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Monica

@monicapaolini.bsky.social
34 followers 22 following 114 posts

Opinionated and independent thinker, analyst and writer on telecoms at Senza Fili, host of Sparring Partners podcast

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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Deep tech in Europe: Is lack of ambition what holds Europe back? And are we underestimating the innovation and talent that is already there? Rupert Baines, serial entrepreneur, shares his views in this Sparring Partners podcast sparringpartners.substack.com/p/ambition-t...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Ambition to innovate: Deep tech in Europe and the UK. With Rupert Baines, serial entrepreneur
Europe and the UK have the talent and resources to innovate, and they can do better
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
6G has to be affordable and resilient, not just for the most advanced, high-GDP markets, but globally. Mike Short and I talk about how we can meet this challenge in this Sparring Partners. sparringpartners.substack.com/p/can-we-mak...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Can we make 6G (and 5G) globally affordable? With Mike Short at UK Telecoms Lab and AWTG
Reducing the cost of connectivity, while improving resilience and accessibility across markets with different requirements, is a bigger challenge for 6G than improving performance
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
I recorded this Punchback at DTW when Geoff Hollingworth was still at Rakuten Symphony. Since then, he has chosen that enough is enough and is contemplating what to do next. But what he says here hints at what may be coming sparringpartners.substack.com/p/the-bigges...
sparringpartners.substack.com
The biggest mistake in your carreer
Geoff Hollingworth, ex-Rakuten, tells us how he got into telecom but was not planning to
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
How are AI, competition from hyperscalers and geopolitical pressure changing what mobile operators do in Japan, Europe and the US? Watch the latest Sparring Partners with Itsuma Tanaka at DOCOMO Euro-Labs sparringpartners.substack.com/p/the-changi...
sparringpartners.substack.com
The changing role of mobile operators. With Itsuma Tanaka at DOCOMO Euro-Labs
AI, network complexity and new sources of competition drive evolution within MNOs in A mature market
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
This is truly a new topic in wireless, one I had not thought about until recently, and extremely fascinating: wireless on the moon. And we need to think about the spectrum you can use there and how to regulate it. Simon Fletcher enlightened us on this. sparringpartners.substack.com/p/shooting-t...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Shooting the moon: Why do we care about lunar spectrum
Simon Fletcher throws some light on a fascinating new (really new) topic
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
DTW in Copenhagen was a great place to catch up with people. The best part is at the end, when you reflect on what you have (or not have) seen or learned over a drink. In this case, with Simona Marinova and Ali Tizghadam at TELUS sparringpartners.substack.com/p/thoughts-f...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Thoughts from TELUS at DTW in Copenhagen
Relaxing at the end of the conference with Simona Marinova and Ali Tizghadam at TELUS
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Is the human spectrum the biggest spectrum challenge in telecoms? See this Punchback on why Faiq Khan at Rakuten thinks so. sparringpartners.substack.com/p/the-human-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
The human spectrum, loyalty and trust
Faiq Khan at Rakuten on some things we still need despite AI
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
We don’t know when or have disparate views on what it will look like, but AGI will come. How relevant is it going to be on telecoms? Watch what Sameh Yamani at VIAVI has to say on this sparringpartners.substack.com/p/should-we-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Should we care about AGI in telecoms?
Sameh Yamani at VIAVI thinks we should
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
We all know that indoor cellular coverage sucks, but now we have data to see how bad it really is. And it is not a pretty picture. Check out this podcast with Luke Kehoe at Ookla sparringpartners.substack.com/p/london-ber...
sparringpartners.substack.com
London, Berlin, New York: Where is indoor connectivity at its best and worst? With Luke Kehoe at Ookla
You know the answer: indoor cellular coverage is not good anywhere, but some cities are better than others
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Can we trust our networks? Silke Holtmanns thinks we have much to do still sparringpartners.substack.com/p/punchback-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Punchback | Can we trust our networks?
Silke Holtmanns, security expert, has plenty of work to do
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
How important is sovereignty in Europe? Listen to what Markus Kummerle has to say sparringpartners.substack.com/p/how-import...
sparringpartners.substack.com
How important is sovereignty in Europe?
Lister to what Markus Kummerle has to say
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Should we ban teenagers from using social media? Sean Kinney, a father and keen observer of tech evolution, has a somewhat heterodox view on this (as he often does) sparringpartners.substack.com/p/should-we-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Should we ban teenagers from using social media?
Sean Kinney, a father and keen observers of tech evolution, has a somewhat heterodox view on this (as he often does)
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Fertility rates are declining across the globe. Are smartphones and social media responsible for that? Is that a case of causation or correlation? This is what Alex Le Coq at Infovista thinks sparringpartners.substack.com/p/are-smartp...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Are smartphones causing a decline in fertility rates?
