Mobile World Congress is an event that has a lot of notoriety in the technology world, but one thing that’s tough to grasp until you step inside is just the sheer scale of it. This year, Differentiated made the trip to Barcelona for MWC, headlined by two of our directors, Matt and Jon. What they found to their surprise was not just a conference led entirely by mobile, but a full-blown convergence of telecom, technology, AI and professional services, showing how in the digital age these industries are becoming more interconnected.
The Size of It All
There was a buzz all throughout sunny Barcelona during the week and you could sense on the metro heading towards the event that something big was happening. You then enter hall 1 and your expectations are shattered immediately.
- 109,000 people from 205 countries
- 2,900 exhibitors, sponsors and partners
- 1,200 speakers across 19 stages over 4 days
- 1 amazing experience!
The numbers bring it alive, but the sheer physical scale of this event was truly something else. Huawei, for example, didn’t just build a stand – they built a mini city, something that had to be truly seen to be believed. The investment, effort and the spectacle itself were mind-blowing.
Who’s Really Running the Show?
One thing that we found interesting was that despite it being called Mobile World Congress, this is no longer a purely telecoms focused event. Of course, the telcos still play a foundational role (more on that later), but tech companies as well as professional services firms also had a huge presence.
Matt particularly was struck by the scale of firms like PwC, EY, and Deloitte. These are companies whose areas of expertise have traditionally been different to technology, yet here they were, with massive setups rivalling the largest tech and telco companies at the event with clear intentions to stake their claim in the everchanging space of connectivity.
When you think about it though, it makes sense. Everything is converging. No single tech company can operate without connectivity and on the flip side, no professional services firm can advise without data. As the world shifts to a more digital age, the traditional lines between these industries have become blurred and MWC was a great representation of this shift in real time.
So, What Was Everyone Talking About?
AI – The Headliner
In 2025, there is of course one thing that every tech company wants to talk about, which is AI. This was particularly clear among the big players not just from Europe and North America but the large tech companies from East Asia as well. The key themes weren’t necessarily just about AI’s potential but more so about its current practical application in sectors like infrastructure, automation and security.
Telcos Know Their Role (And That’s a Good Thing)
While the AI conversation continued, the telcos stuck to their key strengths: connectivity, IoT and 5G. It was refreshing that rather than trying to out-tech the tech companies, they leaned into what they do best:
- Many telcos showcased their leading-edge 5G applications, from drones to immersive experiences, however there was still a strong presence of straightforward, impactful IoT solutions. Vodafone showcased its IoT enabled smart buoys, which monitor water quality and can detect sudden changes in the state of a body of water early on, which allows for preventative measures to be taken in the event of a disaster – brilliant!
- The Open Gateway initiative (led by GSMA) aims to standardise APIs across telcos, making mobile network infrastructure more accessible. It’s a massive leap towards monetising assets that in the past telcos have struggled to capitalise on.
5G – Moving Beyond Hype
5G is a technology that has been hyped for years, but MWC really exemplified that it is progressing from an access technology and now emerging to maturity. Companies are understanding now that 5G isn’t just about speed, but rather it is about enabling entirely new business models. Some key takeaways:
- T-Mobile for Business launched its Wireless Priority Service (WPS) for essential services, a piece of technology that ensures first responders get cell phone service priority for emergency calls.
- The role of private networks and 5G Standalone is becoming clearer. Rather than being just a bolt-on however, they need to be further embedded as part of design. This topic should be in all story
- A decade ago, MWC was about adding devices and expanding connectivity which drove the need for cloud. Today, AI is reshaping networks and data centres, but there is a gap between how we showcase AI’s potential and proving its real business impact. While telcos are investing in AI-driven operations like AI-RAN and Smart Cities, the real challenge is moving from the hype to tangible customer benefits.
Marketing and Sales – The Game Has Changed
While MWC as we know is a superb tech showcase, it also proved to be a masterclass in event marketing. Here’s what we observed:
Stands Are No Longer Just Stands
Brands aren’t just putting up big booths and hoping for foot traffic. The biggest players turned their spaces into events within the event, having their own booth and speaker hubs running their own programme of content.
One standout? Snowflake. They used silent disco headphones at their booth to create a more focused and intimate discussion during their presentations, free of distractions from the chaos of MWC. Pro move.
Storytelling (Not Just Tech) Wins
Companies are now getting smarter about owning their narrative. There’s a sea of sameness across tech and telco marketing right now, and those who manage to find a way to stand out with great storytelling and strong branding win.
A great example of this is Etisalat and (e&). They have transformed their business from a telco to a techco with smart messaging at the centre and are now the fastest growing brand in the industry, setting a 14.5% revenue gain and a 19.1% net profit move in 4 years when the telco market went backwards in real terms.
Another interesting move unveiled at MWC is Vodafone’s new partnership with Bloomberg, which is a great example of how telcos are now looking beyond traditional models and aligning with major content and data players to help further expand their offerings.
Tactile, Interactive Experiences Still Win
Getting hands-on with the tech on display is still a huge draw. Some of the standout experiences:
- Oracle’s Cybertruck case study
- Samsung’s display tech magic shows
- e&’s AI-powered coffee machine
Getting hands-on was great and testing a real product remains a real draw for a show. For a services business like Differentiated that sells expertise, it poses an interesting question as to how to create engaging, interactive experiences without a tangible product on hand? The solution? Take a Differentiated approach.
Final Thought: Show Me, Don’t Tell Me
What was the biggest lesson we picked up from MWC? That the gap between telling and showing is real.
Jon put it best: AI and telco have an incredible story to tell, however too often the conversation stays at a high level. Rather than making grand claims about how AI will transform the world, show us the real-world impact.
That’s what we are going to take back to Differentiated. Whether for our own work or for the brands we support, the very best marketing doesn’t just tell people what’s happening, it shows them.
And if this year’s MWC proved anything, it’s those who show, win.