The MWC is committed to AI to recover its maximum potential

The integration of generative artificial intelligence in mobile devices will be one of the star topics of a conference that seeks to open up to new sectors and topics.

Everything ready for the MWC . Next Monday the great mobile telephony congress opens its doors at the Fira de Barcelona venue on Gran Via, with 2,400 exhibitors, 1,100 speakers and 95,000 attendees expected, 8% more than last year. This figure is still below that of 2019, before Covid, when the event organized by the GSMA operators association attracted 110,000 people.

The sensations this year, however, are very positive and practically none of the big technology companies – with the exception of Apple – will miss the event. Google, Huawei, Ericsson, Intel, Lenovo, LG, Meta, Microsoft, Cisco, Deutsche Telekom, Netflix, Nokia, Qualcomm, Samsung, Telefónica, Tik Tok or ZTE have already confirmed their presence.

Under the motto Future First , the MWC will display one of the most open editions to other sectors in its history. In recent years, the GSMA has encouraged the arrival of congressmen from outside the mobile industry – for example, last year there were 56% -, a deliberate strategy that seeks to create synergies between sectors and generate more business. In this sense, the presentation program will be structured around six transversal axes: 5G Technology, Connecting everything, Humanizing artificial intelligence (AI), Digitalization of the industry, Disruptive actors and digital DNA .

Trends

Additionally, the event will address trends in personalized commerce, secure digital communications and transactions, ubiquitous digital entertainment, and advanced industry.

Precisely, given the current boom in generative artificial intelligence, this technology and its progressive integration into mobile devices will be one of the star topics that will be talked about.

A month ago, Samsung presented its new Galaxy S24 family, which will incorporate AI functions, such as performing searches without having to change apps, translating calls in real time, transcribing recordings or generating images from text, among others. It is expected that many of these developments can be seen at the congress.

Huawei will have, as in 2023, the largest pavilion at the fair, divided into six areas and 70 demonstration stands. The Asian company will go far beyond phones and will show all the developments in storage, cloud services, intelligent connectivity and industrial applications that it develops for the business sector.

For its part, Xiaomi plans to exclusively show the new Xiaomi 14 Ultra and could show what will be its first electric car, the SU7 , while Honor will arrive with the Magic 6 Pro , which until now has only been seen in China.

Regarding speakers, this year names stand out such as Yang Jie , president of China Mobile ; Brad Smith , president of Microsoft ; Michael Dell , president of Dell ; Demis Hassabis , co-founder and CEO of Google DeepMind , AI subsidiary of the Mountain View giant; José María Álvarez-Pallete , president of Telefónica , or Margherita della Valle , CEO of Vodafone . Celebrities like Pau Gasol will also attend.

The MWC , which last year had an economic impact of 461 million in Barcelona and generated 9,100 temporary jobs, will once again fill the hotels in the Catalan capital, although with shorter stays. According to Juan Gallardo, partner of the real estate consultancy 3 Capital, this is because the wow effect of the first editions of the MWC , which premiered in Barcelona in 2006, no longer exists, reports Efe .

“The fair has evolved and now the professional meeting weighs more than the incentive trip,” he says. According to data from Kiwi.com , travel reservations to the Catalan capital have grown by 90% for the days of the show. The Sercotel chain, for example, has already guaranteed 98% occupancy between Sunday, February 25, and Thursday, February 29, the last day of the congress, in its four hotels in Barcelona.

Airport

El Prat Airport plans to operate 8,470 flights from today until next March 3, 10.82% more than last year and 2.97% more than in 2019. The seats offered have grown by 12% year-on-year, up to 1.5 million .

SOURCE