Huawei's 4th Digital Economy Development Forum at MWC Barcelona 2026

On March 5, 2026, Huawei successfully hosted its 4th Digital Economy Development Forum during the MWC Barcelona 2026, uniting close to 100 creators of digital strategies, industry professionals, and representatives from various industrial associations across regions including Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa. The discussions centered around the vast opportunities for advancing the digital economy in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).

Shaping the Future with AI

The event was graced by an opening speech from David Wang, Huawei's Executive Director of the Board, who shared his insights on essential themes such as policy, infrastructure, and talent, all framed by the forum's central theme: "From Vision to Value for an Intelligent Future." Wang emphasized that AI is experiencing an unprecedented global surge, enabling its integrations into various sectors rapidly. According to IDC, by 2030, AI will contribute an immense $22.3 trillion to the global economy, signifying that the digital economy has transformed from simply focusing on "connectivity + data" to now embracing "AI + decision-making."

AI is fundamentally reshaping economic landscapes and restructuring global value chains. Drawing from Huawei's extensive expertise in the digital economy, Wang highlighted three pivotal areas that require global attention to achieve high-quality development of the digital economy.

1. Supportive Industrial Policies: For the digital economy to flourish, the world needs favorable industrial policies that bolster the digital economy while encouraging a deep integration of digital and real economies.

2. Future-Oriented Infrastructure: The backbone for a thriving digital economy is cutting-edge infrastructure. This infrastructure is crucial for the broad adoption of digital technologies and facilitates digital transformations across various sectors.

3. Sustainable Talent Ecosystems: The development of a multi-tiered, sustainable talent ecosystem stands as a vital strategic pillar for the long-term sustainability of the digital economy.

In his concluding remarks, Wang asserted, "The era of AI is here. Huawei will continue to collaborate with all of you to promote intelligent industries and build a solid foundation for a smart world. Together, let’s turn our vision into value and shape our intelligent future."

Enhancing Digital Infrastructure

Participants at the forum also delved deeper into the ongoing development of digital infrastructure. Joyce Liu, Huawei’s Director of ICT Marketing Operations, underscored that digital infrastructure is the cornerstone for industry growth in the AI era. Liu stressed the importance of advancing infrastructure across all fronts, including networks, energy, and computing power to achieve low-latency network connections.

This advancement is essential to prevent information silos from hindering AI development. Furthermore, she pointed out the need for the rapid establishment of green data centers to support computing growth while reducing carbon emissions.

Professor Rong Ke from the Tsinghua University further elaborated on the idea that data functions as an irreplaceable factor of production in the AI landscape. Only through enhancing digital infrastructure throughout the data generation, transmission, storage, and application processes can societies fully harness the value of data.

Consensus on Digital Economic Development

The forum achieved a significant consensus on pivotal themes related to the development of the digital economy. Nations are at varying stages of digital economic development and need to formulate AI development strategies tailored to their unique conditions to effectively facilitate intelligent transformation.

Since its inception in 2023, the Huawei Digital Economy Development Forum has evolved into a high-level platform for communication based on innovation and collaboration, focused on achieving global success together.

MWC Barcelona 2026 is scheduled to run from March 2 to 5 in Barcelona, Spain. During this prestigious event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at Booth 1H50 in Hall 1 of the Fira Gran Via. For more information, visit Huawei's Event Page.