Nokia has reported a strong second quarter performance for 2026, posting a nine per cent increase in net sales, driven by rising global demand for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud infrastructure.
The Finnish technology company disclosed this in its second quarter and half-year financial results released on Thursday.
It said second quarter net sales increased by eight per cent on a reported basis and nine per cent at constant currency.
“Revenue from AI and cloud customers surged by 105 per cent year-on-year, reflecting increased investment by telecommunications operators, enterprises and hyperscale cloud providers in AI infrastructure,” the organisation said.
The report showed that Network Infrastructure remained Nokia’s strongest-performing business, with net sales rising by 12 per cent at constant currency.
It said Optical Networks recorded a 20 per cent increase in sales, while IP Networks grew by 16 per cent year-on-year.
The company attributed the performance to strong demand for high-capacity connectivity and internet infrastructure supporting AI-driven applications.
Nokia also reported growth in Mobile Networks, supported by an improved product mix, while AI and cloud order intake reached 2.8 billion euros during the quarter.
It said sales to AI and cloud customers more than doubled compared with the same period in 2025, adding that about half of the orders were expected to be recognised as revenue over the next 12 months.
According to the company, strong customer demand and ongoing supply constraints encouraged clients to place longer-term orders.
The report showed that comparable gross margin rose by 70 basis points to 46.0 per cent, while reported gross margin increased by 60 basis points to 44.6 per cent.
It added that comparable operating margin also improved by 70 basis points to 9.0 per cent.
Nokia, however, reported that operating margin declined to minus 1.0 per cent due to the accelerated pace of the company’s restructuring programme.
Nokia reported comparable diluted earnings per share of 0.07 euros, while reported diluted earnings per share stood at 0.00 euros.
The company said an accounting adjustment reduced its comparable operating profit guidance by 0.1 billion euros but had no impact on its underlying business performance.
It maintained its full-year 2026 outlook, projecting comparable operating profit of between 2.1 billion euros and 2.6 billion euros.
Commenting on the results, Nokia’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Justin Hotard, said the company’s strategy was yielding results as it capitalised on opportunities created by the growing AI market.
“The second quarter demonstrates that our strategy is delivering results. Since setting out our plan late last year, Team Nokia has focused on maximising opportunities in the AI supercycle.
“We enter the second half of the year with strong momentum and remain on track to deliver somewhat above the midpoint of our comparable operating profit guidance,” he said.
Hotard said Nokia recently launched what it described as the industry’s first commercial Artificial Intelligence Radio Access Network (AI-RAN) platform to help mobile operators improve network performance using AI.
According to him, the platform is expected to deliver more than 100 per cent gains in spectral efficiency by 2028, enabling operators to transmit significantly more data over existing spectrum while providing a software upgrade path from 5G to 6G.
Spectral efficiency refers to the amount of data that can be transmitted over a given amount of radio spectrum.
