the 600 MHz and 6 GHz frequency bands for International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) systems, making the UAE one of the first countries in the world to allocate such bands to enable operators to accelerate the adoption of new AI-centric technologies.
Furthermore, the popularity of services such as lab automation highlights the region's increasing reliance on AI-centric all-optical networks to support advanced, data-intensive applications. Lab automation streamlines workflows and improves the reliability of experimental outcomes, driving progress in various research and development fields. Notable examples include the Emirates Health Services (EHS) Foundation, which has become the first regional institution to implement a blood-drawing robot. The innovation has resulted in an 80% reduction in staff time and a 50% decrease in patient delays.
"Global gigabit broadband services subscription will reach 44%+ by 2028, and the industry must work together to address broadband infrastructure development inequality in various regions, while breaking the OTN bottleneck to ensure the gigabit user experience. With the advent of the AI era, the industry should also begin preparing for the 10-gigabit society," predicts Martin Creaner, Director General of
the World Broadband Association (WBBA).
In Conclusion
Innovative technologies like AI, 5G, ultra-broadband, and cloud computing are not only driving economic growth but also reinforcing the need for AI-centric, all-optical networks to handle the surge in digital services and support the accelerating pace of digital transformation.
AI-centric innovations like agentic AI and all-optical networks will redefine how the industry creates, shares, and utilizes data. These advancements not only address the challenges posed by data-heavy applications but also present new opportunities for automation and adaptability.
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