The Great Indoors

At MWC Barcelona 2026, the conversation around AI is no longer confined to software. It is becoming physical, personal, and deeply tied to the future of connectivity.

In this episode, Matthew Roberts welcomes Don McGuire, EVP & Chief Marketing Officer at Qualcomm, back to the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on what AI-native networks, emerging device form factors, and the next era of telecom could really mean in practice. From Qualcomm’s latest announcements around 6G, wearable platforms, agentic modems, and Wi-Fi 8 to the bigger question of how operators evolve in an AI-first world, Don lays out a vision in which connectivity becomes more intelligent, more anticipatory, and more embedded in everyday life.

The discussion also explores the role of the modern CMO in navigating AI’s competing narratives, why human-led and AI-powered may be the most important balance for marketers to get right, and how younger generations are already treating AI less like a tool and more like a thought partner.

MWC Barcelona 2026 made one thing clear: the telecom industry is entering a new phase, where AI feels more tangible, policy feels more urgent, and innovation is being judged by its real-world impact.

In this episode, Matthew Roberts welcomes Lara Dewarr, CMO of the GSMA, back to the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on what this year’s event revealed about the future of connectivity. From AI’s shift into more embodied, agentic, and consumer-facing experiences to the growing importance of inclusion, regulation, and practical use cases, Lara offers a front-row view of where the industry is heading next. She reflects on 20 years of MWC in Barcelona, the role the event plays in bringing together industry and government, and why marketers, operators, and policymakers are now all grappling with the same challenges. The conversation also explores the risk of leaving communities behind in the AI era, the need for more locally relevant technology, and why sectors like healthcare may be next in line for telecom-led transformation.

So if you are interested in the absolute latest from MWC and what it means for telecom on a larger scale, press play!

What do a telecom CEO serving millions of people and a startup R&D leader building a new platform from scratch have in common? More than you might think. Live from MWC Barcelona 2026, Matthew Roberts is back to kick off Season 12 of The Great Indoors. In this episode, two conversations come together to explore how leadership and invention are deeply connected. First, Matt welcomes Carl Raymond Cruz, President and CEO of Globe Telecom. Carl reflects on the responsibility of leading a company that touches everyday life across the Philippines, and shares how Globe is working to expand digital inclusion, modernize the customer experience, and protect people from digital harm. Then, Matt speaks with Val Gorokhovsky, VP of R&D at 31 Concept, whose team has spent the last year building a new telecom intelligence platform for Deep Packet Intelligence which ensures data transfer security. From nation-building to startup building, this episode shows that the future of telecom will not be shaped by technology alone, but by leaders who know how to turn invention into impact.

Returning to the podcast with host Matthew Roberts is Stephanie Ormston, AVP of Product Innovation at AT&T, to explore shifting narratives and public perception of AI in 2026. Starting with practical use cases, they examine how AI continues to impact both individuals and organizations. From there, the conversation expands into the themes still top of mind today: human–AI collaboration, real consumer value, mixed public sentiment, and whether we should be concerned that younger generations are developing an AI-native way of thinking.
Despite all this rapid change, Stephanie is adamant that storytelling and authenticity still reign supreme, because when technology companies lose sight of that fact, they risk repeating the failures of the past.

In this episode of The Great Indoors, Shelly Palmer, tech strategist and CEO of The Palmer Group returns for his third appearance to explain why the digital world has become unrecognizable in just two years since his last appearance. Listeners will gain an inside look at the brutal reality of the media business, where traditional purchase funnels have collapsed in favor of short-form video and zero-click AI search results. The conversation provides a roadmap for the transition from simple automation to agentic AI. Autonomous systems that can now plan and initiate tasks independently and explores the rise of vibe coding, where English becomes the new programming language. So if you’re fascinated by media, machine learning, and the conversations shaping what comes next, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.