Key Announcement
Deutsche Telekom on Monday, October 5, 2026, at the AI Investor Day event in Bonn, Germany, announced plans to save approximately €2.5 billion in indirect costs by 2030 compared with 2023 levels. In dollar terms, the amount equals roughly $2.8 billion. The news was reported by Reuters. The German telecommunications group said it aims to reach this target through the widespread deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. The announcement was made at the company's dedicated AI event. The plan covers the period through 2030.
The savings are calculated against the 2023 indirect-cost baseline: the company intends to save €2.5 billion by 2030 relative to that base year. AI and automation are named as the means — the German telecommunications group plans to cut indirect costs by expanding deployment in both areas. €2.5 billion is approximately $2.8 billion: both figures were cited in the official announcement.
The company's official media center published the announcement ahead of the event under the headline "Deutsche Telekom boosts growth, efficiency and quality through the use of AI." The headline itself notes AI's impact across three areas: growth, efficiency and quality. The official message puts these three areas at the center — AI is presented as a tool to boost growth, efficiency and quality. The full text of the company's official statement is available.
Practical Applications of AI
The statement gives special emphasis to the role of AI in daily operations. The official statement cited by Reuters illustrates the practical use of AI with three concrete examples. First, AI predicts peak load in the mobile network in advance. Second, it supports customer service staff. Third, these two capabilities together help resolve issues quickly. All three examples are taken from the company's official statement:
"AI predicts peak load in the mobile network in advance, supports customer service staff, and thereby helps resolve problems quickly," — Deutsche Telekom statement (as reported by Reuters).
The first area named in the statement is predicting peak load in the network: this helps resolve problems quickly. The second area is supporting customer service staff: AI helps employees resolve issues immediately. In this way, AI is being applied both in network management and in customer service.
Interim 2027 Target
According to the company's calculations, AI and automation will deliver about €1.1 billion in gross savings in 2027 in operations outside the United States compared with 2023. This figure is presented as an interim milestone on the way to the overall €2.5 billion target for 2030: the €1.1 billion expected by 2027 approaches nearly half of the overall goal — 44 percent. The comparison base here is also 2023 — the 2027 savings are likewise calculated against cost levels from three years earlier. This is gross savings — that is, the total savings to be achieved in 2027 through AI and automation.
Deutsche Telekom said it intends to direct part of the additional 2027 savings into investment in Germany's digital infrastructure and fiber-optic network. In this way, part of the funds saved through AI and automation flows directly back into strengthening the country's digital infrastructure: the savings become not only a way to cut costs but also a source of funding for infrastructure investment. The investment targets the development of Germany's digital infrastructure and fiber-optic network — a direction specifically noted in the official announcement.
AI Revenue and Sovereign AI
Deutsche Telekom aims to raise revenue from its AI business with companies outside the United States to approximately €800 million by 2030. This target concerns the AI business with companies outside the US: the company plans to lift revenue in this area to the €800 million level by 2030. The revenue target is set for 2030 — the same final deadline as the savings plan. This figure reflects the target revenue level for the AI business by 2030.
The company said it sees a "major business opportunity" in advancing Europe's sovereign AI. Deutsche Telekom thus treats the pan-European sovereign AI initiative as an important direction for its business — an assessment specifically noted in the official announcement. The official announcement presents Europe's sovereign AI goal as a major business opportunity for the company.
