Highlights of the latest report by GSMA Intelligence in partnership with RADCOM, Service Assurance Trends in the AI Era
2025 was a pivotal year for telecom, with many technologies maturing in meaningful ways. We saw generative AI evolve into agentic AI, automation move to center stage, non-terrestrial connectivity step into the mainstream, and 5G Standalone begin to scale with real momentum. With these foundations now in motion, the question becomes: how will 2026 build on this momentum?
A new report by GSMA Intelligence in partnership with RADCOM, Service Assurance Trends in the AI Era, offers a glimpse into operator priorities for 2026 and the focus is shifting towards a more customer-centric approach through the use of unified assurance solutions, larger-scale agentic AI deployments, and real-time data infrastructure to power automation and operational efficiency.
Unified Data Management
In an era of AI, the importance of data is widely accepted but the survey highlights a critical obstacle for operators: fragmented data. 38% of operators are still collecting data in silos, managed separately by different teams or departments. In practice, this means more than one-third of operators are not fully integrating data across systems and processes, obstructing efficiency and limiting the ability to make informed, real-time decisions.
At the same time, operators increasingly acknowledge that improving real-time operations will be key to supporting next-generation services. This is driving greater emphasis on real-time data and more integrated approaches to data management. In fact, 58% of operators rate real-time data as “extremely important” for automating network operations. To close the gap, many are now turning to unified platforms that consolidate data management under one roof. 27% are very interested in deploying unified assurance solutions and 57% are interested but looking for more clarity before deciding to move forward.
Interpreting the Data
Access to data is only the starting point. What is critical is the ability to interpret that data and distill insights that support informed decisions. Operators are increasingly leveraging AI-driven analytics to extract value from their data, with the majority viewing AI as important or critical to their future strategy. Current AI adoption spans multiple domains, including:
- 63% – customer complaint analysis
- 59% – fault prediction
- 55% – root cause analysis
- 46% – customer intent prediction
- 39% – closed-loop automation
This shows AI’s role moving beyond experimentation and into day-to-day operational impact.
From Network Data to Customer Understanding
Another key takeaway from the survey is the focus on the customers. Operators are looking to use data to better understand and ultimately serve their customers. In the year ahead, the top priorities for data usage are:
- 53% – identifying customer and usage trends for upsell and targeted marketing
- 52% – analyzing customer experience to improve satisfaction and reduce churn
- 48% – detecting issues in the core network to prevent service-impacting problems
This signals a step toward experience-led, data-driven decision-making that links network performance directly to business outcomes. As networks evolve, customer experience is becoming a key driver of decisions and investments. The survey reveals a clear imbalance in the sources of frustration: data services top the list at 45% of complaints, followed by streaming at 24% and gaming at 19%, while voice accounts for just 12%.
These insights make one thing clear: operators need to sharpen their focus where it counts, and on digital services that shape how customers perceive value, quality, and loyalty.
Agentic AI
Agentic AI is helping to change this equation, shifting networks from simply detecting issues to preventing them before customers ever notice.
The survey shows that agentic AI is gaining momentum as operators look to improve customer experience at scale. 71% of operators plan to deploy agentic AI in 2026, while 14% have already begun, prioritizing areas that directly influence trust and customer satisfaction: security and fraud prevention (57%) and customer service and support (56%).
Operators are betting on agentic AI to remove friction before customers feel it, with the highest-value use cases reflecting this shift, including:
- 57% – automated customer complaint resolution
- 54% – autonomous fault resolution before it impacts service
- 52% – predicting experience to prevent churn
This signals a significant turning point: customer loyalty will be won (or lost) by how fast networks can detect, decide, and act, without waiting for a human to intervene.
Are operators ready for the future workloads driven by new technologies?
Today, the answer is essentially no. More than half report feeling unprepared or only somewhat ready. That lack of confidence highlights an industry racing to modernize, but not yet in stride.
The message is clear: as technology accelerates, readiness must follow. Operators are now being pushed to build new skill sets, modernize their infrastructure, and embrace automation and AI to meet the demands of tomorrow’s networks and the customers who rely on them.
Customer-Centricity Is No Longer Optional
Finally, the survey reveals that operators are gradually turning to service assurance solutions to meet these evolving priorities, with about half already having automated around 40% of their assurance operations. For 2026, the main focus areas will include automating network operations (65%), monitoring the complete customer experience (60%), and achieving real-time network visibility (51%).
Looking ahead to 2026
In conclusion, the GSMA–RADCOM survey highlights a transformation that took root in 2025 and is set to accelerate as operators move into 2026. The industry is clearly shifting towards customer-centricity, unified data management, and sophisticated AI-driven solutions.
The widespread adoption of agentic AI marks a shift from reactive to proactive service, aiming to resolve issues before they impact customers and thus drive loyalty. Despite technological advancements, many operators acknowledge a readiness gap, emphasizing the urgent need for workforce and network optimization.
Ultimately, the survey highlights that prioritizing automation, customer experience, and data-driven decision-making will be crucial for operators seeking to not only adapt but thrive in the rapidly evolving telecom landscape.
