GSMA’s M360 Manufacturing Summit: Connecting the Resilient Industrial Revolution

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At the M360 event in Seoul, GSMA hosted its first Manufacturing Summit under the theme Connecting the Resilient Industrial Revolution. The focus was on how digital transformation, mobile networks, and intelligent technologies are reshaping manufacturing, not only in South Korea but globally.

Manufacturing is a central pillar of the Korean economy, contributing around a quarter of GDP and driving the majority of exports. With rising labour costs and a need to improve productivity in core areas, the sector faces the same pressures seen worldwide. The summit highlighted how private 5G, industrial IoT, and AI are being adopted to keep factories competitive and to build resilience into supply chains.

The opening discussion emphasised the scale of the opportunity for mobile operators and the wider ecosystem. GSMA Intelligence has identified manufacturing as a significant enterprise growth area, with billions of dollars of addressable market potential. Unlike traditional telecom revenues, growth in this space is expected to be much stronger, creating new incentives for collaboration between operators, vendors, and industry.

Speakers provided perspectives from across the ecosystem. Siemens set the scene by explaining the importance of industrial-grade 5G and how it is designed to meet the strict requirements of manufacturing environments. The 6G Forum outlined the rapid expansion of smart factories in South Korea, driven by government-backed initiatives and an increasing focus on private 5G for secure and reliable operations.

From a semiconductor perspective, the 5G-ACIA described how private 5G is supporting smart manufacturing in fabrication plants. Applications such as automated transport systems, worker safety monitoring, and data collection for AI integration were presented as examples of how 5G enables critical processes with high reliability.

Huawei shared a case study from Thailand, showing how smart factories are being equipped with 5G networks to enhance flexibility, digitalisation, and intelligence in production. The example demonstrated how lessons from China’s large-scale smart factory projects are being replicated internationally, underlining the global relevance of these technologies.

The session concluded with a panel that brought in the operator view, highlighting both the opportunities and challenges in addressing this market. Scaling beyond proofs of concept remains difficult, but private and local 5G deployments are steadily growing. For manufacturers, the message was clear: digital transformation cannot be delayed. Those who act early gain valuable experience and position themselves ahead of competitors.

The Manufacturing Summit reflected the growing alignment between telecoms and industry. While there are challenges in integration, cost, and ecosystem maturity, the trajectory is towards broader adoption of private networks as a foundation for Industry 4.0 and beyond.

You can watch the full session below:

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