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Nokia appointed Justin Hotard, who led Intel’s Data Center and AI Group, as its permanent CEO successor to Pekka Lundmark. Announced on February 10, 2025, the transition took effect April 1. It also signaled a strategic bet: Nokia wanted to grow beyond carrier spending by selling more of the optical and IP networking that connects data centers and supports AI workloads.
What changed at Nokia?
Nokia said Lundmark had decided to step down after leading the company since 2020 and move to the next stage of his career. He left his executive roles on March 31, 2025; Hotard became president and CEO the next day. Nokia presented Hotard as Lundmark’s permanent successor, not as an interim chief. Nokia’s announcement described the change as a leadership transition, not a dismissal.
The company did not give a more specific personal reason for Lundmark’s decision. His departure came after a period in which Nokia worked to improve its competitiveness and profitability following its transformation away from mobile phones. The company still depended substantially on telecom operators, whose network investment can be uneven. Nokia was also looking for growth in markets linked to data centers, cloud computing and AI.
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Hotard’s relevant background was leading Intel’s Data Center and AI Group—not running all of Intel or serving as the company’s overall technology chief. That experience connected him to large enterprise and cloud customers and to infrastructure markets where computing growth depends on fast, reliable connectivity.
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Nokia’s opportunity is adjacent to the AI computing boom, not identical to it. The company sells network infrastructure: optical transport and networking, IP routing, data-center switching, fixed-access and mobile-network equipment, and related software and technology. These products move data within and between facilities and across communications networks. Nokia is not, on this evidence, turning into a maker of general-purpose servers or AI processors. Intel has historically focused on computing platforms and semiconductors; Nokia’s role is principally connectivity. NVIDIA is more closely associated with accelerated computing and AI platforms, while Ericsson competes with Nokia in telecom-network equipment.
The strategic logic is that AI workloads generate demand for more network capacity, including connections between data centers and within large computing environments. Nokia wants to capture some of that spending through optical and IP networks as well as its traditional operator business. It is a shift in emphasis and customer opportunity, not proof that Nokia’s entire business has become an AI business.
The strategy became an organizational change
In November 2025, Nokia announced a simplified operating model built around two primary segments: Network Infrastructure and Mobile Infrastructure. Network Infrastructure groups Optical Networks, IP Networks and Fixed Networks. The model took effect January 1, 2026, and Nokia said it was intended to sharpen accountability and align the organization with growth in AI and data centers. The strategy announcement makes clear that the CEO transition was followed by structural changes, rather than standing alone as a personnel move.
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Mobile Infrastructure remains a core business. Nokia’s strategy does not mean carrier networks no longer matter; it means the company is trying to build a larger growth engine in network infrastructure that can serve cloud and AI customers as well as telecom operators.
What the results show—and what they do not
Nokia’s 2026 disclosures show that AI and cloud customers had become a meaningful source of activity. In its Q1 report, the company said sales to those customers grew 49% year over year and represented 8% of group sales; it also reported about €1 billion in AI and cloud order intake. In Q2, Nokia reported 105% year-over-year growth in sales to AI and cloud customers and €2.8 billion in order intake from them. The company expected roughly half of the Q2 orders to convert to revenue over the following 12 months. Q1 results and Q2 and half-year results distinguish sales from orders.
That distinction matters: order intake is business booked, not revenue already recognized. Delivery timing, customer plans and Nokia’s ability to supply products affect when orders become sales. Nokia also said supply was the industry’s main constraint in Q2 and that it was investing in optical manufacturing capacity.
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- Fast, efficient processing power and a three day long battery to take you through the weekend.
- 50MP dual camera with advanced AI imaging.
- 6.52" teardrop display with a 90Hz refresh rate for a smoother and more fluid screen scrolling and video playback experience.
- Updates available to Android 14.
Across the group, Q2 net sales rose 9% year over year on a constant-currency basis (8% as reported). Network Infrastructure sales rose 12% on a constant-currency basis; Optical Networks grew 20% and IP Networks 16%. These results support the view that the network-infrastructure strategy is commercially relevant. They do not establish that Hotard personally caused the growth: broader AI investment, product cycles, customer orders, supply conditions and Nokia’s acquisition of Infinera may all contribute.
There is also an important difference between comparable and reported profitability. Nokia’s Q2 comparable operating margin was 9%, while its reported operating margin was negative 1.0%, reflecting, among other items, accelerated restructuring. The company’s full-year 2026 comparable operating-profit range was €2.1 billion to €2.6 billion. Nokia said the change from its prior €2.0 billion–€2.5 billion range was a technical adjustment following the reclassification of two businesses as discontinued operations; it described its operational outlook as unchanged.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How investors should read the appointment
The leadership change is best understood as a strategic bet on Nokia becoming a more important supplier of connectivity for AI and cloud infrastructure, while continuing to serve mobile and fixed-network markets. The later segment reorganization and reported growth in optical, IP, and AI/cloud activity are consistent with that direction. They are evidence of momentum, not a guarantee of durable growth or proof of cause and effect.
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Several risks remain. AI and cloud demand could be cyclical or concentrated among a small number of powerful customers, which may limit pricing power. Telecom operators’ investment cycles still affect Nokia’s established businesses. Fast-changing network architectures create execution risk, and restructuring can disrupt operations. Supply constraints may delay revenue conversion. Finally, rising order intake must turn into delivered products, recognized sales and sustainable margins to validate the opportunity.
Nokia’s Q2 report identified Justin Hotard as president and CEO, the latest dated leadership confirmation in the cited disclosures. Nokia scheduled its Q3 2026 results for October 22, 2026; those results would provide a further update on order conversion and demand.
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