Ericsson announced on Tuesday the company’s networks chief, Per Narvinger, would replace outgoing chief executive Borje Ekholm, who led the Swedish telecoms giant for more than nine years.

Narvinger, who joined Ericsson in 1997, vowed to take the firm into the AI age after taking the reins from Ekholm from October 1.

“The Board of Directors has executed a well prepared and orderly CEO succession as part of the company’s ongoing leadership and governance planning,” the Scandinavian firm said in a statement.

In the wake of the announcement, Ericsson shares dipped slightly by nearly 0.6 per cent to around 113.90 kronor ($12.1) at 12:50 pm local time (1050 GMT), even as the Stockholm Stock Exchange rose overall.

“This is a pivotal time in our industry. As AI continues to industrialise, this will increasingly require advanced connectivity solutions, an area where Ericsson is leading,” Narvinger was quoted as saying in the statement.

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Major telecoms firms like Nokia and Ericsson are trying to capitalise on the AI boom to offset decline or stagnation in their traditional markets, such as mobile networks.

“Today, Ericsson is driving the transformation of mobile connectivity by changing how networks are used and commercialised, and we are leading the industry into the next stage of AI: the physical AI era,” outgoing chief Ekholm said.

AFP