SESSION ONE: The New Economics: Growth, profitability and customer experience in an AI-driven market

09:00 – 09:10 | Opening Remarks  Nik Willetts, CEO, TM Forum

09:10 – 09:40 | Panel: Redefining telco growth: How operators and technology leaders are shaping the next phase of telco innovation

• Insights from VMO2 on building digital and operational foundations that enable growth, competitiveness, and continuous innovation
• How VMO2 is turning digital transformation into standout customer experiences and new revenue opportunities
• How NEC and Netcracker are helping operators unlock business potential and accelerate growth by operationalizing AI across the telco value chain

Moderator: Ari Banerjee, Chief Strategy Officer, Netcracker Technology 
Panelists:
Eva Slattery, Director of Major Programmes, VM02 
Akio Yamada, Corporate Senior Vice President, Head of AI Technology Services Business Division, NEC 

09:40 – 10:00 | Lean networks for the next decade 

• Building efficiency into network design: How greenfield operators are integrating AI and automation from day one
• Optimizing energy and resources: Using intelligent controllers and AI agents to reduce power consumption and OPEX 
• Autonomous service operations: Enabling self-optimizing networks that align operational efficiency with customer KPIs 
• Preparing for Level 4+ autonomy: Lessons for legacy operators in adopting modular, scalable, and future-proof network architectures 

Hiroshi Takeshita, Vice CTO, Rakuten Mobile 
Interviewer: Marc Einstein, Research Director, Counterpoint Research

10:00 – 10:20 | Building smarter services: Setting the vision for greater operational efficiency  

• How SoftBank is evolving from traditional network operations to AI-driven, data-centric service platforms
• Lessons from deploying automation and self-optimising networks to improve reliability, speed, and cost efficiency
• Embedding AI and analytics across operations, from fault prediction to proactive customer experience management
• What “operational excellence” means in practice as SoftBank prepares for next-generation connectivity and services 

Tomohiro Sekiwa, Senior Vice President & CNO, SoftBank 

10:20 – 10:40 | Orchestrating a digital platform for CX & governance 

• Running a SoC (System of Control) with ODA 
• Improving the digital platform using these data (ITOM/Monitor/Observability) 
• How AI Ops is changing NTT Docomo's platform operations 

Ken Komazawa, Vice President, Platform Services Dept Network & Cloud Division, NTT Docomo  

10:40 – 11:00 | Building a global telecom ecosystem: Innovations in Open Gateway and API standardization

• Latest developments in the implementation of the Open Gateway Initiative, using CAMARA standards to expose secure telecom network functions via APIs, enabling developers to build innovative applications
• Facilitating developers to create cross-operator apps using standardized APIs, which enhance services for end users and generate new revenue streams for service providers and telecom operators
• How global API standardization will foster a global ecosystem, leading to the monetization of telecom assets on a worldwide scale, and contributing to the growth of the telecom industry
• Sharing a case study of KDDI's initiatives in this area

Toshiyasu Wakayama, Senior Standardization Specialist, Standard Strategy Department, Advancing Business Technology Sector, KDDI CAMARA Technical Steering Committee Member, KDDI

11:00 - 11:30 | Networking Break 

SESSION TWO: Engineering Efficiency: Designing leaner, smarter, AI-native networks for 2026 and beyond

11:30 – 11:50 | Accelerating NaaS-Cloud convergence 

• Explore network security features and benefits for IoT devices using Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) delivering secure and flexible orchestration
• Dive into service architecture integrating NaaS, Cloud, and XaaS
• Learn more about IoT use cases for line-of-business enabled by NaaS–Cloud convergence 

Dai Kashiwa, Vice President, 5G & IoT Services Platform Service Division, NTT Docomo  

11:50 – 12:10 | Fireside chat: Unlocking growth with AI 

• Vision for accelerating DX with AI adoption 
• Lessons learned from AI Initiatives to achieve scalability and efficiency without increasing development and operational complexity 

Ken Shiozaki, Director, Amdocs
Tadakatsu Hirota, Senior Manager, DX Promotion Department, NTT Infrastructure Network Corporation

12:10 - 12:30 | From AIOps to Agentic AI: How Microsoft operates the global network as a customer zero 

• Customer zero at hyperscale: Why legacy and rule‑based automation no longer scale 
• Agentic AI in Action: Inside Microsoft’s multi‑agent network operations model 
• Measurable Impact: Productivity, speed, and operational outcomes at hyperscale 
• Lessons for Telcos: Applying the Customer Zero blueprint on the path to Autonomous Networks 

Yoshihiro Kozuki, Industry Advisor Director - Worldwide Telecom Industry, Microsoft 

12:30 – 13:00 | Panel: Unlocking telecom growth across the region  

• Which AI investments can truly move the needle on revenue and profitability?
• How can operators use AI and cloud platforms to deliver next-level customer experiences without exploding costs or complexity?
• What is the role of ecosystem partnerships with hyperscalers, vendors, and enterprise clients in creating new monetization opportunities?
• As automation and intelligent networks scale, how should operators measure ROI and ensure every initiative aligns with strategic business outcomes?

