Deutsche Telekom reports up to 65% energy savings in its live 5G Core network, validating a full-stack energy efficiency model developed with support from Mavenir. The operator achieved the gains through cloud-native software, energy-aware automation, and dynamic scaling of compute and hardware resources. The initiative forms part of Deutsche Telekom’s broader effort to redesign its core architecture for lower power consumption and reduced CO₂ emissions, targeting what it describes as a “zero bit & zero watt” core.
The project integrates Mavenir’s cloud-native 5G Core software into Deutsche Telekom’s Horizontal TelCo Cloud architecture, a unified platform designed to replace siloed legacy systems with a standardized, containerized infrastructure. The architecture enables dynamic software and hardware scaling across all core layers, allowing the operator to optimize energy usage in real time while maintaining performance. Deutsche Telekom positions the blueprint as a scalable framework for energy-aware automation across its entire core network footprint.
Mavenir also supports Deutsche Telekom’s transition toward AI-driven resource management, Kubernetes platform evolution, and telecom-specific Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs). The companies plan to highlight the architecture and its automation model at Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona. Deutsche Telekom’s core platform already supports converged 4G/5G packet core functions, network slicing, and 5G standalone services including live video production, mobile gaming, and RedCap applications.
• Up to 65% energy savings validated in live 5G Core network
• Full Stack Energy Efficiency model spans software, hardware, and automation layers
• Horizontal TelCo Cloud replaces siloed systems with shared, cloud-native platform
• Dynamic scaling enables real-time energy optimization across the core
• AI-driven resource management and Kubernetes-based orchestration central to design
• Architecture supports 4G/5G converged packet core and 5G SA services
Christoph Hilz, Group SVP Core Network & Services of Deutsche Telekom, said: “Energy efficiency is a core design principle for our networks. This achievement shows how software-driven intelligence, cloud-native architecture, and hardware optimization combine to deliver measurable impact. Mavenir’s cloud-native core as part of DT’s Horizontal Telco Cloud Architecture were instrumental in enabling our full stack energy management approach. In collaboration with several partners including Mavenir, Telekom has developed a concept that reduces energy consumption across all layers of the network. We are rethinking the cloud architecture of the core network, creating a blueprint for the entire telecommunications industry.”
🌐 Analysis: Energy consumption in mobile core networks has become a critical operational and ESG metric as operators expand 5G standalone deployments and prepare for AI-native workloads. Deutsche Telekom’s architecture-led approach aligns with broader industry efforts by Tier 1 operators to modernize telco cloud stacks using Kubernetes, automation, and AI-driven orchestration to reduce OpEx and carbon intensity. Mavenir continues to position itself as a cloud-native core challenger alongside vendors such as Nokia and Ericsson, emphasizing automation and AI-native design as differentiation points.
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