Hear what Alex De Coq, Infovista, has to say
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Can quantum make AI sustainable and scalable? Julio Gonzalez-Saenz at Vodafone thinks so. Listen to our latest Sparring Partners podcast to find out more. sparringpartners.substack.com/p/quantum-to...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Will AI help reduce the digital divide? sparringpartners.substack.com/p/will-ai-re...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Will AI reduce the digital divide?
With Per Kangru, VIAVI
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
What did @disruptivedean.bsky.social got wrong. Even the best of us get something wrong occasionally sparringpartners.substack.com/p/what-did-d...
sparringpartners.substack.com
What did Dean Bubley got wrong
Even the best of us get something wrong occasionally
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
AI is more than models and agents. It is about what you feed to them. In this Sparring Partners podcast with @paulpatras.bsky.social, Net AI and University of Edinburgh, we wade through the intricacies of data sharing and open standards in optimizing AI sparringpartners.substack.com/p/data-shari...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Data sharing and open interfaces for AI optimization
With Paul Patras at Net AI and the University of Edinburgh
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
This is a new section in my new Substack, Sparring Partners: In-person. Reclaiming in-person, real, social interactions from the dominant AI (and human) slop in which we are drowning. First meeting in London, August 5 sparringpartners.substack.com/p/introducin...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Introducing in-person meetings
Purely social meetings in London to talk about what excites or worries us, comment on the latest news, or gossip about those who are not there
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Is AI making content more boring, even when humans create it? See what Linda Hardesty at Fierce Network thinks about it after sitting through countless presentations at DTW in Copenhagen. (Luckily, I was able to avoid most of them) sparringpartners.substack.com/p/down-with-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Down with AI slop
The good and bad of AI
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Do your colleagues want to use AI? How should enterprises encourage them to do so? Check out my Punchback with Kailem Anderson at Ciena sparringpartners.substack.com/p/punchback-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Punchback with Kailem Anderson, Ciena
Do your colleagues want to use AI?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Chris Lewis and I drew on our 70 combined years of analyst experience to talk about our hopes and fears for the future of telecoms, and why mobile operators may want to be like FIFA but are unlikely to succeed. And that's a good thing. sparringpartners.substack.com/p/operators-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Operators are not like FIFA. Uncut analyst views from Chris Lewis and Monica Paolini
The present and future of telco. Hopes and fears from two analysts who spent a total of seven decades in the industry
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
This was the first Punchback ever recorded, the day before DTW, at the Nokia Analyst event in Copenhagen. Thanks to Andy Burrell for patiently going through the learning process of recording a Punchback sparringpartners.substack.com/p/punchback-...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
At DTW, I recorded a #Punchback with Yue Wang at China Telecom Global on her winning Catalyst project, on a robotic dog to assist blind people. Congratulations to Yue. She has the honor of being the first Punchback guest #SparringPartners on Substack sparringpartners.substack.com/p/and-the-wi...
sparringpartners.substack.com
And the winner is...
Punchback with Yue Wang, China Telecom, a Catalyst winner at DTW26 in Copenhagen
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
In case you wonder what Random is at Sparring Partners (I just posted the first Random), here I explain it all: sparringpartners.substack.com/p/welcome-to...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Welcome to Random
What is Random about?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Sparring Partners Random vlog with my impressions (not entirely positive, although I love the conference) on TM Forum's DTW Ignite in Copenhagen, and some (more positive) observations on the public transportation app there sparringpartners.substack.com/p/reflection...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Reflections on DTW from Copenhagen
Plus the best transportation app
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Small cells have come of age. They are no longer a rebellious teenager on the fringe. Sparring Partners podcast with Simon Fletcher, Small Cell Forum "Small cell’s new definition includes all non-macro infrastructure" Watch it all at: sparringpartners.substack.com/p/small-cell...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Why have we not nailed down monetization in telecoms? Check out what Faiq Khan at Rakuten Symphony thinks about it. Spoiler: let's talk less about technology and more about loyalty sparringpartners.substack.com/p/customers-...
sparringpartners.substack.com
Customers, not technologies, drive telco monetization. With Faiq Khan at Rakuten Symphony
What can telcos learn from coffee shops and airlines to capture customer loyalty?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Finally, I got it done! My Sparring Partners’ Substack is now live. It is a direct, unfiltered playground for the ideas and debates on telecom and AI that go beyond my Senza Fili analyst reports and presentations. It is free to join and all content is free. open.substack.com/pub/sparring...
