Nokia has joined hands with Bharti Airtel to make the telecom operator’s network capabilities available to developers and enterprises across India.

The collaboration, announced through a Nokia press release, is aimed at opening Airtel’s pan-India network for third-party innovation via Nokia’s Network as Code platform equipped with a dedicated developer portal.

The partnership paves the way for developers and businesses to access Airtel’s network functions through APIs on a subscription basis, enabling them to build advanced digital solutions using 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), and edge computing. This will not only help developers accelerate new product creation but also allow Airtel to tap into fresh revenue streams from its network infrastructure. This is an ANI report.

The rollout follows successful trials and will gradually extend to a broader developer ecosystem, including system integrators and enterprises. With Nokia’s platform, developers can seamlessly integrate network functions without needing extensive knowledge of telecom technology, reflecting a wider industry movement where network APIs are increasingly emerging as a key driver of innovation and monetisation.

Sharat Sinha, CEO of Airtel Business, said the partnership reflects the company’s continued effort to bring the ecosystem together for future-ready collaborations. “At Airtel, we are always working toward bringing the ecosystem together to collaborate for future-ready innovations. In line with this commitment, we are happy to partner with Nokia today for network APIs and enable the ecosystem to leverage our network capabilities for automation and building secure and innovative digital services,” he said.

For Nokia, the collaboration marks a significant milestone in its global Network as Code initiative, which aims to simplify network access for developers. Arvind Khurana, Head of Cloud and Network Services, India, Nokia, said, “Our partnership with Airtel represents a significant step in expanding the Network as Code ecosystem. It demonstrates our commitment to helping telecommunications providers monetize their network investments while fostering innovation in the developer community.”

Nokia noted that the global Network as Code ecosystem has now grown to more than 60 partners, including telecom operators, AI and data centre companies, CPaaS providers, system integrators and vertical software vendors, signalling strong momentum in the push toward API-driven network innovation.