HERMANUS, CAPE TOWN – In an address at the SATNAC 2025 conference, Openserve’s Chief Network Officer Robert Jorge laid out a critical imperative for the telecoms industry: the future belongs to networks that are not just bigger, but smarter, greener, and inherently more agile.
The core message was clear: to meet explosive connectivity demands and power technologies like AI and 6G, the industry must accelerate its journey from human-managed systems to intelligent, self-governing autonomous networks.
Speaking on the topic “Scaling Open-Access Fibre to Build a Connected Future,” Jorge grounded his presentation in the tangible reality of operating South Africa’s largest wholesale open-access network, Openserve, a platform he described as “the fabric of the digital economy.”
The Foundation: Open Access as a Catalyst
Jorge began by reaffirming the transformative power of the open-access model, a philosophy central to Openserve’s mission.
“An open access network fundamentally redefines the traditional telecommunications model,” he stated.“By contrast, an open access model separates network ownership from service delivery, allowing multiple service providers to operate on the same infrastructure… This creates a competitive environment where consumers benefit from greater choice, improved pricing, and enhanced service quality.”
He directly linked this model to broader societal goals, noting it “lowers the barriers for small operators, fostering inclusivity and economic growth as businesses and communities become more connected.”
Openserve’s vast, shared infrastructure – spanning 8 million premises, over 1,430 central offices, and fiber presence in all 226 South African municipalities – generates a staggering 120 million network events monthly.
It is this very scale, Jorge argued, that makes the leap to autonomy not just an ideal, but a necessity.
The Autonomous Network Imperative
Defining an autonomous network as “an intelligent, self-governing system that can dynamically manage and optimise themselves with minimal to no human intervention,” Jorge outlined its compelling business drivers: feasible scalability, faster service delivery, cost reduction, and improved reliability.
“Autonomous networks enable… advanced technologies like 5G, 6G, edge computing and AI, which all require ultra-low latency resilient networks,” he emphasised.
Jorge presented the TM Forum’s framework of autonomy levels, from Level 0 (fully manual) to Level 5 (fully autonomous).
Crucially, he identified the industry’s current battleground: the transition from Level 2, where “humans drive operations assisted by systems,” to Level 3, where “the system drives operations, and the human stands by and intervenes when necessary.”
“This is a big shift and one that would need to be deliberate to execute on,” Jorge cautioned.
“Moving from level 2 to level 3 represents one of the most important transitions for operators that are looking to scale.”
The Triple Challenge: Simplification, Data, and Culture
This journey is fraught with hurdles, especially for brownfield networks like Openserve’s, built over decades.
Jorge pinpointed three top challenges:
- Network Simplification: “Legacy systems… makes this a much more complex task to achieve.”
- Data Availability & Quality: “Availability of clean data… is a barrier at this stage in the migration.”
- Cultural and Organizational Resistance: “There is a perception of losing control of your network… There’s still not enough trust in artificial intelligence… It’s a human thing of letting go.”
He elaborated on this human element with relatable precision: “You need to stand by and watch the network run on its own, Bristol on its own when there’s a network break, and this happens all the time, and you need to stand by and make sure.”
The Path Forward: Pragmatic and Sustainable
Despite the challenges, Jorge presented a clear, pragmatic roadmap.
The strategy involves focused investment in data governance, starting with high-value scenarios like fault or change management in specific domains (e.g., the IP layer), rather than attempting a full-network migration overnight.
Importantly, he tied the entire autonomous evolution directly to sustainability, a key business metric now rivaling traditional costs.
“Autonomous networks are networks that think green,” Jorge declared.
“Globally, we have seen operators shift their primary focus from cost per bit towards power per bit, or kilowatt per bit.
“Autonomous networks amplifies energy, optimisation and efficiency, making carbon neutrality more feasible, even at a larger scale.”
He cited Openserve’s own 30% reduction in annual power consumption (down to 334 gigawatt-hours) over three years as proof, achieved through network consolidation and simplification – the very same steps that enable autonomy.
A Future-Ready Conclusion
The goal is not automation for its own sake, but to build resilient, adaptable infrastructure for an uncertain future.
“Sustainable scalability is good business,” he concluded.
“It allows operators to meet rapidly evolving demands of customers in an increasing complex environment.
“The only true way to be future-ready is to build in the agility required to scale.”
His presentation painted a picture of a network future that is inherently collaborative (through open access), intelligently autonomous (driven by data and AI), and fundamentally sustainable.
For Openserve, this is not speculative futurism but an active, deliberate migration, where every step toward simplification and smarter control is a step toward a more connected, inclusive, and resilient digital future for all.