open.substack.com
Welcome to Sparring Partners:
Unfiltered conversation in an experimental playground
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
A new #SparringPartners with Azita Arvani, inspiring as always and this time about how to introduce AI in our networks. Is AI a tool? Should we be worried that it is taking over, without delivering the cost savings and performance improvements we expect? senzafili.com/is-ai-taking...
senzafili.com
Is AI taking over telecoms? Or is it just a tool? With Azita Arvani – Senza Fili
How should we add AI to telecom networks to keep innovating, but without rushing into it?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
AIOps sets the foundation for a new way to operate networks. AI will not only increase the efficiency and speed of automation, but also can generate insights and suggest processes that humans are not able to come up with: www.linkedin.com/posts/monica...
linkedin.com
AIOps to the rescue: AI-driven automation is more than about faster and cheaper networks | Monica Paolini
AIOps is more than automation. It is setting the foundation for a new way to operate networks. AI will not only increase the efficiency and speed of automation, but in the long term, AI can generate i...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
How can we keep AI safe and ethical, mitigate risks and misuse, without stifling innovation? This is what Chris Jefferson at Advai and I talked about in this podcast on AI sovereignty and much more: senzafili.com/why-does-sov...
senzafili.com
Why does sovereign AI matter in telecoms? With Chris Jefferson at Advai – Senza Fili
How to keep AI safe and ethical, mitigate risks and misuse, without stifling innovation
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
All laptops have Wi-Fi, but few have cellular connectivity (without tethering). Why is that? Is this going to change? In the latest Sparring Partners, I talked about this with Giovanni Severini, at Microsoft: senzafili.com/why-not-have...
senzafili.com
Why not have 5G on laptops? With Giovanni Severini at Microsoft – Senza Fili
All laptops have Wi-Fi, and yet not many have 5G connectivity. Why is it so?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
In the latest Sparring Partners, I talked to Bart Giordano at RUCKUS Networks about the evolution of Wi-Fi in the enterprise, and how enterprises navigate and integrate multiple technologies, including CBRS, within their private networks: senzafili.com/wi-fi-in-the...
senzafili.com
Wi-Fi in the enterprise. With Bart Giordano, Ruckus Networks – Senza Fili
How is the role of Wi-Fi changing in the enterprise
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
Global standards in telecoms mean that you can use phones and all devices wherever you go. Should we expect a fragmentation of standards from geopolitical tensions? Sebastian Barros is the latest guest on the #SparringPartners podcast: senzafili.com/are-global-s...
senzafili.com
Are global standards under threat from geopolitical tensions? With Sebastian Barros, Circles – Senza Fili
How are the current geopolitical tensions going to affect standardization, innovation and openness?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
Latest Sparring Partners with Sarah Aberg is on how DePIN and blockchain can be used for network infrastructure sharing by Helium and others and the need to have solid regulation to encourage adoption by small network operators in digital-divide & indoor environments: senzafili.com/blockchain-a...
senzafili.com
Blockchain and DePIN for building and sharing infrastructure. With Sarah Aberg, Helium – Senza Fili
A new way to share network infrastructure that sets the right incentives for service providers and infrastructure owners
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
Serendipity is about letting things happen. But to make the best out of it, you can make serendipity happen, on purpose, David Cleevely tells us, as we talked about his new book, Serendipity: It Doesn't Happen by Accident lnkd.in/eqiMgQcU www.linkedin.com/events/seren...
linkedin.com
Serendipity is not an accident. With David Cleevely | LinkedIn
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
The latest Sparring Partners is on digital twins. Who are they? What do they do? How can they help us? Chris Murphy at VIAVI Solutions and I explore the digital-twin land to explore what we can realistically accomplish today and in the long term www.linkedin.com/events/sparr...
linkedin.com
Sparring Partners | The life of a digital twin. With Chris Murphy, VIAVI | LinkedIn
Digital twins offer us an unprecedented opportunity to explore alternative worlds or scenarios where things are similar to the real ones but differ from them in subtle ways, allowing us to see what th...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
We all use Wi-Fi at home. What is talked about less is that the Wi-Fi connection is getting better and more secure. In the latest Sparring Partners, Tiago Rodrigues, WBA, talks about what to get the word out and make Wi-Fi better at home: senzafili.com/home-wi-fi-g...
senzafili.com
Home Wi-Fi gets better and more secure. With Tiago Rodrigues, WBA – Senza Fili
How can we get home Wi-Fi users to get the best out of Wi-Fi?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 07/07/2025
A city is smart only if its services, both digital and physical, are accessible to everybody. How can we achieve this goal? Chris Lewis and I spoke with ‪@ian-frazer.bsky.social‬, Director at NewWayNetworks in our latest #Inclusively podcast senzafili.com/inclusively_...
