A guide to MWC’s
keynotes


Over the years, some of the biggest names in tech and telecoms have taken centre stage at MWC Barcelona. Here we preview this year’s eight keynote sessions, which set the industry agenda for the next 12 months.

Keynote 1: Limitless Intelligent Connectivity: Possibilities and Responsibilities (9am Monday)


Operator CEOs take centre stage at the opening keynote as Telefonica’s Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete Lopez, Veon’s Ursula Burns, NTT Docomo’s Kazuhiro Yoshizawa and Orange’s Stephane Richard join GSMA director general Mats Granryd to discuss the challenges, possibilities and responsibilities of today’s service providers.

Keynote 2: Industry X Transformation (12.15pm Monday)


With wireless connectivity revolutionising a whole host of industries, this session brings together major figures from huge vertical industries to discuss future growth areas. Features Vas Narasimhan, CEO of pharma giant Novartis; and president of media company ViacomCBS, Bob Bakish.

Keynote 3: 5G Pioneers (2.30pm Monday)


As the first wave of 5G sweeps across several major markets, AT&T Business CEO Anne Chow and Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf take the stage to discuss progress so far and prospects for the network technology.

Keynote 4: Our Digital Society (4.45pm Monday)


The final session of day one covers a wide array of topics under the banner of the digital society including security, privacy and ensuring inclusivity in this modern world. Speaking are Kaspersky CEO Eugene Kaspersky, European Commission commissioner for internal market and services Thierry Breton and Own Your Data Foundation co-founder Brittany Kaiser.

Keynote 5: Delivering Industry X (9am Tuesday)


Real-world examples of next generation industrial applications grab the headline slots at the opening of day two with inspirational sector analysis from Nokia CEO Rajeev Suri, Airbus digital transformation officer Marc Fontaine, Tech Mahindra CEO CP Gurnani and Red Hat CEO Jim Whitehurst.

Keynote 6: Diversity – An Economic Driver (12.15pm Tuesday)


Attention moves to the positive business impact brought about by diversity. FC Barcelona Femeni legal tech entrepreneur director Maria Teixidor i Jufresa joins president and chief content officer of entertainment website Refinery29 Amy Emmerich; CEO of satellite company Swarm Sara Spangelo; CEO of SaaS provider Pipeline, Katica Roy; and Cherie Blair Foundation for Women founder Cherie Blair

Keynote 7: 5G and the Cloud: Changing Lives (9am Wednesday)


Wednesday’s packed keynote session provides expert views on the impact of 5G on healthcare provision, alongside other important use cases for advanced network technology. Speakers include Mobile World Capital Barcelona CEO Carlos Grau; Hospital Clinic of Barcelona head of gastronomical surgery service Dr Antonio de Lacy; AIS CEO Rodrigo Menchaca, Verb Surgical CEO Kurt Azarbarzin; VMware CEO Pat Gelsinger; and Mercy Ships president Rosa Whitaker. The session ends with operator CTOs discussing cloud technology with Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian, featuring Vodafone Group’s Johan Wibergh, Telecom Italia’s Michele Gamberini and Telefonica’s Enrique Blanco.

Keynote 8: The Next Innovators (9.30am Thursday)


The keynote programme ends with a look at some of the business areas which could provide the headline speakers for MWC 2030. Includes a fireside chat between J2C ventures’ CEO John Chambers and CTO Yvette Kanouff discussing the start-up ecosystem, and presentations from youth advocate Adora Svitak and Neuroelectrics CEO Ana Maiques.


*All information correct as of 10/2/20