Australia's Telstra has become the latest telco to make a major AI play.
It's announced a global AI JV with Accenture, committing 100 million Australian dollars (US$62 million) annually to the project over the next seven years.
The companies said the JV would accelerate Telstra's AI journey and "help its teams operate more efficiently and effectively."
"We've made strong progress on our AI goals and already have hundreds of value-driving AI use-cases across the business," Telstra CEO Vicki Brady said.
But the telco's AI ambitions went well beyond AI tools, she said. "From building self-healing, resilient networks to reinventing experiences for our customers and the way we work, AI will help power an exciting, connected future."
A key focus would be to advance business processes through capabilities like agentic AI. The JV would create specialized AI tools to support teams and to build AI fluency across the workforce, the companies said.
Telstra would transfer specialists from its "existing data and AI ecosystem" into the new JV, which would also take advantage of Accenture's $3 billion in AI investments.
Consultation with staff
But one of its main objectives will be to allow Telstra to rationalize its vendor partners.
Telstra aims to consolidate its data and AI suppliers from 18 companies down to two – the new Accenture partnership and another JV with Australian AI firm Quantium.
The JV will run for seven years, after which staff will be given the option of returning to Telstra.
But before it goes ahead the JV will need the backing of unions and employees. Discussions with staff and union representatives are underway, Telstra said.
The plan to further rationalize some IT positions follows a cut in headcount of around 9%, or 2,800 positions, last year. Part of this involved a dramatic cull of software and IT vendors, reducing the total from more than 400 to two.
The proposed JV will be 60% owned by Accenture and 40% by Telstra, with Telstra saying it will retain control over its data and AI strategy and roadmap.
Telstra's stock fell 1.2% to A$4.02 Wednesday.