Robots are starting to rely on telecom networks, and the money is moving with them. Robot makers are already paying operators for AI compute. In 2027, the first field trials of robot AI on commercial networks will show which operators can do more than sell the connection.
Six operators are already ahead. Most of the other 34 operators we reviewed are still deciding where to play. This report shows you who is where, what is earning money today and what to do in the next 12 months.
The physical AI questions on every operator’s agenda
If you are responsible for strategy, partnerships or enterprise growth, you are probably being asked some version of these questions:
- Who is really ahead in physical AI, and what are they doing that we are not?
- Which physical AI offers earn money today, and which are still bets?
- Should our network just connect robots, or guarantee their performance and run their AI?
- Which robot makers and technology partners should we work with?
- What will change in 2027, and how do we avoid being late?
The free brief answers the first three at a glance. The full Leadership Landscape answers all five, operator by operator.
What you get in the free physical AI brief
- The six leading operators, named: Deutsche Telekom, KT, NTT DOCOMO, SK Telecom, SoftBank and T-Mobile, with where each is strongest and what to watch.
- Six offers operators can sell, from machine connectivity to packaged robot services, and which ones earn money today.
- The three jobs a network can do for a robot, and what a customer pays for each.
- A 2027 milestone tracker of the field trials and launches that will reshape the market.
- Five questions to answer before you invest.
Register for free and download the brief today.
What only the full physical AI Leadership Landscape shows
The free brief tells you where the market is heading. The full report shows you exactly where every operator stands, and gives you the detail to act on it.
- All 40 operators placed by strategy: six leaders, 13 active in one area, five preparing and 16 yet to show public physical AI work, each with what it has proven and what it still has to prove.
- Six leader case studies: what each leader built, with which partners, the results so far and the lesson for everyone else.
- The operators already selling robots that customers use today, and how they package them.
- The partner map: the one technology partner named in 35 evidence records, and the robot makers operators still lack.
- The 16 operators with AI everywhere except robots, including five Gulf operators building the foundations physical AI will need.
- Recommendations for three audiences: operators, technology vendors and enterprise buyers, each starting with the move that matters most in the next 12 months.
Get a company licence and give your team the full picture.
Free brief or full report: which do you need?
| Free brief | Full report | |
|---|---|---|
| The six leaders | Named, at a glance | Full case studies |
| Where the other 34 operators stand | Group counts only | Every operator named and placed |
| Offers that earn money today | ✓ | ✓ with each leader’s mix |
| Vendor ecosystem and partner map | ✓ | |
| 2027 outlook and signals to watch | Milestone tracker | Full outlook to 2028 |
| Recommendations | Five questions | Next moves by audience |
| Pages | 14 | 27 |
Who uses this physical AI report
- Operator strategy and enterprise teams: use it to choose your first industry, robot partner and offer, and to benchmark yourself against the leaders.
- Network, chip, cloud and robotics vendors: use it to see which operators are buying, what they need from you and where your rivals already partner.
- Enterprise buyers: use it to see which operators can support robots at your sites, and what to ask before you sign.
- Investors and analysts: use it to see where telecom revenue from physical AI will come from first.
Built on verified public evidence
Every finding rests on 220 evidence records drawn from public sources on 40 telecom operators and 24 technology vendors, each checked against its source, up to October 2026. The report covers machines that sense, decide with AI and act in the physical world, and describes each initiative at the stage its source supports. TeckNexus is vendor-neutral and does not accept payment for placement.
Know where you stand before the 2027 trials. Start with the free brief, or give your team the full Leadership Landscape.
