The collaboration is to “assess the impact of large-scale, massive use of AI on telecommunications networks worldwide” and includes joint R&D
Orange announced it is joining forces with Mistral AI to “assess the impact of large-scale, massive use of AI on telecommunications networks worldwide”. The two intend to “define technological roadmaps to build the networks of tomorrow and address challenges related to connectivity and GPU availability. The goal is to ensure all customers have smooth and efficient access to advanced AI solutions,” the press statement says.
The telco group’s CTO office apparently thought long and hard in 2024 about the changes needed to its network architectures to accommodate applications driven by AI. It seems the conclusion is working closely with Mistral AI.
Omnimodal AI
The statement explains, “2025 marks the advent of omnimodal AI – an AI that integrates and analyses diverse data (voice, data, images, etc) to enrich user interaction. In this context, Orange’s infrastructures will evolve to guarantee remarkable network quality and minimal latency, close to real time. This paves the way for agentic AI, enabling instant interactions and decisions.”
In addition to jointly undertaking R&D, Orange plans to integrate Mistral AI’s technologies into its infrastructure: for example, Orange will optimise intelligent traffic management in its networks, along with predictive maintenance solutions and repairs. The addition of Mistral AI is expected to “generate unprecedented gains in efficiency and competitiveness.”
Orange Business, the enterprise services unit, will also integrate Mistral AI applications into the services it offers, such as AI assistant Le Chat Pro (see logo above) and GenAI model Codestral.
Orange Group’s CEO, Christel Heydemann, outlined the ambitious scope of the operator’s tie-up with Mistal AI: “By joining forces with Mistral AI, we are taking a major step towards establishing Europe as a global leader in AI. This collaboration is unprecedented as it fully incorporates the research dimension. It will promote the massive adoption of AI and enable its full potential through high-quality networks, tailored for real-time conversations.
“Together, we firmly believe that generative AI can positively transform businesses when technology and trust come together.”
Significant milestones?
Arthur Mensch, CEO of Mistral AI, added, “This strategic collaboration aims to integrate AI into Orange’s operations, services and R&D initiatives. This marks a significant milestone in the deployment of AI and in preparing for the growing adoption of this transformative technology.”
Earlier this week Mistral AI announced it would collaborate with Iliad, the French CSP that competes against Orange in several markets, including France. Iliad’s French opco, which trades under the Free brand, is to bundle Le Chat Pro into all its mobile service offers, free for a year.
Mistral AI has also signed a partnership deal with Cisco to develop an AI agent for enterprises, having agreed to collaborate with the French AI firm last summer. Liz Centoni, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Experience Officer at Cisco, said. “Mistral AI is a critical partner for Cisco Customer Experience (CX) as we build towards an Agentic-AI-Led future”.