Nokia Oyj shares rose on Monday after the company expanded its partnership with Google Cloud, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., to integrate Gemini-powered AI agents into Nokia’s Assurance Center. The collaboration aims to help telecom providers automate network operations, cut costs, and resolve service issues faster. By leveraging Google Cloud's Agent Development Kit and Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, Nokia is developing six specialized agents designed to enhance network automation and operational efficiency. Nokia shares were trading up 5.34% at $14.21 at the time of publication on Monday.

Gemini Agents for Network Automation

The expanded partnership focuses on embedding AI agents into Nokia’s network infrastructure to support event triage, anomaly detection, KPI analysis, and remediation recommendations. These agents also handle orchestration and natural-language dashboard creation. The system is designed to reduce network troubleshooting times by 50% to 80% by filtering false alarms, identifying root causes, and recommending corrective actions.

Nokia’s "glass box autonomy" approach ensures engineers retain control over critical decisions while enabling closed-loop automation in approved, low-risk scenarios. The router and event triage agents are already functional.

Deployment and Broader AI Strategy

Nokia plans to launch the initial certified agent pack on Google Cloud Marketplace in September 2026. Additional agents will roll out from late 2026 through 2027 across Nokia’s broader network software portfolio. This initiative complements Nokia’s broader AI and 5G strategy, which includes adding an agentic AI framework to its Network Services Platform by the end of 2026 and expanding 5G coverage in Indonesia through a partnership with Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison. Nokia is also collaborating with NVIDIA Corp. on AI Grid and AI-RAN, with field trials planned by the end of 2026.

Key Details of the Partnership

"The AI era demands a new kind of network — one that is programmable, AI-native, and able to operate at machine speed," said Vivek Jaiswal, senior vice president, Autonomous Networks at Nokia. Sridhar Gollapudi, global telco market lead at Google Cloud, added that agentic AI marks a fundamental shift in how telecommunications networks are managed, moving operators away from rigid templates to dynamic, goal-oriented automation.

Nokia announced a major expansion of its advanced test and packaging (ATP) operations in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to bolster the domestic production of optical networking technologies powering AI infrastructure. The investment is expected to nearly double Nokia's Pennsylvania workforce to more than 500 jobs in engineering, manufacturing, and R&D, generating a projected economic impact of more than $500M over the next five years. This strategic move aims to strengthen US domestic production capabilities for critical components used in AI-native networks, offering lower power consumption and greater operational efficiency.

The expansion involves an investment of approximately $30 million from Nokia, supplemented by bipartisan support including approximately $4 million in assistance from the state of Pennsylvania and approximately $10 million in federal CHIPS investment tax credit. By investing in new manufacturing equipment and expanding its footprint, Nokia is increasing the site's production capacity by up to 10 times its current level. The new capacity is expected to be commercially available by the end of the third quarter.

Nokia's Allentown facility is one of the few in the US providing ATP of photonic chips into optical modules for AI and telecom infrastructure. Currently, less than two percent of global semiconductor ATP takes place in the US. Nokia's optical technologies can reduce energy usage by as much as 75 percent, supporting the development of energy-efficient AI communications infrastructure.

Investment and Funding Breakdown

This initiative is part of Nokia's multi-year plan to invest $4 billion in R&D and manufacturing in the US for AI-ready network connectivity. The project is designed to reinforce US leadership in the global AI economy and solidify Pennsylvania's role as a hub for advanced manufacturing and telecommunications technology.

"The AI supercycle is fundamentally reshaping network and infrastructure requirements in the U.S. and globally. Our expansion in Allentown is a direct investment in that future—scaling domestic manufacturing of the optical networking technologies that power AI infrastructure," said Justin Hotard, President and CEO of Nokia.