BT’s annual Focus event is an excellent opportunity to hear both about and from some of BT’s most important and demanding end customers. Their needs and priorities are what ultimately must shape innovations all the way down the telecom supply chain – not only in hardware and software, but in operating models, working practices, basic concepts and principles.

This was the backdrop to Focus, the annual analyst event by BT’s international business unit, held in November 2025.

BT International’s strategy readout touches on many of the key priorities and themes in Appledore’s research:

·         The criticality of automation

·         The software-ization of telecom networks

·         The role of hyperscalers in telecom

·         Impact and use of AI in networks and operations

·         The evolving cyberthreat landscape

·         Fundamental telecom economics

·         A platform mentality and approach to telecom

·         The implications for sovereignty in cloud-native, AI-powered networks

All these topics were discussed at the 2025 Fusion event.