MWC25 Barcelona: AI Hype Train Approaching Reality Station

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Mar 14, 2025

Overview: 109,000 visitors descended on Barcelona in March for MWC25, and once again the discussions were almost exclusively about AI, albeit against a backdrop of geopolitical instability due to the unpredictable new US Administration. Continuing from where MWC24 left off, AI was again everywhere, although things felt much more tangible this year with some real progress made in use cases for both consumers and networks.

Counterpoint Research analysts were in attendance, and this report provides an overview of the major announcements and key themes at the event.

Table of Contents:
• Executive summary
• Macro environment
• AI
• Devices
• Connectivity

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Category

Industry

Consumer Electronics , Emerging technologies , Semiconductors , Smartphone , Software & Services

Report Type

Report

Time period

Other

Summary

Published

Mar 14, 2025

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Author

Tina Lu

Tina has extensive consulting and analysis experience across a number of industry sectors including more than 14 years in the technology industry. Before Counterpoint, Tina spent more than 9 years in Nokia working in multiple roles and geographic regions. Tina also worked in brand and product marketing for Bestfoods-Unilever and BGH. Tina holds an MBA degree from the Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Karn Chauhan

Karn is a Senior Analyst at Counterpoint Technology Market Research, based in Gurgaon. He currently handles Global Devices and Ecosystems, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality research. Karn has over 8 years of experience in the mobile device ecosystem space. He has a degree in Electronics and Communication.

Archie Zhang

Archie Zhang is a Beijing-based research analyst specializing in the smartphone market.
Formerly an award-winning Financial Times journalist covering China’s tech sector, Archie brings a unique blend of industry insight and storytelling expertise to market analysis.

Liz Lee

Liz, an Associate Director at Counterpoint Research, has 14+ years of extensive experience in the tech industry. Previously, Liz worked for Samsung SDI focusing on IR (Investor Relations) along with insight-based analysis of emerging tech markets and corporate strategies. She holds an International MBA degree from Waseda Business School.

Jan Stryjak

Jan is an Associate Director with Counterpoint Research, based in London, and leads the company’s European and Sustainability research. He is a seasoned analyst with over 17 years’ experience in the TMT sector, previously with GSMA Intelligence where he led a team of analysts producing highly impactful regional insights. Before that, Jan held strategy and analyst positions at Vodafone UK and Qualcomm respectively, and started his career with research firm TNS (now Kantar).

Gareth Owen

Gareth has been a technology analyst for over 20 years and has compiled research reports and market share/forecast studies on a range of topics, including wireless technologies, AI & computing, automotive, smartphone hardware, sensors and semiconductors, digital broadcasting and satellite communications.

Tarun Pathak

Tarun is a Research Director with Counterpoint Technology Market Research, based out of Gurgaon (near New Delhi). Tarun has 10 years of work experience with a key focus on the evolving mobile device ecosystem with specialties in Emerging Markets. He understands specific mobile industry nuances, helping clients to navigate through the rapidly changing technological trends. As a Telecom Analyst he has been quoted extensively by the leading media platforms. Tarun holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Management, specializing in International Business from the Amity International Business School and is a graduate in Physical Sciences from Jammu University, Jammu in the northern Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir.

Mohit Agrawal

Mohit is responsible for tracking Digital Transformation and Internet of Things (IoT) at Counterpoint Research. He has over two decades of rich industry experience having worked with large tech companies like Accenture, Airtel, Nokia, and Microsoft in the past. Before joining Counterpoint, Mohit was the co-founder & CEO of a start-up in the competitive and market intelligence space utilizing big data and AI. He is a keen follower of the developments in devices and key internet technologies like IoT, Blockchain, AI, etc.
Mohit is an engineer, MBA and a certified project management professional. He is based out of The Hague in Netherlands.

Marc Einstein

Marc has over 20 years of experience in the ICT technology research and consulting focusing largely on the Telecommunications and Enterprise IT sectors. Prior to joining Counterpoint Research Marc held several senior positions in industry analyst firms in the USA, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. Based in Tokyo since 2010, Marc is a regular speaker at industry events and a frequent TV panelist. Marc also spent time in the strategy department of the largest mobile gaming company in Japan. A speaker of 6 languages, Marc holds a BSBA in Finance from Washington University in St. Louis and was a visiting student at Rangsit University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Jeff Fieldhack

Jeff has 25+ years experience in technology research, business development, competitive intelligence, and business management. Prior to joining Counterpoint Research, Jeff held various research & product development roles at Microsoft, Nokia, Roth Capital Partners, and Gartner. Jeff is a member of many telecom industry organizations including Colorado Wireless Association, repair.org, CommNexus, and is a regular speaker at major telecom industry events. He was a 4x NCAA all-American in tennis and is a 12-time finisher of the Hawaii Ironman World Championships.

Tom Kang

Tom is an expert in the telecoms industry with 14 years of experience. He provides practical advice for the short term goals of clients as well as insights for long term vision. Previously he was a celebrated world renowned analyst at Strategy Analytics. He first introduced value share and profit share. He also created the Smartphone Strategies service and headed the research growing it to become the largest service in the company. Tom also worked for LG Electronics within the Mobile Communications Company in various roles.

Neil Shah

Neil is a sought-after frequently-quoted Industry Analyst with a wide spectrum of rich multifunctional experience. He is a knowledgeable, adept, and accomplished strategist. In the last 18 years he has offered expert strategic advice that has been highly regarded across different industries especially in telecom. Prior to Counterpoint, Neil worked at Strategy Analytics as a Senior Analyst (Telecom). Neil also had an opportunity to work with Philips Electronics in multiple roles. He is also an IEEE Certified Wireless Professional with a Master of Science (Telecommunications & Business) from the University of Maryland, College Park, USA.

Peter Richardson

Peter has 27 years experience in the mobile industry with extensive experience in market analysis and corporate development. Most recently Peter was Global Head of Market and Competitive Intelligence at Nokia. Here he headed a team responsible for analyzing and quantifying the industry. Prior to Nokia, Peter was an equity analyst at SoundView Technology Group. And before that he was VP and Chief Analyst of mobile and wireless research at Gartner. Peter’s early years in the industry were spent with NEC and Panasonic.