In the spirit of Thanksgiving — even though it’s not a holiday I personally celebrate — I spent last week in Doha and realized there’s a lot to be thankful for. While friends and partners in the U.S. were carving turkey, I was at the first-ever MWC Doha, taking in the energy, conversations, and momentum around Network APIs, Edge AI, and telco transformation.

So here are seven things I’m genuinely thankful for after Doha — seven reasons I’m optimistic about where this industry is heading.

1. The Energy and Momentum in the Gulf Region

What really struck me in Doha was the sheer energy across the Gulf. While the region isn’t the first to move on Network APIs — we’ve already seen strong uptake in the U.S., parts of Europe, the Philippines, and Brazil , to name a few recent examples — it’s fantastic to see Qatar and its neighbors joining this global shift. And they’re not dipping a toe in; they’re stepping in with conviction.

The real leadership from the region right now is in AI investment. The Gulf is putting enormous capital behind the AI race — including initiatives like Humain, a trillion-dollar bet on the future. Add to that the broader innovation ecosystem, powered by major events like GITEX and LEAP, and now MWC Doha drawing nearly 10,000 attendees in its first edition, and you get a picture of a region that is positioning itself to play a serious role in the tech of tomorrow. And telcos are a key part of that future, with AI RAN and Edge Inference!

2. Real Use Cases Coming to Life

One of the most encouraging themes in Doha was the focus on real-world use cases, not just API specs or theoretical frameworks. At the Open Gateway Summit and Round Table, we heard dozens of examples: anti-fraud deployments, verified login flows, age assurance, geofenced content streaming, enterprise QoD use cases, remote-driving car telemetry, and how Network APIs support Agentic AI and Physical AI.

And this aligns perfectly with what we’re seeing inside the CPaaSAA Case Directory, which is growing rapidly with concrete, verifiable implementations submitted by our members. We’re not talking about possibilities anymore — we’re documenting live use, customer results, and early value creation. That’s something to be thankful for.

3. The Role of CPaaS Players and Scaleups

I’m also grateful for the essential role of CPaaS platforms and scaleups in making Network APIs usable. Without them, enterprises would be facing dozens of variations of SIM Swap, Number Verify, Quality APIs, and more — each slightly different from operator to operator. Scaleups like Shush, nabstract, Shabodi, IPification, Xconnect and others are ironing out the differences and providing a unified layer that developers can actually build on.

And they’re not alone. The major CPaaS players — Twilio, Vonage, Sinch, Infobip — are committed. These are companies that move billions of API calls a month. Their decision to embrace Network APIs (including Twilio’s commitment to moving a large part of their OTP business to them via Shush) is a market signal in itself. Their involvement makes adoption real rather than hypothetical.

4. Google’s Commitment and the AI Angle

One of the standout moments for me in Doha was seeing Google doubling down on both the AI race and Network APIs simultaneously. Their recent announcement Gemini 3, trained on their own TPUs, is a massive leap forward in AI training, and it’s fascinating to watch Google lean into disruption and actively reinvent itself. At the same time, they’re embracing Network APIs and openly sharing their plans for an agent marketplace powered by network data and trust signals.

And it’s not just Google. Hyperscalers like Microsoft and AWS are also supporting Network APIs in their marketplaces, accelerating the adoption curve. Companies like Glide Identity are integrating these capabilities to bring them closer to enterprise workflows. It’s powerful to see cloud, AI, and network value coming together.

5. The Maturity Model From Simon-Kucher

One thing I’m particularly thankful for is the clarity brought by Simon-Kucher’s Network API maturity model. It moves us away from talking about APIs as technical endpoints and helps us focus on readiness, value creation, GTM motion, and monetization. And what made this extra special was that Yasmean Luk and Žiga Lesnik spent part of their Thanksgiving hosting a fantastic The Inner Circle session with CPaaSAA members last week.

We had a rich conversation about where Network APIs currently sit on the maturity curve, how value is perceived, what is needed to drive adoption, and future pricing models. This kind of business-oriented framing is exactly what the Network API movement needs right now. Check the blog about this session.

6. A Focus on Outcomes, Not Just APIs

Another major shift I’m thankful for is the industry’s evolution from counting APIs to focusing on business outcomes. This really came through in Doha. Whether it was Google encouraging operators to focus on the first few working APIs globally before expanding, or developers asking for consistency rather than endless endpoints, the message was simple: solve real problems first.

This focus on outcomes aligns perfectly with how enterprises think. Fraud reduction, onboarding uplift, session integrity, age assurance — these are real business metrics that matter. And they’re all driven by trustworthy network data. It feels like the conversation has matured, and that shift alone is worth celebrating.

7. The Role of CPaaSAA — and a Personal Note of Gratitude

Finally, I’m grateful for what we’re building together at the CPaaS Acceleration Alliance. Since the start 3 years ago, we’ve grown from a small group of enthusiasts to a strong community with real influence — and that’s because of our members, partners, and founding team. I’m genuinely thankful for my partners who joined this journey and poured their energy into it.

And I’m excited for what’s coming next year. We’re doubling down on use cases, expanding our research and Case Directory, focusing our working groups, organizing more networking events, and — importantly — building the investment capabilities that will help our members and scaleups succeed in the next chapter of this ecosystem. There’s a lot of work ahead, but I’m thankful for the opportunity to help shape what’s next!

Final Thought

So no, I didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving in the traditional sense. But I left Doha feeling genuinely thankful — for the momentum, the people, the collaboration, and the sense that we’re finally moving from exposure to value, and from APIs to actual outcomes.

Bring on 2025. The best is ahead.