The 28th AfricaCom 2025, the premier African communications exhibition, officially commenced on November 10 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in South Africa. As the continent’s largest event for the telecommunications, media, and technology industries, it attracts over 15,000 attendees each year.

This year, Huawei participated under the theme "Leading the Intelligent World. " At the summit, Huawei Cloud announced the launch of Huawei Cloud Stack 8.6 and a series of scenario-specific solutions for carriers in Sub-Saharan Africa. GlobalData, a leading data analytics and consulting firm, also released its latest industry white paper, recognizing Huawei Cloud as the Carrier Hybrid Cloud Leader in Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, Huawei Cloud hosted a dedicated roundtable to share its value proposition for the carrier industry.

Taylor Wu, President of Huawei HCS Solution Sales, officially launched Huawei Cloud Stack 8.6 in Sub-Saharan Africa. This new version, focused on the integration of cloud, data, and AI, introduces six core capabilities designed to significantly enhance operators' internal efficiency and drive growth in innovative business revenues. Huawei Cloud Stack aims to be the preferred on-premises cloud solution, uniquely tailored to support carriers in the intelligent era.

First, in terms of cloud foundation, Huawei Cloud Stack 8.6 now fully supports CloudMatrix384 supernodes, enabling carriers to access robust AI compute right from their on-premises data centers.

Second, in terms of data-AI convergence, Huawei Cloud Stack enables carriers to quickly develop and deploy custom AI models within their own data centers, facilitated by enhanced data engineering and model engineering capabilities.

Third, in terms of application modernization, a key focus is on databases. Huawei GaussDB, a distributed OLTP database, is fully compatible with nearly all legacy carrier systems, minimizing the need for costly application refactoring or redesign.

Beyond core cloud services, Huawei Cloud Stack offers a diverse portfolio of business solutions, such as cloud phone, cloud drive, and cloud PC, helping carriers unlock new revenue streams.

GlobalData In its latest industry white paper "Unleashing the Potential of Carrier-Grade Hybrid Cloud in Sub-Saharan Africa 2025", GlobalData highlights key insights into the region's evolving hybrid cloud landscape. According to their research, assessing both technology leadership and market performance metrics, Huawei Cloud secured the top position among carrier-grade hybrid cloud vendors in the region. Microsoft was positioned second and also recognized as a leader, followed by AWS and Google as Dominant Players. VMware and Oracle were considered Challengers.

On November 12, Huawei Cloud hosted a roundtable themed “Cloud & AI as Wings, Future in Sight” during AfricaCom 2025. The session brought together leading telecom carriers and industry analysts to discuss the opportunities and challenges of carrier digital transformation.

At the roundtable, Rex Lei, President of Huawei Cloud for Sub-Saharan Africa, noted that Huawei Cloud is truly the cloud that understands operators best. In Sub-Saharan Africa, our vision is to be operators’ preferred cloud strategic partner. Specifically, we support operators by empowering internal applications digitalization for cost optimization and efficiency, and enabling innovative digital services to drive new revenue growth.

The roundtable explored how carriers can leverage cloud, data, and AI to enhance operational efficiency while unlocking new digital growth opportunities. With these technologies becoming key enablers of telecom digital transformation, carriers are redefining cost structures, improving efficiency, and expanding beyond traditional connectivity to incubate innovative digital services.

CXOs from Tier-1 carriers in Sub-Saharan Africa shared their digital transformation journeys and cloud adoption practices. They highlighted key insights on leveraging cloud, data and AI to drive innovation, enhance efficiency, and accelerate business growth. Huawei Cloud is committed to empowering carriers to evolve into diversified digital service providers and achieve sustainable business success.