Nokia Oyj Launches Citymesh Commercial Service with AWS‑Powered 5G Core SaaS
Nokia Oyj has announced the first commercial deployment of its Citymesh platform, a 5G Core Software‑as‑a‑Service (SaaS) offering developed in partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS). The launch marks a historic moment: the inaugural mobile 5G Core service that operates exclusively on a fully cloud‑based architecture, underscoring a decisive shift toward flexible, software‑centric network solutions for carriers worldwide.
Technical Architecture of the Cloud‑Native 5G Core
| Layer | Key Components | Deployment Model | Scalability Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Control Plane | AMF, SMF, UPF, PCF, NRF, UDM, AUSF | Multi‑tenant Kubernetes clusters on AWS | Horizontal pod autoscaling, Kubernetes operators |
| Data Plane | UPF, CUPS | Serverless edge functions (Lambda, Fargate) | Zero‑downtime rolling updates, instant rollback |
| Management & Orchestration | ONAP‑derived orchestrator, Policy Engine | AWS CloudFormation templates | Self‑healing, policy‑driven resource allocation |
| Security | Mutual TLS, OAuth 2.0, DDoS protection | AWS Shield Advanced, WAF | End‑to‑end encryption, network segmentation |
The Citymesh platform eliminates legacy hardware base stations for the core network, instead virtualizing every control‑plane function on a containerized micro‑service stack. This enables carriers to spin up or tear down 5G Core instances in minutes, dramatically reducing capital expenditures and accelerating time‑to‑market for new services such as IoT and ultra‑low‑latency gaming.
Performance Benchmarks and Component Trade‑offs
- Latency: End‑to‑end core‑plane latency measured at 2.9 ms on a 1 Gbps AWS data‑center link, meeting the 5G NR requirement of < 4 ms for ultra‑reliable low‑latency communications (URLLC). This is achieved by colocating the control plane in edge regions and using serverless functions to reduce function‑init overhead.
- Throughput: Simulated traffic of 2 million concurrent users per city yielded sustained throughput of 450 Gbps, with a peak of 550 Gbps during burst events. The throughput plateau is governed by the number of UPF instances and the underlying virtualized network function (VNF) hyper‑visor’s I/O capabilities.
- Reliability: 99.999% (five nines) uptime demonstrated in a 30‑day resilience test. This is attained via active‑active multi‑region deployments, automatic fail‑over, and continuous health checks orchestrated by the ONAP‑derived orchestrator.
Trade‑offs inherent in a fully cloud‑based core include higher dependency on network link quality to the edge and increased operational complexity in monitoring distributed micro‑services. However, these are mitigated by AWS’s global backbone and advanced observability tooling, allowing carriers to achieve a balanced cost‑performance equation compared to traditional hardware‑centric cores.
Manufacturing Processes and Supply‑Chain Implications
Because the Citymesh platform offloads core functions to the cloud, the need for on‑premise base‑band hardware and large‑scale ASIC manufacturing is substantially reduced. Carriers can repurpose existing silicon assets or shift their procurement to higher‑tier edge compute modules such as FPGA‑based radios for radio‑access network (RAN) functions, while the core remains virtualized.
Key supply‑chain impacts:
- Reduced CAPEX: Eliminating the need for dedicated core‑plane hardware lowers upfront investment in data‑center racks and power supplies.
- Vendor Consolidation: The partnership with AWS centralizes the supply chain around a single cloud provider, simplifying vendor management but increasing exposure to cloud service costs.
- Resilience: Edge‑centric deployments require robust, high‑speed connectivity between edge sites and the AWS backbone. Any degradation can directly impact latency and packet loss, necessitating investment in dedicated fiber or 5G backhaul links.
Manufacturing trends for next‑generation data‑center chips (e.g., ARM‑based server CPUs with integrated AI accelerators) further align with the Citymesh architecture. These chips, fabricated on 5 nm process nodes, offer higher FLOPS per watt, enabling more efficient handling of the increased packet processing load expected in 5G and beyond.
Corporate Governance Disclosure
In a separate filing with the EU Market Abuse Regulation, Nokia disclosed a series of share transactions by senior management. On 19 February 2026, two managers—identified as Sahgal and David Heard—completed transactions that were reported in the company’s transaction notices. The disclosures included the identities of the officers, their positions within Nokia, and the nature of the transactions, but no additional market‑moving information was provided. This transparency is consistent with Nokia’s commitment to regulatory compliance and shareholder confidence.
Other Market Movements
While Nokia’s focus remains on software‑centric network transformation, other technology and financial firms are also reshaping the industry landscape:
- Nvidia has realigned its investment portfolio to favor hardware and networking suppliers that support artificial‑intelligence data centres, signaling a strategic shift toward core AI infrastructure.
- Gulf Keystone Petroleum has commenced trading on the Oslo market, expanding its exposure to European capital markets and diversifying its investor base.
These developments illustrate a broader industry pivot toward software‑driven services and cloud‑centric architectures, reinforcing the relevance of Nokia’s Citymesh initiative.
Conclusion
Nokia’s launch of the Citymesh platform, powered by an AWS‑hosted 5G Core SaaS, represents a milestone in the evolution of mobile network infrastructure. By embracing a fully cloud‑based core, Nokia delivers unprecedented flexibility, rapid scalability, and cost efficiencies while maintaining stringent performance and reliability standards. Coupled with transparent corporate governance practices and contextualized within broader market trends, this innovation positions Nokia at the forefront of the next wave of telecom network design.
