Nokia reported first-quarter 2026 results that beat market expectations. Its fibre optic business connecting artificial intelligence (AI) data centres, rather than mobile phones, emerged as a key driver of improved performance.

According to BeInCrypto on Wednesday, Nokia's comparable operating profit for the first quarter was 281 million euros, up 54 percent from a year earlier. On the back of the strong results, its shares rose about 7 percent in Helsinki, reaching their highest level since 2010. The stock is up 63 percent this year.

Growth was led by optical networks within the network infrastructure division. That business grew 20 percent in the first quarter, the fastest among the company's operations. Over the same period, IP networks rose 3 percent and fixed networks fell 13 percent. Mobile infrastructure, once the core business, also grew only 3 percent, weakening its presence in relative terms. That means growth in optical communications stood out far more than the broader business portfolio.

Nokia's customer base is also changing quickly. As hyperscalers such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft build large-scale AI training infrastructure, demand for ultra-high-speed fibre-based data transmission has surged. Nokia secured about 1 billion euros of new orders from those customers in the first quarter. Revenue exposure to AI and cloud customers expanded to 8 percent and rose 49 percent from a year earlier.

Reflecting the trend, the company raised its full-year outlook. It increased its 2026 growth guidance for the network infrastructure division to 12 to 14 percent from 6 to 8 percent. Nokia Chief Executive Justin Hotard (저스틴 호타드) said, "We are raising our growth assumptions for optical networks and IP networks," and added, "We are stepping up investment to proactively respond to expanding demand from AI and cloud customers."

Its medium- to long-term demand outlook has also increased. Nokia forecast that the AI and cloud-related network market it supplies will grow at a compound annual rate of 27 percent through 2028. That is almost double the level of the forecast it presented last year.

The impact of mergers and acquisitions is also being reflected in earnest. Nokia strengthened its competitiveness in coherent optical transport technology through its acquisition of Infinera, which it completed in early 2025. It explained that profitability and its order backlog improved at the same time on that basis.

The results are seen as an example showing that increased AI investment is translating into actual demand for network equipment. As competition in generative AI services intensifies, the importance of data centres and optical communications infrastructure that support them has come into focus, and Nokia is also shifting its business emphasis. The market is producing analysis that if the AI investment cycle continues, Nokia's core growth engine is also likely to be fibre-based network business.