Deutsche Telekom does not plan to spend more on mobile uplink capacity to handle AI traffic over the medium term, with capital intensity outside the US set to hold at 21% of service revenue in 2027.

Speaking at the German operator's inaugural AI Investor Day this week, incoming chief financial officer Dhananjay Mirchandani pushed back against vendor hopes that a wave of AI-driven uploads would unlock fresh radio access network (RAN) spending. Mirchandani takes over from retiring CFO Christian Illek on May 1 next year.

What did the CFO actually say?

A financial analyst asked whether Deutsche Telekom expects capital intensity to rise after 2027 because of AI demand on the network, since suppliers like Ericsson and Nokia have positioned themselves for an upstream-capacity sales boost. Mirchandani's answer was short.

"I cannot recall a single conversation in which Alex Jenbar … or somebody else approached us and said, 'in addition to whatever we currently have on our roadmaps for RAN modernisation, that there is an incremental requirement for an investment to be able to prepare ourselves for additional uplink/AI-related traffic,'" he said.

He framed that as a marker of "the degree of confidence we have in terms of our own capex planning, specifically related to mobile network capacity."

How does DT's RAN capex shape up?

Per guidance set at Deutsche Telekom's 2024 Capital Markets Day, capex excluding the US and spectrum is targeted at 21% of service revenue in 2027. Mirchandani said DT is "trading slightly above" that figure, driven by heavy fibre rollout in Germany rather than mobile capacity.

Key German RAN numbers:

• Huawei: roughly two-thirds of the radio access network
• Ericsson: the remaining one-third
• Nokia open RAN sites planned by 2027: 3,000
• Nokia sites live in 2025: 1,000

That mix is shifting under an open RAN programme that aims to replace Huawei with Nokia equipment across 3,000 sites by 2027. DT had 1,000 Nokia sites live in 2025.

Where does that leave T-Mobile US?

DT's US unit takes a different public stance on AI and uplink. T-Mobile CTO John Saw told analysts in July that the carrier is deploying 5G-Advanced features specifically to handle an expected AI traffic surge.

A reason for deploying 5G-Advanced is "to improve the uplink performance, especially with the potential surge in AI mobile traffic soon," Saw said, citing "uplink carrier aggregation, uplink MIMO, transmit switching."

Tests by Signals Research Group on T-Mobile's 5G standalone network earlier this year showed "very modest" uplink impact when running AI and augmented reality applications on Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses and Samsung smartphones.

Speaking at DT's AI Investor Day, Saw framed 6G as the bigger prize. "6G is not just the next G. It is a generational opportunity for the transformation of the telecom sector, enabled by the perfect storm of AI, wireless and efficient computing," he said.

What about other operators?

AT&T has also flagged upstream investment. President and CEO John Stankey pointed to the need to "build better upstream" in wireless as part of the reasoning behind acquiring EchoStar's 600MHz lowband spectrum. AT&T selected Ericsson's dual-band 600MHz radios with "uplink-enhancing 8RX technology," described as a first for lowband.

T-Mobile US, AT&T and DT are all publicly tracking uplink upgrades, but the spending envelope is not necessarily expanding. Deutsche Telekom's position is that any AI-related uplink investment will fall within existing capex plans rather than add to them.

What does this mean for vendors?

Ericsson, Huawei and Nokia are the three vendors with RAN exposure at Deutsche Telekom Germany. Any incremental capex from an AI uplink wave would have flowed primarily to them. Mirchandani's message narrows that opportunity, at least for the medium term.

The open RAN migration to Nokia at 3,000 sites remains on track, with 1,000 already live. Huawei replacement deadlines and 6G standardisation timelines will shape whether AI traffic ever becomes a discrete line item rather than a subset of broader RAN modernisation.

For the equipment industry, the implication is straightforward: pitch 6G and AI uplink features as standard upgrades, not as a new revenue pool above the 21% capex-to-revenue ratio already locked in for 2027.