Moderator: George Glass, CTO, TM Forum
Panelists:
Nozomu Takama, BSS / OSS Manager, NEC Corporation
Takuya Miyasaka, Senior Researcher, KDDI Research
Mahmoud Elsakhawy, Vice Director, Mobile Network Supervisory Department, Rakuten Mobile 

13:00 - 14:00 | Lunch break

SESSION THREE: AUTONOMOUS NETWORKS SUMMIT

14:00 - 14:20 | Navigating the journey to Level 4 and beyond

• Outlining TM Forum’s 2026 Autonomous Networks roadmap and what Level 4+ truly represents for global CSPs
• How TM Forum’s three Missions (Autonomous Networks, Composable IT & Ecosystems, and AI & Data Innovation) converge to create an unbroken current of transformation
• From pilots to production: The frameworks, playbooks, and benchmarks enabling operators to operationalise autonomy at scale
• Why regional collaboration across Japan, Korea, and ASEAN is critical to establishing early global leadership in Level 4+ deployment

George Glass, CTO, TM Forum  

14:20 - 14:40 | Case Study: Enabling autonomous large-scale IP network operations with digital twins 

• Evolving fault management and restoration processes for large-scale IP networks, transitioning from human-dependent operations to autonomous execution 
• Addressing the challenge of achieving both safety and responsiveness in increasingly complex and large-scale network operations 
• Establishing an operational model that leverages digital twins to enable closed-loop decision-making and execution, based on the real-time state of the live network 
• Next steps toward AN Level4, and the future direction of organizational and operational transformation 

Koki Arishima, Manager, Network Operations Division, SoftBank

14:40 - 15:00 | Reaching Level 4 autonomy at scale

• Deploying AI-native architectures and closed-loop automation to transform network operations
• Identifying the key steps to achieve reduced fault resolution times and improved SLA compliance
• Achieving measurable OPEX efficiencies and measurable energy savings
• Practical lessons in scaling automation while maintaining network stability and service quality

Shingo Horiuchi, Senior Research Engineer, Supervisor, Group Leader, Access Network Service Systems Lab, NTT 

15:00 - 15:30 | Panel Discussion: From network to platform: Driving revenue and innovation in the AI-native era

• How operators can leverage autonomous networks to launch differentiated, on-demand services for consumers and enterprises
• Exploring monetization strategies that move beyond flat-rate data, including dynamic SLAs, premium vertical slices, and ecosystem partnerships
• Case studies from regional operators showing measurable growth, operational gains, and faster time-to-market for advanced services
• Using AI and intelligent agents to streamline operations, reduce costs, and accelerate the rollout of innovative services at scale

Panelists:
Yasuo Koide, Senior Telco Consultant, Comarch 
Pradeep Kumar, Senior Manager, Network Operations, Rakuten Mobile
Ari Banerjee, Chief Strategy Officer, Netcracker

15:30 - 16:00 | Networking Break

16:00 - 16:200 | Case Study: Turning AI autonomy into measurable customer and business impact

• Harnessing agentic AI to dynamically adjust services, anticipate demand, and maintain seamless experience across peak and edge scenarios
• Shifting from reactive management to proactive orchestration, reducing manual interventions, and unlocking efficiency at scale
• Translating AI insights into improved SLA adherence, faster issue resolution, and tangible gains in customer satisfaction
• Integrating partners, tools, and processes to extend AI-driven operations beyond the core network, creating end-to-end service reliability

Sachin Verma, Chief AI & Data Officer, Rakuten Mobile

16:20 - 16:40 | From AI readiness to real impact: Navigating the journey in 2026 and beyond 

• The AI readiness divide: Why It matters, and why most organizations remain stuck in pilots or early experimentation 
• AI pilots vs. enterprise impact. Why do most AI pilots fall short? 
• What sets the pacesetters apart? Most pacesetters have carried out a structured approach to implement justified AI use cases 
• Why data is the foundation of AI success 

Ariadi Nugroho, Managing Partner, KED Consulting, Member, IEEE, and former Group Head / VP, IT Strategy and Architecture, PT XL Axiata 

16:40 - 17:00 | Fireside Chat: Navigating the road to Level 4: Challenges, strategies, and next steps

• Examining technical, operational, and organisational barriers that slow autonomous network adoption
• Identifying quick wins and practical enablers for rapid progress toward Level 4 readiness
• Exploring the roles of internal teams, vendor partners, and industry consortia in overcoming shared challenges
• Prioritising actionable next steps to accelerate measurable results across networks and services

George Glass, CTO, TM Forum, in conversation with  
Ariadi Nugroho, Managing Partner, KED Consulting, Member, IEEE, and former Group Head / VP, IT Strategy and Architecture, PT XL Axiata 

17:00 | Close