The Telecom, 5G & 6G Innovation Award
These awards carry Alexander Graham Bell’s name, and telecom has been in scope since the first edition. This category recognises network architecture, radio and core innovation, private networks, and the connectivity work that reaches places economics usually does not.
- Independent jury
- 250
- Innovations evaluated
- 4,500+
- Star rating
- 1–5
- Running since
- 2010
Academics, scientists, officials, investors
Across seventeen editions
Every nominee earns an AGBA Innovation Star
India’s longest-running innovation award
Three categories sit close to data. This is the one about method and evidence.
Most nominations that fail here fail because they were in the wrong category. Read across before you write anything.
Innovation in Telecom / 5G / 6G
Radio, core and transport innovation, private networks and the connectivity that reaches hard places.
This category
Innovation in IoT
Sensing, connected products and industrial IoT riding on top of these networks.
Innovation in Cloud Computing
Cloud, edge and digital infrastructure — increasingly where the network itself now runs.
Who should enter
- 5G and 6G radio, core and transport innovation, including Open RAN work
- Private and enterprise networks solving a defined industrial problem
- Network automation, assurance and self-optimising operations
- Rural, remote and disaster connectivity deployments
- Spectrum efficiency, backhaul and infrastructure-sharing innovation
What this award recognises is engineering measured against standards and against physics, then proved on a live network. A lab result is a start, not a case.
If the innovation sits in the devices on the network, enter Innovation in IoT. If it is the compute and infrastructure layer, enter Innovation in Cloud Computing.
What the jury looks for
- Problem definition & market opportunityWhether the innovation solves a real problem, backed by evidence and a measurable impact on its target audience.
- InnovativenessNovelty and uniqueness — new technology, functionality or business model — measured against what already exists, including IP.
- Market potential & impactSize and growth of the addressable market, competitive landscape, and scalability across geographies.
- Social impact & sustainabilityContribution to society and the environment, including social responsibility and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
These are the same four criteria — problem definition, innovativeness, market impact and social/sustainability impact — used to assess every category. In this category the jury also weighs methodological rigour — including what you did to avoid fooling yourselves — the decision that changed as a result and what it was worth, the reproducibility and honesty of the evaluation, and the engineering quality of the data foundation underneath. Read the full evaluation criteria.
Who judges this category
Nominations are assessed by an independent jury, not by the organisers. Jurors are matched to the categories where their expertise lies. These are among those who read telecom, 5G and network infrastructure entries.
Ms. Pamela KumarDirector General, Telecom Standards Development Society of India
Mr. Sudhir GuptaFormer Secretary, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
Mr. Tilak Raj DuaDirector General, Tower and Infrastructure Providers Association; Chairman, ITU-APT
Mr. David TurkingtonHead of Technology, Asia Pacific, GSMA
Mr. Ashish NarayanProgramme Coordinator, International Telecommunication Union, Asia Pacific
Dr. Aloknath DeFormer Chief Technology Officer, Samsung R&D Institute India
Mr. Vimal WakhluFormer Chairman and Managing Director, Telecommunications Consultants India
Cdr Anurag VibhutiDeputy Director, Telecom Centres of Excellence IndiaEight of roughly 250. The full panel spans the IITs, the IIMs, the IIITs, the Indian School of Business, NITI Aayog and central ministries, the Department of Science & Technology, MeitY and CERT-In. See the full jury panel.
The network on the podium
Telecom has been recognised in every edition since the first, in 2010. These are the winners we have photographed at the ceremony, most recent first.
Recent editions
9th edition
8th and 7th editions
6th edition
Previous winners
The awards began as a telecom programme, so the early editions carried several telecom awards at once, and the naming has shifted with the field: Telecom, Telecom Infra, Telecom Solution, Telecom Product, 5G. Every row below carries the award actually won. The complete edition by edition record sits in the winners archive.
Category names have changed across editions as the field has moved; the rows above are the closest equivalents in the published record. See the winners archive for the full 1st–16th edition history.
What happens after you submit
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Stage one · nowNomination registration
Register your company and category through the nomination process, then complete the detailed nomination form and processing fee.
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Stage twoJury presentation
Present the innovation to the jury and take questions. Jurors score each entry against the four evaluation criteria and rank it within its category.
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Stage threeStar Certification
Nominees are also assessed for AGBA Innovation Star Certification, an independent maturity rating alongside the category judging.
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Stage fourFinalists announced
Once every category has been evaluated, finalists are announced on the website ahead of the ceremony.
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Stage fiveAward ceremony
Winners are honoured on 18 February 2027 at Hotel Ashoka, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
Before you write your nomination
Is a private enterprise network eligible?
Yes. Private and campus networks are read here, and the panel looks for the industrial problem solved rather than the size of the deployment alone.
Does infrastructure sharing count as innovation?
It can. Towers, backhaul, spectrum efficiency and shared infrastructure models are all in scope where the engineering or the economics moved.
How is standards work assessed?
On contribution and adoption. Say which standards body, which contribution, and what shipped as a result.
How do I submit a nomination?
Nominations are submitted through the nomination process, which sets out the stages, the supporting material required and the current edition’s dates.
Put your network work in front of the panel
Nominations for the Telecom, 5G and 6G Innovation Award are read by an independent jury of network engineers, standards people and regulators. Bring the deployment evidence, not the launch release.