Mobile & Wireless Roundup No. 142

Welcome to the 142nd edition of this newsletter. If you are part of the tech world, chances are you have seen some of the many meme videos that flooded social media during the Trump tariffs saga. While I am not going to delve into the tariffs themselves, what stood out to me was how many of those videos were created using generative AI tools. The quality, humour and speed with which they appeared was impressive, and a reminder of how quickly this technology is evolving.

One tool that recently caught my eye was Perplexity AI. Although many people are still not entirely sure what it does, the company announced on X (f.k.a. Twitter) that it can now generate eight-second videos with sound based on almost any prompt. I tried it out myself, but for some reason it did not generate the video I requested. Still, the idea itself is compelling. I have already noticed people starting to use these videos in their threads instead of the usual GIFs or generic stock clips.

This shift may seem minor, but it has bigger implications. If AI-generated short videos become the norm, it could present a serious challenge for companies that rely on selling stock video content. As with many areas being disrupted by AI, it is not just about creativity, but also about business models and workflows being redefined.

Another example of this rapid evolution came from ChatGPT, which recently introduced an AI action figure generator. As expected, it went viral. It creates realistic images of fictional action figures based on simple text prompts, often with names, packaging and stylised backgrounds that mimic vintage toy designs, making it both nostalgic and wildly imaginative.

It is worth paying attention to these developments, not just for their novelty, but for what they signal about the future of content creation, digital communication and the tools we use to express ourselves online.

For those of you who don’t know me, I am a technologist with over 25 years’ experience in mobile wireless technology, currently working as an independent advisor, analyst, consultant and a trainer. This newsletter is a summary of my posts and other news that caught my attention since the last newsletter.

⦿ 6G

• Advanced connectivity technologies: a reset Vision to support industry and policy priorities (link)

• NTT Docomo: Next-Generation Telemedicine Solutions and Remote Robotic Surgery Powered by 5G Evolution & 6G (link)

• Shaping the Future at the 2025 '6G Global Summit' in Hong Kong (link)

• Free 6G Training: Exploring the Role of Large Language Models in the 6G-Enabled Computing Continuum (link)

⦿ 5G

• Hurriyet Daily, Turkey: Tender for 5G planned in August, says Minister (link)

• MWL: China 5G base stations approach 4.5M (link)

• 5G Americas: 5G Subscriber Growth Soars Globally and in North America in Q1 2025 (link)

• InterDigital - Paving the Path to 6G: Key Takeaways for 3GPP Release 20 (link)

• Kim Kyllesbech Larsen on LinkedIn: Can you avoid network slicing if you operate a 5G standalone (SA) network (i.e., not piggybacking on LTE and EPC)? (link)

⦿ Spectrum

• Peter Clarke on LinkedIn - The power of VodafoneThree: 200MHz aggregated C-Band 5G delivering excellence even indoors at the busy The O2 in a potent early merger benefit for customers (link)

⦿ Private Networks

• Private Networks Technology Blog: Bringing the Referee’s View to Fans with Private 5G at Der Klassiker (link)

⦿ Telecoms Infrastructure, Small Cells, Antennas & others

• Paul Rhodes on LinkedIn - Wednesday Wonderings: All Stations Coverage! (link)

⦿ Security & Privacy

• CommsRisk: The Role of Telecoms’ Murky Intermediaries Highlighted by Bloomberg Article (link)

• DCPCU on LinkedIn: "A criminal has been sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to over a year in prison for operating an SMS Blaster to conduct a mass smishing campaign against victims with the intent to harvest their personal details to be used in fraud…" (link)

• Denis Laskov on LinkedIn: Listen to RF traffic to detect, identify, and collect the state of smart sensors in homes or factories (link)

• Dmitry Kurbatov on LinkedIn - SMS 2FA: The Open Secret (link)

⦿ Smartphones, Devices, Wearables & Gadgets

• MWL: India users ditch TVs in favour of mobile content (link)

• Introducing Oakley Meta Glasses, a New Category of Performance AI Glasses (PR)

• Light Reading: Huawei's next tri-fold, satellite-capable phone is almost here (link)

⦿ AI, ML & Automation

• TDC NET and Ericsson achieves industry first certification from TM Forum of Level 4 Autonomy (PR)

• Afzal Mangal on LinkedIn: Companies want AI. Until they hire an AI consultant. Then they don’t (link)

⦿ Satellites, HAPS, Drones, UAVs & Space

• MWL: Abu Dhabi, partners test drone deliveries (link)

• Base Stations in the Sky: SoftBank Corp. to Launch Pre-commercial HAPS Services for Japan in 2026 (PR)

• AST SpaceMobile & Fairwinds Technologies Demonstrate World’s First Tactical NTN Connectivity Over Standard Mobile Devices (PR)

• Frank Rayal - Navigating the Future of HAPS: Challenges, Investments, and Innovations (link)

⦿ Other News and Technology Stuff

• Operator Watch Blog: Rising Demand and Competition in Algeria’s Mobile Sector (link)

• FutureNet Insights: From Traditional Telco to Telco Cloud: Closing the Skill Gap (link)

• Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2025 (PDF)

• Ryan Jeffery on LinkedIn: "Telcos have tolerated lengthy OSS/BSS rollouts as a necessary evil for years, but what if those same systems are the chains holding the telco world back…" (link)

⦿ Picture of the week: A Vodafone/VMO2 mast shared by Andrew Marsden on LinkedIn:

Happy to hear your thoughts. Feel free let me know what worked, what didn’t, how I can make this better, etc. Get in touch over LinkedIn!

PDF version of this and previous newsletters are available here.