senzafili.com
Inclusively in Telecom
How can we make telecom more inclusive and diverse?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
How can we make serendipity happen? And why should we do that? In this #SparringPartners, David Cleevely talks about how serendipity can foster innovation more than (or preferably, in addition to) money. senzafili.com/serendipity-... Get David's book at www.conductingserendipity.com
senzafili.com
Serendipity is not an accident. With David Cleevely – Senza Fili
How do can we create the right environment for innovation? Serendipity can help, but we need to push for it
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
Harpreet Geekee at Shabodi shared his experience in working with enterprises and understanding how APIs can create a stronger bound between CSPs and enterprises which will benefit both in terms of efficiency, profitability, and functionality. senzafili.com/network-apis...
senzafili.com
Network APIs: A path for enterprise transformation and CSP monetization. With Harpreet Geekee at Shabodi – Senza Fili
A conversation on how APIs can drive digital transformation and revenues with Harpreet Geekee at Shabodi
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
APIs are getting real. In this podcast with Ron Porter and Enri-K Salazar at Amdocs, we talked about how service providers have to move beyond network function exposure to monetize APIs: senzafili.com/commercializ...
senzafili.com
Commercializing APIs – Taking them to the next level. With Ron Porter and Enri-k Salazar at Amdocs – Senza Fili
A conversation with Ron Porter and Enri-K Salazar at Amdocs on how to productize APIs to generate new revenues
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
Another excellent #Inclusively episode that I missed! Chris Lewis hosted Lord Holmes, Member of the UK House of Lords and organizer of the London 2012 Paralympics. A gripping conversation on what we can get technology to do for the disabled, if only we listen to them senzafili.com/inclusively_...
senzafili.com
Inclusively in Telecom
How can we make telecom more inclusive and diverse?
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
What is like to be a digital twin? And how can you be a useful one? Check out the latest Sparring Partners with Chris Murphy at VIAVI Solutions, who has been working on AI and automation for a long time and now moved hands-on to digital twins senzafili.com/the-life-of-...
senzafili.com
The life of a digital twin. With Chris Murphy, VIAVI Solutions – Senza Fili
How do we get digital twins to work in real networks?
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Reposted by Monica
Anand Pandian @anandian.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
Hi everyone, my new book, SOMETHING BETWEEN US, is now available via Stanford University Press, at a 20% discount with code PANDIAN20. For the last eight years, I've been wrestling as an anthropologist with where we've landed in the United States. www.sup.org/books/anthro...
sup.org
Something Between Us | Stanford University Press
An anthropologist's quest to understand the deep social and political divides in American society, and the everyday strategies that can overcome them.
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
Sparring Partners with Irina Cotanis on the evolution of user experience testing, monitoring and optimizing, in the era of 5G, AI and automation. There is more work to be done, but we have more tools to do it and to get more efficiency out of our networks: senzafili.com/how-should-w...
senzafili.com
How should we test for user experience? With Irina Cotanis – Senza Fili
The evolution of testing in networks with more complexity, device types, services, and with more pressure to optimize performance
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 21/05/2025
One more LinkedIn live Sparring Partners on the future of monetization, with Joel Brand at Marvell Technology. How do we manage innovation, the introduction of new technologies, and the growth expectations in a mature industry? lnkd.in/eWgcG2d8
lnkd.in
Growing pains in telecoms. With Joel Brand, Marvell | LinkedIn
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 19/05/2025
Most people predict that AI will generate a huge surge in traffic. Sean Kinney and I beg to differ. We both are huge supporters of all thing AI and heavy users of the technology. We are not deniers, we are realists 🙃. senzafili.com/will-ai-incr... Listen to our conversation, tell us if you agree
senzafili.com
Will AI increase traffic? With Sean Kinney, RCR Wireless News – Senza Fili
…and the answer is: not really
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
One of my first Sparring Partners on network automation was with Mansoor Hanif six years ago. What were we thinking back then? How has that changed over the last six years? senzafili.podbean.com/e/the-long-t...
senzafili.podbean.com
The long-term view on automation. With Mansoor Hanif | Senza Fili Sparring Partners
We usually look at the present or the future of technologies. In this podcast with Mansoor Hanif, Independent Executive Advisor, we took a look at the past. What were the challenges for network automa...
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Monica @monicapaolini.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
Can data sharing make AI models work better? The answer is yes, the question is how. I talked to @paulpatras.bsky.social (@netaitech.bsky.social and U of Edinburgh) on his work with ARIA in the UK to share data and make operators and vendors comfortable with sharing: senzafili.com/data-sharing...
senzafili.com
Data sharing to optimize AI performance. With Paul Patras, Net AI and the University of Edinburgh – Senza Fili
How can you make your AI models work better? Sharing data helps
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