MWC 2019: Telefónica and Microsoft Establish Strategic Partnership

At MWC19 in Barcelona, Telefónica and Microsoft announced a strategic partnership to collaborate on projects to accelerate Telefónica innovation and transform the telecommunications industry.

Building on previous work together around the use of data and Telefónica’s Fourth Platform to power offerings such as Aura, its AI-powered digital assistant, the new agreement will combine the power of Telefónica’s networks, customer proposition and global reach with the Microsoft Azure AI platform to design services telcos will offer.

“Telefónica has been a leader in using AI to transform customer engagement, and the strategic partnership we announced today builds on this history of innovation,“ said Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. “Together, we will apply the power of Azure and Azure AI to create new, innovative experiences for millions of Telefónica customers around the world and shape the future of Telefónica’s network.“

Together, Telefónica and Microsoft will expand the use of Azure Cognitive Services for customer engagement and business processes, create new AI-powered, in-home experiences for customers, and explore the use of intelligent technologies to transform the network.

They will explore working together to identify opportunities using AI and disruptive technologies like blockchain, 5G and edge computing to transform services and build the network of the future.