8 October 2026
AI needs far more than advanced chips and giant data centers. It needs the networks that connect them. Nokia CEO Justin Hotard joins CNBC’s Arjun Kharpal to explain why the company sees itself at the centre of the AI infrastructure buildout: providing the optical and IP networking technology linking AI data centres, as well as the mobile-network equipment that could support the next generation of robotics, autonomous vehicles and other physical AI. Hotard argues demand for AI infrastructure remains in its early stages, with customers constrained by power, silicon and supply rather than a lack of appetite to build. He also lays out his view of 6G: less a conventional upgrade in mobile speeds, and more a shift toward intelligent networks that can sense, plan and act. The conversation also covers Europe’s AI challenge, the debate over data-centre expansion and Nokia’s ambitions in space communications and orbital data centres. #CNBC #CNBCPodcast #TheTechDownload
