Taiwan Mobile announced on September 16 that its investment partner, Nada Holdings, will officially be listed on the over-the-counter (OTC) market on September 18, becoming Taiwan's first company to enter the capital market with a core strategy centered on anime, comics, and games (ACG) intellectual property (IP).

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te has identified next-generation communications as the most formidable of he's administration's "five major trusted industries," placing the sector at the heart of the national innovation strategy.

Taiwan's telecom industry has entered a new era of three-way competition following the mergers of Taiwan Mobile and Taiwan Star Telecom, and of Far EasTone (FET) and Asia Pacific Telecom, ending the fragmented market landscape. In an exclusive interview with DIGITIMES, Taiwan Mobile president Jamie Lin emphasized that with the core telecom market stabilized, the future development paths of the top three operators will diverge significantly, with the decisive factor being their new businesses.

Telecom giant Ericsson held its Ericsson Day mobile trends forum in Taiwan on September 16, which featured its Asia-Pacific management team, as well as Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel), the global network API standardization platform Aduna, and industry partners MediaTek and Intel. The forum centered on the themes of "Beyond 5G business model innovation" and "AI and mobile technology evolution," exploring future developments in mobile communication technologies and innovations in the Taiwan market.

With 6G expected to enter commercial operation by 2030, industry leaders are shifting their focus from competing on technical specifications to developing sustainable business models and building robust ecosystems. At a recent 6G wireless communication standardization forum held in Taipei, experts emphasized that future success hinges on two critical factors: delivering tangible user experiences and creating AI-driven value chains. They also underscored that the path to 6G must draw heavily from the commercialization lessons of 5G.

As 6G technology is anticipated to enter commercial operation by 2030, telecom companies worldwide face significant strategic decisions beyond technical innovation. The emerging standard requires balancing capital recovery with competitive positioning, while avoiding the pitfall of viewing 6G merely as a speed upgrade or technological showcase.

As generative AI matures, the traditional division of labor within enterprises is undergoing a profound transformation. At Taiwan Mobile's D.E.E.P. Tech Day 2025 on September 9, 2025, Chief Information Officer Rock Tsai introduced the concept of "reversing specialization," arguing that AI is not merely a productivity upgrade but a force that will redistribute corporate roles, reshape value chains, and accelerate the rise of an "AI agent" ecosystem in external markets.

Generative AI has moved beyond the "model arms race" into practical deployment, and Taiwan Mobile (TWM) is moving quickly to capitalize on the momentum. Company president Jamie Lin announced that the company will invest NT$930 million (approx. US$30.7 million) in 2025 on R&D to create solutions that support enterprises in AI adoption and deployment.

Taiwan is intensifying its bid to gain ground in the rapidly expanding satellite communications market. The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), together with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Digital Affairs, Ministry of Education, National Communications Commission, and National Space Organization, has launched a "Next-Generation Communications Technology Development Program."

South Korean telecom giant SK Telecom (SKT) is doubling down on its artificial intelligence (AI) investments in the wake of a major hacking incident. The company has officially begun construction of a large-scale AI data center in Ulsan, South Korea, which will become the country's largest dedicated AI facility outside the capital region.

Taiwan's bid to challenge global telecom incumbents with 5G Open RAN (O-RAN) is faltering, as network outages in automated factories undermine trust and local vendors struggle to monetize investments. Once championed as a bridge for Taiwan's IT sector to break into communications technology and loosen the grip of Nokia, Ericsson, and Siemens, O-RAN's commercial promise is now in doubt. Industry leaders and analysts see the emerging concept of AI-RAN as the sector's potential reset.

Taiwan-based Far EasTone Telecommunications (FET) is strengthening its international and cloud strategy through its cloud business, Nextlink. FET has announced it has signed a 100% share acquisition agreement with Hong Kong-based cloud service technology firm Renova Cloud, through which FET will gain control of Renova Cloud's subsidiary in Vietnam.

A submarine cable disruption was been reported near Taiwan on the afternoon of September 1. According to the Taiwan Submarine Cable Map, the East Asia Crossing 2 (EAC2) submarine cable toward Southeast Asia experienced a break, affecting international data transmission between Taiwan and Singapore. In response, Taiwan's largest telecommunications service provider Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) clarified that it is not invested in EAC2, adding its self-operated international and domestic submarine cables are currently functioning normally.

As 3GPP establishes Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) as a key focus in standard evolution, NTN has become the next critical battleground in the communications industry. Nokia recently unveiled its three-phase NTN development roadmap spanning LTE, 5G, and 6G, targeting the satellite communications market in a comprehensive campaign.

Sixth-generation wireless technology is expected to launch commercially around 2030, prompting global telecom operators to accelerate early preparations. Nokia has begun frequency band tests at its Finland headquarters, while Taiwan's role remains uncertain. The company noted that Taiwan has not yet initiated related tests, and future participation will depend on how regulators position and allocate 6G spectrum.

As 5G continues to proliferate worldwide, major telecom equipment makers are accelerating efforts toward next-generation communications. Nokia has already begun 6G frequency band testing at its headquarters in Finland, laying the foundation for future networks.

As the global AI wave accelerates, the concept of sovereign AI is moving to the forefront. At a recent event, Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) Chairman Alex C. C. Chien emphasized that Taiwan must not only strive for technological leadership but also prioritize the development of "sovereign AI" and "digital sovereignty."

The era of 6G is approaching, with the integration of AI becoming a central focus. South Korea's telecommunications industry emphasizes the interdependence between AI and networks: without intelligent networks, large-scale AI services cannot exist. However, many practical challenges remain to be overcome in implementation.

With the rapid advancement of AI technology, the global telecommunications industry is entering a new phase of transformation. The development of 6G networks will not merely be an upgrade from 5G, but will focus on network innovation tailored to AI services.

At the OCP APAC Summit, Ethernet and UALink advocates clashed over data center interconnect architectures. Kurtis Bowman, UALink board chair and AMD's director of architecture and strategy, questioned Ethernet's latency performance in scale-up scenarios, arguing that its technical limits hinder high-performance application scaling.

The United States' implementation of trade protectionism has introduced significant uncertainty and risks for export-oriented economies. Chin-Ching Liu, minister of the National Development Council (NDC), recently announced that to enable Taiwan's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to scale up their investments in the US and avoid high tariffs, the government will amend laws to offer tax incentives encouraging businesses to form industrial holding companies as a strategic step toward entering the US market.

China unveiled the results of its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–2025) for digital economy development, showcasing progress in digital infrastructure, cross-industry data applications, and efforts to establish a national framework for data sharing and circulation.

Cybersecurity service provider CHT Security held its pre-IPO briefing on August 13, announcing plans for an official listing in the third quarter of 2025 and becoming Taiwan's first cybersecurity services company to go public.

HTC has announced a product launch for its Vive series scheduled for August 14, with Taiwan Mobile (TWM) set to unveil its updated application services simultaneously. The events will take place in Taiwan, suggesting a coordinated effort between the two companies.