T-Mo tops speed in Ookla testing | AI containment — hope and hubris | Vodafone beats expectations | July 25 2025 RCR Daily
Is AI impossible to contain?
Sean Kinney gives us a lot to think about as we head into the weekend in his latest column, which explores why AI containment isn’t just missing from policy conversations — it may be impossible. Drawing on Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman’s thesis in The Coming Wave, he argues that incentives like nationalism, capitalism, and ego make meaningful restraint structurally implausible. This piece reflects on hope, hubris, and the enduring myths we tell ourselves in the age of AI.
As these AI developments accelerate — whether they should or not, apparently — the infrastructure powering it has become mission-critical. That’s why RCR has launched a brand-new newsletter to bring you the latest on AI infrastructure. Check out today's edition here, and be sure to subscribe!
RCR Top 5
AI containment — hope and hubris: Tech CEOs are focused on using AI to make as much money as they can as quickly as possible — containment does not align with that goal. Read more.
T-Mo's top speed: Ookla's new rankings for the first half of 2025 are out: T-Mobile US continued to blow past its competitors on mobile network speeds, while AT&T's strength in fiber was evident.
Voda beats expectations: Vodafone posted a rise in revenue, beating expectations, despite a reversal at its big German op-co, albeit a slowing one, and softening growth in its home market, where the Three merger is playing out.
5G core climbs: Dell’Oro Group projects 6% CAGR for 5G mobile core networks and 17% for MEC, as 5G SA adoption, APIs, and RedCap boost growth — and AI looms as the next big driver.
O2 extends small cell push: Virgin Media O2 and Ontix are expanding their small cell deployments to Bristol as part of a £700 million national network upgrade aimed at boosting 4G and 5G performance in dense urban areas.
Beyond the Headlines
Alphabet's AI momentum: Alphabet is going to spend even more this year on servers, data centers, and networking than it had previously planned, raising 2025 capex guidance from an estimated $75 billion to $85 billion
SoftBank’s AI stack goes mega: SoftBank now runs the world’s largest Nvidia Blackwell-based SuperPOD, deploying 4,000+ GPUs to power its next-gen Japanese LLMs.
6G is for AI agents: 4G was for humans, 5G was for machines, and 6G will be for AI agents, argues AI Product Strategist at Optiva Chrisaman Sood. These agents will autonomously negotiate transactions and manage slices, compute, and energy.
American AI Action plan: What's in the White House's AI Action Plan? Federal support for domestic AI tech and data center projects. What's out? Limitations on AI development, and LLMs that factor DEI into responses.
Private 5G testing challenges: Testing is a critical challenge for private 5G networks — especially in neutral-host setups with multi-tenant integration, latency isolation, and enterprise-grade validation.
What We're Reading
Nvidia chips smuggled into China: Despite tightened U.S. export controls, more than $1 billion worth of Nvidia’s B200 AI chips have reached China, exposing loopholes and a gray market routed through an Anhui-based reseller.
Tilson sues AT&T-backed Gigapower: Tilson Technology Management has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $200 million from Gigapower. The suit alleges withheld payments and contract termination forced Tilson into Chapter 11 proceedings.
AI kills media: One for RCR, and PR, and other media: AI summaries in Google search results may cut news traffic by up to 80%; publishers are warning over lost clicks and concerns about transparency, bias, and data practices.
Orange buys Ensec: Orange Cyberdefense has acquired Zurich‑based Ensec to bolster its presence in German‑speaking Switzerland, adding ~40 experts and 130 clients, and strengthening its European cybersecurity footprint.
Anthropic on American AI: Anthropic calls for "substantial investments in computing power and electricity" to make it possible to build artificial intelligence in America.
Upcoming Events
In-Person Event - CCA’s 2025 Annual Convention - September 15-17, San Antonio, TX Join innovators and thought leaders in the communications service provider community for unmatched networking and educational opportunities.
Virtual Forum - NTN Forum 2025 - September 9th Join this event to examine the role NTNs will play in the evolving 5G and 6G ecosystem and explore key challenges, such as the integration and interoperability of NTNs with terrestrial networks.
Virtual Forum - Open RAN Global 2025 - September 23th Join this event to explore where Open RAN stands today — its technical and operational maturity, the role of AI and automation, performance at scale and the path toward 6G integration.
In-Person Event - MWC Las Vegas - October 14-15, 2025, Las Vegas, NV Join MWC Las Vegas, in partnership with CTIA, North America’s leading event for industrial-grade connectivity —where enterprises evolve through CIO-led insights on transformation using 5G-enabled and AI-powered technologies.
Industry Resources
Webinar, August 5th Will 6G be an evolution or a revolution—standards, spectrum and use cases
Webinar, August 7th Powering logistics 4.0: Five trends driving private 4G/5G in warehouses
Editorial Report Telco cloud and edge market pulse report
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