Telefónica opens up 5G network, edge computing for startups

Telefónica has launched a call for proposals for startups to develop solutions that take advantage of the possibilities offered by 5G and edge computing.

The initiative is part of the Wayra Activation Programme, which is promoted by Wayra, Telefónica's global open innovation hub, through which the company offers entrepreneurs free access to its technologies to test their solutions.

The call is addressed to startups that have at least one 5G and/or edge computing-based service, product or use case. The deadline for registration through the Wayra Activation Programme website is February 14th.

Selected startups will be part of the Wayra 5G/Edge Lab, a ground-breaking laboratory in Spain in the development of use cases in these technologies that is set to be launched in the coming weeks. The applications developed will be included in a showroom aimed at companies and will have investment opportunities from Wayra.

In the laboratory they will have access to Telefónica's 5G/Edge computing infrastructure to test their products and use cases. In addition, they will be able to take advantage of the company's other technical resources and its technological and commercial consulting. As part of this, they will also benefit from the advantages offered by the company's open innovation ecosystem in collaboration with multiple partners. All this in the heart of one of the world's largest telecommunications companies, plus the possibility of jointly developing new solutions and eventually marketing them.

"We want to open innovation again to collaboration with startups and bring them closer to the real world of business. Now that Telefónica has made a major deployment of both 5G and edge computing, it is time to give them access to these new technologies with an enormous transformational potential. We want to discover these possibilities with them and develop innovative applications together to continue accompanying companies and society in general in their digitalisation", says Miguel Arias, Global Director of Entrepreneurship at Telefónica.

5G and edge computing will accelerate the transformation of a world where more and more objects are being connected. The advantages these offer in terms of speed, low latency and high data capacity will spur the momentum and emergence of new business. Thus, these technologies will be key to the development of virtual and augmented reality solutions, gaming, self-driving cars, robotics, remote content creation, etc., and will transform sectors such as transport, industry 4.0, media, tourism and health, among others.

Telefónica is the leader in Spain in the deployment of 5G networks and edge computing, infrastructures interconnected with its powerful optical fibre network, the largest in Europe. The 5G network was switched on in Spain last September and now reaches over 80% of the population. The company also has three edge nodes in Barcelona, Madrid and Seville which, based on the capillarity of its network and the proximity of its central telephone exchanges to the end user, will facilitate the proliferation of cloud services and the Internet of Things (IoT).