What does it actually take to become an AI-first telco? Swisscom is finding out. It has launched the biggest transformation program in its history: a ground-up rebuild of the software core behind its consumer and enterprise business units.

In this episode, I sit down with Mark Düsener, chief technology and information officer at Swisscom, to unpack how the operator is doing it. We get into why standardization is the new differentiation, why you can’t be agentic without a brain, and how Swisscom is converting the know-how of its hero engineers—critical talent at telcos—into skills everyone can use.

Listen now to hear:

Why data is the “brain” AI needs [05:17];
How Swisscom is collapsing its systems into one platform [07:51];
Mark’s rule for killing technical debt [12:14]; and
How to bring your experts along when AI codifies what they know [12:49].

Links and Resources:

Read Swisscom CEO Christoph Aeschlimann’s LinkedIn post about why telcos have to reinvent themselves at the core, not just the edge.
Listen to Mark’s interview on the TM Forum podcast. He talks about how Swisscom is using AI to move to an open, composable architecture, even across applications still tied to legacy systems.
Tired of knowledge staying locked inside your experts’ heads? Read Anthropic’s explainer on Agent Skills, the codified, reusable expertise Mark wants his "heroes" to package so any agent or colleague can call it.
Learn how the Totogi Ontology sits over your mainframe, BSS, and network systems so they all speak one language, letting you retire one legacy system at a time instead of betting on a multi-year rip and replace.
Interested in the underlying architecture for becoming AI-first? I’ve written three blogs on this topic:
- “You built a data lake. You needed a river” about why AI needs an ontology close to your live systems so it can act, not just report.
- “Nail your AI architecture” about why business logic doesn’t belong inside your agents.
- “Where do decisions live?” about the board-level question of where decisions should be made in an AI-native telco.
Mark’s go-to dish is filet with asparagus and béarnaise. Béarnaise is the sauce home cooks fear most, a temperamental combination of egg yolks and butter that breaks the second you stop whisking. I attempted it and produced something I’d rather not describe. If you want to try it, watch culinary icons Julia Child, Jacques Pépin, and Martha Stewart make béarnaise together in this TV clip from 1999.
Check out this episode on our YouTube channel.
You can find the episode transcript here.

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This week’s guest:

Mark Düsener is chief technology & information officer (CTIO) at Swisscom and a member of the Executive Committee, Swisscom Switzerland. He leads the IT, Network & Infrastructure division and drives the modernization of Switzerland’s network landscape as part of Swisscom’s TelCo to TechCo journey. His focus includes advancing Switzerland’s best and smartest network across fixed and mobile, expanding 5G and preparing for 6G, while driving the transformation towards automated, software-driven networks and an AI-driven Swisscom. He joined Swisscom in November 2020 and most recently led the Mobile Network, Mobile Services & B2B Telco unit. Prior to Swisscom, he was managing director of Deutsche Telekom Healthcare Solutions GmbH and held various leadership roles at Vodafone Germany.

Podcast Credits:

Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Rios, TelcoDR
Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
Senior Editor/Brand Manager: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
Audio Editor: Andrew Condell
Supervising Producer: Amanda Avery
Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
Music: Dyami Wilson