As the global mobile industry gathers, GSMA frames the next phase of connectivity around standalone 5G, inclusive AI, and urgent action on cybersecurity in an increasingly software-defined world.
MWC26 Barcelona opened this week under the stewardship of the GSMA, convening operators, policymakers, startups, and technology firms at what has long been the sector’s most influential annual gathering. This year’s agenda reflects an industry in transition, moving beyond expanding coverage to rethinking the foundations of digital infrastructure.
In its latest Mobile Economy 2026 report, the organization outlines the scale of that transition. Mobile technologies generated $7.6 trillion in economic value in 2025—6.4% of global GDP—and are projected to reach $11.3 trillion by 2030, as 5G standalone networks and AI-driven services reshape how networks are built and monetized.
Yet the data also highlights structural tensions. While 96% of the global population lives within mobile broadband coverage, more than three billion people remain offline, underscoring a persistent usage gap that dwarfs the coverage gap. At the same time, the industry expects to invest $1.2 trillion in capital expenditure by 2030, even as operator revenue growth remains comparatively modest.
Security concerns loom large over these ambitions. The report projects global cybercrime costs will rise from $9.22 trillion in 2024 to $15.63 trillion by 2029, a trajectory that mirrors the increasing complexity of software-defined, AI-enabled networks. More than 90% of operators already describe the threat landscape as high or very high, reinforcing the sense that connectivity’s next chapter will hinge not only on speed and scale, but on trust and resilience.
The message from Barcelona is less about celebrating technical milestones than about confronting trade-offs. Completing the shift to standalone 5G, expanding access to open AI, and coordinating responses to digital risk are presented not as optional upgrades, but as preconditions for sustaining the economic and social role mobile networks now play.
