The Loft: Trustworthy AI and Data Innovation

June 24, 2026

14:30-15:00

The Loft Stage

AI & Data

AI (Artificial Intelligence)

AI readiness

Loft

14:30 - 14:45
Speed is easy. Trust is harder. Does your AI have both?

Most telco AI deployments do not fail loudly. They fail quietly, slipping back into manual processes because teams still do not fully trust AI outputs, especially in mission-critical B/OSS operations. In this Disruptor Story, Nuno challenges the industry’s default mindset - speed first, governance later - and presents a different path: engineering trust from the ground up. Drawing on a real B/OSS operations use case aligned with TM Forum standards, he shows that trust is not a feature you add. It is a foundation you design from day one.

Nuno Sá Couto, CTO, Conkord

14:45 - 15:00
Beyond the hype: Engineering an AI-first operating model in telecom.

The dominant AI narrative is one of efficiency and substitution. The operators that will win the next decade are writing a different story. The broadband race is won or lost where the operating model meets the customer. Virgin Media O2, Tech Mahindra and Zinier come together at DTW Ignite to showcase how AI is no longer a layer of technology you bolt onto the business, but a reimagined operating model enabler. In this session, we’ll address the question every telco leader should be answering: how do you redesign the operating model so that AI compounds across the entire journey from wholesale strategy to the customer door?

Moderator: Upendra Dharmadhikary, Managing Partner, Tech Mahindra
Rakesh Tallam, Executive Director, Virgin Media O2
Parik Makwana, Head of Product & Digital Transformation, Zinier

Session speakers

Nuno Sá Couto

CTO

Conkord

Upendra Dharmadhikary

Managing Partner

Rakesh Tallam

Executive Director

Parik Makwana

Head of Product and Digital Transformation

Also running at this time

Self-optimizing networks: Billion-scale agentic AI revolution

Autonomous Networks

24 June 2026

14:00-15:40

TM Forum Industry Showcase Stage

Self-optimizing networks: Billion-scale agentic AI revolution

Dive into the telecom industry’s first production-scale deployment of Agentic AI workflows across the full network lifecycle. Explore how this reinvents network design and operations, unlocking massive ROIC through self-orchestrating systems that achieve Level 4+ autonomy. Gain actionable insights on shifting from basic automation to intelligent networks that boost capital efficiency and Techco transformation.