Nokia beats first-quarter estimates as AI boom lifts sales again

Must ReadScience & TechnologyNokia beats first-quarter estimates as AI boom lifts sales againBy Reuters -Apr 23, 2026Nokia posted a bigger ​than expected rise in its quarterly ‌comparable operating profit on Thursday, as the Finnish telecom gear maker continued to see high demand ​from artificial intelligence and cloud customers, ​booking orders worth 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion). Comparable ⁠operating profit jumped 54% to 281 ​million euros in the first quarter of 2026. ​That was above the average estimate of 250 million euros from analysts polled by Infront. Nokia’s sales have ​jumped in recent quarters thanks to ​high demand for artificial intelligence data centres built by ‌so-called ⁠hyperscalers—large cloud service providers—that rely on fibre optic cables. The Finnish company, previously known for its iconic phone business and later for ​making 5G gear, ​is ⁠now one of the world’s top manufacturers of optical transport systems ​after buying U.S.-based Infinera. Comparable net sales ​in ⁠the quarter reached 4.5 billion euros, in line with market estimates. The Espoo, Finland-based ⁠group said ​net sales from AI ​and cloud customers climbed 49%.