Nvidia’s US$1bn Nokia Deal Blends Data Centres and 6G AI

Nvidia’s recent US$1bn investment in Nokia marks a defining moment at the crossroads of data centre architecture and telecommunications. The partnership merges Nvidia’s AI-RAN technologies with Nokia’s expansive radio access network (RAN) portfolio, accelerating the convergence of AI computing, network infrastructure and data centre innovation.

Together, the companies aim to build the foundations of AI-native 5G-Advanced and 6G networks, networks designed from the ground up to process intelligence seamlessly from the core data centre through to the far edge.

The edge as a new data centre frontier

At the heart of the deal is Nvidia’s strategic view that tomorrow’s telecom network is, in fact, an extension of the data centre. By deploying cloud-native RAN architectures powered by Nvidia AI compute, the boundary between communication networks and computational hubs is dissolving. Edge base stations and distributed compute clusters are evolving into micro data centres where inference, caching and network optimisation occur in real time.

Justin Hotard, President and CEO of Nokia, said: "The next leap in telecom isn’t just from 5G to 6G – it’s a fundamental redesign of the network to deliver AI-powered connectivity, capable of processing intelligence from the data centre all the way to the edge. Our partnership with Nvidia and their investment in Nokia will accelerate AI-RAN innovation to put an AI data centre into everyone’s pocket."

Nvidia ARC-Pro anchors data-centric RAN evolution

Central to the roadmap is Nvidia’s Aerial RAN Computer Pro (ARC-Pro), a compute platform purpose-built for AI-heavy radio workloads. ARC-Pro integrates connectivity, sensing and accelerator-based computation, offering a flexible architecture for both manufacturers and operators. Acting as a reference design, it allows for hyperscale-style upgrades within radio infrastructure, a philosophy borrowed directly from the modularity of data centre design.

The practical implication is profound: the same approach used in hyperscale data centres, where compute can be refreshed in software-defined cycles, is now being applied to RAN. Nokia’s plan to embed ARC-Pro at the core of its AI-RAN solution leverages Nvidia’s CUDA platform to unify software-defined and purpose-built deployments. This creates a new operational model where RAN capacity can be scaled dynamically, energy efficiency optimised through machine learning loops and services rolled out with the agility of cloud-native deployments.

anyRAN and AirScale: Translating data centre practices to the edge

Nokia’s anyRAN strategy brings further fluidity to this integration by allowing AI-RAN introduction across Cloud RAN and purpose-built RAN footprints without disruption. The company’s AirScale baseband technology permits new cards to co-exist with existing ones, mirroring the incremental upgrade paths common in data centre server fleets.

The model effectively turns the RAN into a software-first platform, allowing operators to deploy AI applications, manage spectral utilisation and enhance sustainability goals through predictive energy management.

Additionally, underutilised RAN assets can now serve dual purposes, hosting edge AI services in proximity to the radio footprint. This development carries compelling implications for data centre operators: the edge itself becomes an extension of the cloud, offering new service tenancy and monetisation avenues for telecom carriers and hyperscalers alike.

T-Mobile US and AI-RAN Trials

T-Mobile US is expected to launch field trials with Nokia and Nvidia in 2026, validating performance, efficiency and energy-saving metrics for AI-RAN architectures. The operator’s initiative builds on its AI-RAN Innovation Center, established in 2024 and exemplifies the growing trend of bringing data centre-style agility into telecom operations. With field evaluations planned across multiple deployment scenarios, T-Mobile aims to benchmark how real-time AI inference at the edge can enhance network reliability and user experience.

John Saw, President of Technology and CTO at T-Mobile, said: "With America’s best network, T-Mobile remains committed to advancing next-generation technologies that redefine the customer experience.

"Our collaboration with industry leaders Nokia and Nvidia marks an important step toward shaping the future of connectivity as we develop the innovations that will power the 6G era. Building on the foundation established by the AI-RAN Innovation centre in 2024, this strategic initiative reinforces T-Mobile’s leadership in driving the US wireless industry forward. Beginning in 2026, T-Mobile will conduct field evaluations and testing of advanced AI-RAN technologies to ensure they meet the evolving needs of our customers as we move toward 6G."

AI networking with Nokia SR Linux and Nvidia Spectrum-X

Beyond RAN compute and software, Nokia and Nvidia plan to cooperate on AI networking solutions. This includes data centre switching with Nokia SR Linux for the Nvidia Spectrum-X Ethernet networking platform and the application of Nokia telemetry and fabric management on Nvidia AI infrastructure. The companies will also explore the role of Nokia optical technologies in future Nvidia AI infrastructure architecture. As deployment scales, the partners emphasise software updates as the mechanism to add capabilities, which brings versioning, SBOM tracking and rollout governance into alignment with RAN change management.

Michael Dell, Chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies, said: "The telecommunications industry owns the most valuable real estate for AI — the edge, where data is created.

"This AI-RAN collaboration with Nokia and Nvidia makes that potential real. We’ve built some of the world’s largest AI clusters with 100,000+ GPUs. Now we’re applying that expertise to distribute intelligence across millions of edge nodes. The operators who modernise their infrastructure today won’t just carry AI traffic, they’ll be the distributed AI grid factories that process it at the source, where latency matters and data sovereignty is critical."