Q: How should service providers decide what belongs in the cloud, and what pitfalls should they avoid?

A: It really depends on your starting point. If you’re a brownfield operator with legacy vendors and hardware that can’t easily be virtualized, your cloud journey is going to look very different from a greenfield like Paradise Mobile. We built everything from the ground up on commodity x86 hardware, running all our workloads in containers—whether that’s at the cell site, data center, or public cloud. This means our network operates seamlessly across all environments, with the same cloud-native tools, processes, and automation running end-to-end.

For brownfield operators, it’s objectively more complex because there's always legacy considerations. Moving to the cloud has to be analyzed by function, based on two key factors: elasticity and real-time performance. Things like AI-driven automation, subscriber management, and network analytics are great for the cloud because they scale dynamically. But ultra-low latency functions like real-time RAN packet processing? Those are better suited for the edge.

A big challenge is that many legacy RAN vendors aren’t truly cloud-native—they’re still catching up to the Open RAN players like Mavenir, who designed their solutions for cloud from day one. That’s why we’ve been very deliberate about only working with software-based vendors that can run on any cloud, not just in theory but in real-world production environments.

Common pitfalls to watch out for:

• Cloudifying everything just because it sounds good – Some workloads may not belong in public cloud. Also if your vendors aren’t truly cloud-native, you’ll end up with a messy vendor-imposed spaghetti architecture that doesn’t deliver the promised benefits.
• Not properly understanding and predicting operational realities – Cloud data transfer costs can add up fast if you’re constantly moving massive amounts of data back and forth without a cloud-first data architecture strategy.

Q: How can service providers use cloud to unlock new revenue streams?

A: The biggest challenge in telecom is speed to market. As an industry, we've spent decades building the world’s most reliable networks, but we’ve also let startups and tech giants disrupt us—from messaging apps replacing SMS, to SD-WAN eating into managed services revenue. Telcos have been stuck providing the “dumb pipe” while other companies captured the real value on top of it.

Cloud if done as part of a tech-co transformation changes the game. For the first time, operators can directly participate in the next wave of services beyond just selling connectivity. But we have to act fast and rethink how we operate.

Key ways to monetize cloud-powered networks:

• Network slicing for enterprises – Instead of selling one-size-fits-all connectivity, businesses can get dedicated network slices tailored to their needs—like ultra-low latency for financial trading or high bandwidth for media production.
• Cloud-native applications – Security, AI-driven automation, edge computing—these are all services telcos can bundle and sell rather than leaving that revenue to hyperscalers.
• API-driven ecosystems – By exposing network capabilities through APIs, we enable developers and enterprises to build network-aware applications that integrate directly with our platform.

At Paradise Mobile, we designed our cloud-native architecture to be modular and developer-friendly. This means enterprises can integrate and innovate at cloud speed, without waiting months for telco processes to catch up.

Q: How can operators handle the massive amount of IoT data without overload?

A: For us, pushing cloud capabilities to the edge has been a game changer. Traditional networks send all IoT data to a centralized cloud, which leads to congestion and inefficiencies. Instead, we use:

• Edge processing – Instead of sending every single data point to the cloud, we process data closer to the source, reducing bandwidth usage and speeding up responses.
• AI-driven analytics – Machine learning can detect patterns, predict failures, and automate network optimizations before problems even happen.
• Smart data filtering – Most organizations are drowning in data but missing the signals that matter. We ensure our AI models prioritize actionable insights rather than overwhelming teams with raw information.

The biggest issue in legacy telcos is too much manual decision-making. Most teams still react to problems rather than preventing them, and because of siloed structures, the people closest to the data often don’t have the authority to act on it. That’s why automation and AI-driven decision-making are key to managing the explosion of IoT data.

Q: What cloud advancements are improving network performance, reliability, and recoverability?

A: Cloud-native technology is transforming how networks operate:

• Containerized networks – At Paradise, 100% of our network functions are microservices-based and cloud-native. This gives us agility to scale and update networks without downtime.
• AI-powered automation – AI detects faults, predicts congestion, and automates network optimizations in real-time. We have numerous case studies internally to show how process improvement and automation led by better automated data analysis is exponentially faster. For example instead of traditional network operation centres, manually monitoring alarms, and opening tickets reactively, we have used the majority of the network data that DOESN'T traditionally get analyzed and filtered out because it's not "service impacting" warnings ... and automatically learn for both outages and performance bottlenecks to build better automated pro-active routines. This has allowed us to automate everything from pro-active monitoring, to automated dispatching, and completely eliminated the need for a traditional NOC.
• Multi-cloud disaster recovery – By distributing workloads across multiple cloud environments, we ensure high availability and zero service interruptions even in the event of failures.

This approach helped Paradise Mobile launch Bermuda’s fastest network within six months—a recognition confirmed by Ookla speed tests. It proves that cloud-native networks don’t just look good on paper; they also deliver real-world performance gains.

Q: How does cloud adoption future-proof networks for AI, edge computing, and 6G?

A: Cloud isn’t just about making today’s networks better—it’s about making sure we’re ready for what’s next.

• AI-driven automation – Future networks (whether we call it 6G or not) will be built on AI optimization. Cloud-native AI models will drive everything from network orchestration to predictive maintenance.
• Edge-powered low-latency services – Think AR/VR, self-driving cars, industrial automation—all these require ultra-fast, local processing, and cloud-native edge computing is the only way to deliver it at scale.
• Software-defined everything – Traditional networks rely on expensive, proprietary hardware. We run all our network functions on standard x86 servers, meaning we can deploy new services with a software update rather than a multimillion-dollar hardware swap.

At Paradise Mobile, we built our network to be AI-native and software-defined from day one. That means we’re not just keeping up with the future—we’re helping define it.

Q: How is Paradise Mobile using cloud to build next-gen networks, and what can others learn?

A: Paradise Mobile is a cloud-native operator from day one. No legacy baggage, no retrofitting—just a modern, software-driven network that scales like the internet.

Lessons for other operators:

• Go truly cloud-native – Don’t just migrate old systems to the cloud—build with microservices, containers, and open APIs from the ground up.
• Automate everything – AI-driven orchestration and open-source tools allow us to automate entire workflows, eliminating manual network operations.
• Embrace Open RAN and open standards – We’re not lockedinto proprietary vendor roadmaps. We can integrate best-of-breed solutions from across the industry and deploy new innovations faster than traditional carriers.
• Think beyond connectivity – By making our network developer-friendly, we’re empowering enterprises, startups, and innovators to build on top of our platform—just like cloud hyperscalers have done.

Paradise Mobile isn’t just another telco. We’re building the blueprint for the future of telecom.