MWC 2026 opens in Barcelona, spotlighting 'The IQ Era'

The 2026 Mobile World Congress (MWC) opened on Monday in Barcelona, Spain, under the theme "The IQ Era", with a focus on intelligent infrastructure, AI connectivity and integration, enterprise-level AI applications, AI ecosystem collaboration, inclusive technology and innovation-driven transformation.

Marking the 20th anniversary of the event's presence in Barcelona, this year's MWC has drawn around 2,900 exhibitors, sponsors and partners.

More than 1,200 speakers are taking part in discussions, with country and regional pavilions and technology-themed exhibition areas representing over 100 countries and regions.

Participants include global mobile network operators, device manufacturers and technology firms.

Amid the bustling exhibition halls, attendees highlighted the pervasive impact of artificial intelligence on both personal routines and professional workflows.

"The topic I think that really impressed is the AI influence because I use it every day," said a visitor.

"AI is, I mean, more and more getting into daily life for everybody. AI is reshaping the way people work. It increases productivity," said another visitor.

Network capabilities centering around AI applications also dominated discussions, where many companies unveiled their visions for 6G technology.

"This new spectrum band will adopt ultra-massive antenna arrays and energy-efficient, lightweight engineering solutions to meet operators' needs, bridging the current 5G era and the coming 6G," said Zhao Dong, vice president of Huawei's wireless networking product line and the company's chief marketing officer.

A China Pavilion has been set up at the congress for the first time, featuring major Chinese companies including China Mobile, China Unicom, Huawei, ZTE, Honor and Xiaomi, showcasing their latest advancements in mobile communications and AI technologies.

Industry insiders believe that the collective appearance of Chinese enterprises is injecting new impetus for competition and cooperation into the global communication industry.

I'm seeing that Chinese company has made a lot of progress and they are competing very well in every technology field, especially in AI. And we've seen a lot of AI platforms, AI generative devices," said Mohamed Ben Amor, secretary-general of the Arab ICT Organization.

MWC 2026 opens in Barcelona, spotlighting 'The IQ Era'

As the diplomatic engagement between the United States and Iran continues despite a faltering ceasefire, a former commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has said that Iran is prepared to use military power to break the U.S. maritime blockade should the negotiations collapse or run on too long.

Mohsen Rezaee, who also currently serves as a member of the Iranian Expediency Discernment Council, struck a confident tone about Iran's current trajectory in an exclusive interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Tehran on Wednesday.

He said the country has withstood over two decades of crippling sanctions and continued to move forward.

"We have been under sanctions for more than 20 years. The number of sanctions likely exceeds 2,000, targeting individuals, enterprises, corporations, ships, insurance companies, and even foreign countries that interacted with us. However, we have managed to find solutions to neutralize these sanctions, and we will continue to do so moving forward," he said.

He said Iran aims to ease the sanctions burden through talks with the U.S., although at the same time, he said, Iran is ready to shift to a military response if the path to a peaceful resolution closes.

"Furthermore, we will compel the U.S. to lift these sanctions. We will force the U.S. to end the maritime blockade -- either through negotiations or, should they resist, through direct action and we will attack U.S. warships. Therefore, despite all the pressures, the future of our economy is bright and promising, while the future of the US economy is bleak," he said.

While any new war against Iran would be a dead end, the best way out for the U.S. is to continue talks, according to the senior official.

"We have prepared ourselves so that if the maritime blockade continues beyond a certain timeframe, we will launch an attack and break the blockade. The Americans have no choice but to negotiate. Continuing this war is a journey into a very dark tunnel for the United States. The more America chooses to fight, the deeper it enters a tunnel with no end. Yet for us, the path is perfectly clear. America is moving toward us in the dark, while we are monitoring their every move," he said.

Former IRGC chief says Iran ready to break U.S. naval blockade by force if talks fail