MWC25 Barcelona expected to attract over 101,000 visitors and 2,700 exhibitors in March

The GSMA has unveiled its vision for Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025, which will take place in Barcelona from March 3 to 6, 2025, under the theme "Converge. Connect. Create." Barcelona will host a landmark event for another year, bringing together the brightest minds and the latest innovations in connectivity and technology and fostering collaboration and dialogue across industries, governments, and startups.

With an impressive lineup of exhibitors, speakers, and groundbreaking showcases, MWC25 Barcelona promises to be the most influential event shaping the future of digital innovation.

Catalonia Trade & Investment will participate in MWC2025, showcasing the best of Catalan innovation on the global stage at the Catalonia Pavilion. Our team of expert consultants will be on hand to provide support, assist in exploring opportunities, answer questions, and share insights into what makes Catalonia a dynamic hub for business and technology. 

“There's real excitement in the air for MWC25 Barcelona; only at MWC will we first see the products and ideas that reshape our digital future”

Mats Granryd, Director General of GSMA

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MWC25 Barcelona is set to break records, with organizers anticipating over 101,000 visitors and more than 2,700 exhibitors from around the globe. This massive gathering will not only showcase the latest in connectivity and technology but also deliver a significant economic boost to the region.

According to GSMA estimates, the event is expected to generate close to €550 million in economic impact for Barcelona and its surrounding areas, further solidifying its role as a key driver of innovation and growth.

With such impressive numbers, MWC25 Barcelona is poised to be the most impactful edition yet, bringing together the brightest minds and cutting-edge technologies to shape the future of connectivity. The event will feature 1,200 speakers across 19 stages, discussing key trends such as AI's transformative impact, the evolution of 5G networks, and the challenges of balancing innovation with regulation. Among the highlights will be insights from thought leaders on how technology is reshaping societies and industries.

The GSMA’s Director General, Mats Granryd, said: “There’s real excitement in the air for MWC25 Barcelona; that same disruptive energy we saw with the growth of mobile is here again in the AI era. From AI to 5G Advance to the rich potential for digital services unleashed by GSMA Open Gateway, only at MWC will we first see the products and ideas that embody this spirit of innovation set to reshape our digital future.”

First-time exhibitors and industry giants

This year's event will welcome several first-time exhibitors, including Alibaba Cloud, China Unicom, Databricks, Indra, KDDI Spherience, KYOCERA, Liberty Global, Siemens, SquareTrade, Tencent Cloud, TransUnion, and Ubiquiti. They will join returning industry giants such as Accenture, AWS, China Mobile, Dell, Ericsson, Google, HPE, Huawei, Meta, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Vodafone, and Xiaomi, among others.

4YFN, the hub for startups and unicorns

The 4 Years From Now (4YFN) initiative, dedicated to fostering innovation, will bring together startups, investors, and corporates in Halls 8.0 and 8.1. The Banco Sabadell stage will host prominent figures from the global startup and investor community, including Juergen Schmidhuber, the father of modern AI. The event will also culminate in announcing the 4YFN Awards winner, with finalists such as Bankuish, Horus ML, Qflow, Ramon.Space and Rockfish Data are competing for the top prize.

GSMA Pavilion, showcasing cutting-edge innovations

At the GSMA Pavilion in Hall 4, the European Space Agency (ESA) will showcase the results of its partnership with the GSMA, focusing on advancing terrestrial and satellite communications. Additionally, the pavilion will feature a Kazakh large language model (LLM) developed in collaboration with VEON, Beeline Kazakhstan, and the Barcelona Supercomputing Center to support under-resourced languages globally.

Adjacent to the pavilion, the GSMA Open Gateway showcase will highlight how network APIs are enabling developers to deploy new services across various sectors. Six demo pods will host 17 organizations, including Nokia and Elmo Cars, which will demonstrate remote car driving in Finland using APIs.

Ministerial programme and policy discussions

The GSMA Ministerial Programme will convene industry leaders, government ministers, and regulatory authorities to discuss critical topics such as AI governance, network energy efficiency, future spectrum for mobile, and network investment. This gathering will be the largest of its kind, shaping policies that enable the digital economy.

Sports Tomorrow Congress and Talent Arena

In a unique collaboration, MWC25 Barcelona will co-locate with FC Barcelona's Sports Tomorrow Congress, organized by the Barca Innovation Hub in Hall 6. Additionally, the Talent Arena, hosted by Mobile World Capital, will feature over 200 speakers, including Apple Co-founder Steve Wozniak. The arena will also host the GSMA Open Gateway DevCon and a hackathon, where developers can test their projects on live networks using the latest APIs.

Source: GSMA & Fira de Barcelona