Back to Barcelona – Looking ahead to this year’s MWC

It’s that time of year again. In a few days’ time I’ll be back at the Fira at one of my favourite events of the year – MWC. As one of the first major industry events to be pulled due to the pandemic, I never take for granted the chance to be on the ground connecting with customers, prospects and partners – for me it now carries even more significance.  

A stalwart of the mobile industry, the fact that it’s such a large show that continues to grow, with every major player in attendance, is a reminder of just how fast-faced this sector is – and how quickly things can evolve and change in just 12 months’ time.  

For example, take eSIMs. For years my colleagues and I have spoken of the significance of eSIMs and the potential they have to unlock innovations across the sector; just last year we discussed just how they can unlock Massive IoT. For years we have developed industry-first innovative eSIM solutions to help MNOs and global network service providers to unlock their full potential. But this year there was a game changer – by the name of Apple.  

In September, Apple launched the iPhone 14 – the first commercially available smartphone without a physical SIM card slot. While the industry was evolving in that direction, this announcement definitely accelerated these trends. We’ve been at the forefront of developing industry leading eSIM solutions to help MNOs keep up with this pace of change and will be on hand at the show to demonstrate and discuss them. In fact my colleague Benjamin Mazet will be taking part in the eSIM Summit this year.  

Benjamin will be talking about how the eSIM is at its best moment to provide an optimized experience both for consumers and IoT – sharing innovative use-cases and vision for the future.  

Every year I look forward to hearing about industry trends that will shape our field. The theme of this year’s show is Velocity – with the GSMA promising that the show will be a space to unleash tomorrow’s technology, today – and 5G will no doubt take center stage in these discussions.   

5G is a core focus for Thales at this years’ show as we bring together our experts from across the mobile, cloud and space business segments. With millions of devices and huge waves of new data being collected, it’s constantly redefining how the world connects. Whether it be the future of mobile connectivity with eSIMs, the seamless integration of satellite network components to provide 5G from space, or the integration of next generation data security for 5G networks – I’m looking forward to showcasing the range of Thales solutions that are helping to transform not only our digital world, but countries and societies worldwide.  

The future of technology relies on innovation. And you only get innovation, and unique solutions by having a rich and diverse pool of talent – future-proofing the industry depends on it. This is why it’s so important that the industry puts its weight behind diversity initiatives such as Diversity4Tech – which will have an even larger presence at this year’s show.  

No doubt there’ll be some surprises in store this year too, and I’ll no doubt be sharing my thoughts on these on this platform. How about you? I’m keen to hear from my followers about what you’re looking forward to at the show. And if you’re going to be there, the Thales team will be at Hall 2 – Stand 2J30 where they’ll be happy to talk through the latest in trusted mobile and IoT solutions.  

See you there!