UK telecom upgrades lag as AI traffic pressures networks

Senior telecoms executives warn that the UK could lose ground in the global AI race if broadband and mobile infrastructure is not upgraded fast enough. Datacentre investment has dominated the debate, but wider adoption will also push far more traffic across consumer and business networks.

The UK has improved fixed broadband through full-fibre rollouts by BT’s Openreach and other providers, but mobile upgrades are lagging. A Which? report using Opensignal data found mobile coverage worse than any of the 27 EU member states and every other member of the G7, with the UK ranked 57th globally for network performance, 70th for download speeds and 55th for reliable quality needed for video calls, streaming and gaming.

Andrea Donà, networks director at VodafoneThree, said today’s weak network quality points to a bigger problem when mass AI usage arrives. He compared the coming pressure to signal failures at large events, arguing that capacity problems now seen only in crowded locations could become a constant experience.

Operators say they are investing in 5G stand-alone technology, including VodafoneThree’s £11bn mast upgrade plan, but planning rules are slowing even basic work on existing sites. VodafoneThree is reducing its nationwide mast network by 30%. About 96% of needed upgrades are on current sites, and more than half will still require planning permission. Operators also argue that mobile networks, despite being classified as critical national infrastructure, do not receive reliefs offered to datacentres, energy and water systems.