[Shanghai, China, June 26, 2026] During MWC Shanghai 2026, the World Broadband Association (WBBA) hosted the 2026 Broadband Development Conference (BDC) Shanghai Summit themed “Scaling Intelligence: Harnessing Value from Broadband and Cloud with AI.” Industry leaders, regulators, the world’s top carriers, and vertical pioneers gathered at the summit to explore how the convergence of AI and broadband can translate into tangible business benefits in the era of intelligent networks.
WBBA 2026 BDC Shanghai Summit concludes with great success
WBBA Executive Director Martin Kriener delivered the keynote address and speeches along with distinguished guests from China Telecom, Brazil’s National Telecommunications Authority, GSMA, China Unicom and Vodafone. In addition, WBBA jointly with China Telecom, China Unicom, Huawei, and other partners released the “Manifesto on Promoting Standardization of Intelligent Cloud Systems”, highlighting industry-wide efforts to advance the cloud network broadband industry.
Also at the summit, Bob Chen, President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line, delivered a keynote speech titled “AI will enhance optical networks and help carriers upgrade their business models.” Chen said that in the AI era, carriers can take full advantage of its advantages and upgrade their leased line and home broadband business models. Huawei announced AI-OTN and AI-FAN solutions to help carriers build all-optical networks and ultimately realize the vision of “networks for AI.” Huawei is also introducing AI capabilities into its devices and implementing “AI for Network” to foster new business growth in the AI era.
Bob Chen, President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line, giving the keynote speech
Leased Line Services: C (Connectivity) to C² (Connectivity + Compute)
When improving the quality of leased lines, we leverage technologies such as optical cross-connects (OXC), automatic switching optical networks (ASON), and quantum cryptography to transform leased lines from a single key element of bandwidth to a multidimensional system of bandwidth, latency, reliability, and security, thereby increasing the value of leased lines. When it comes to computing and networking integration, computing, networking, and model/application services are provided to various industries to enhance networked computing capabilities.
To upgrade the leased line business model, carriers need to shift their network construction strategy from traditional traffic model (toB, toC, toH) centric to AI DC centric, thereby building an all-optical network. This includes deploying an ultra-broadband network of 400G/800G in the backbone and 100G in the metros, establishing a latency circle of 1ms within the city, 5ms within the state, and 20ms nationwide, offering 99.9999% reliability and high security with QKD quantum encryption. Ultimately, this will help enable “networks for AI.”
Huawei’s AI-OTN solution introduces AI capabilities that enable “AI for networks”. This solution offers a wide range of great features, including:
- Fiber sensing intelligence: This solution enables proactive risk warning for activities such as construction and excavation by incorporating technologies such as distributed fiber acoustic sensing (DAS) and optical time domain reflectometry (OTDR) into OTN devices.
- Transmission network reliability: The solution intelligently detects fiber aging and insertion loss and dynamically adjusts network device parameters to ensure network reliability in real-time.
- Intelligent O&M: AI agents in transport networks implement intelligent O&M and enable rapid fault identification.
Home Broadband Services: C (Connectivity) to C³ (Connectivity + Commitment + Content)
Bandwidth is the foundation of home broadband. There is now a consensus that Gigabit has become widespread and will accelerate the development of Ultra Gigabit and 10G networks. From a committed experience perspective, you can leverage technologies such as Fiber to the Room (FTTR), Wi-Fi optimization, and application acceleration to deliver committed Wi-Fi coverage, speed, and latency. In terms of content, intelligent voice interactions will be enabled through home AI agents, while smart applications such as smart elder care, cloud gaming, and 3D movie viewing will also be provided.
To upgrade the home broadband business model, operators need to build home broadband target networks around smart homes. This includes ubiquitous ultra-broadband powered by home Wi-Fi 7 and central office (CO) 50G PON. A committed experience enabled by Wi-Fi air interface scheduling and network slicing. It’s a synergy of device, edge, and cloud computing that embeds computing in home devices and OLTs. Together, these capabilities pave the way for a “Network for AI.”
Huawei’s AI-FAN solution addresses this by comprehensively integrating AI capabilities to realize “AI for Network.” This solution offers a wide range of key features, including:
- AI-powered Wi-Fi optimization: Leverage AI to adjust Wi-Fi transmit power, channels, and service priorities in real-time to ensure a premium home Wi-Fi experience.
- Intelligent power consumption optimization: OLT power consumption is significantly reduced, making it more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.
- Intelligent O&M: AI agents for optical access networks proactively optimize network configuration and ensure user experience.
MWC Shanghai 2026 will be held in Shanghai, China from June 24th to June 26th. During the event, Huawei will exhibit its latest products and solutions in Hall N1 of Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC).
The ICT industry is rapidly moving into the era of token monetization. Huawei is working with global carriers and partners to explore monetizing 5G-A high uplinks and experiences, and leveraging AI to upgrade their businesses through enhanced connectivity and computing. Together, we will capture the opportunities presented by token monetization.
See below for more information. https://carrier.huawei.com/minisite/mwcs2026/en/
