Emilio Gayo calls for faster European regulation to boost investment and business scale

Telefónica CEO Emilio Gayo called on European institutions to adapt regulation quickly to encourage investment and enable companies to achieve greater scale. He made the case at the XXIX National Family Business Congress, linking the regulatory framework to the competitiveness of the technology sector and Europe’s ability to strengthen its strategic autonomy.

Gayo’s request reflects his position on regulatory developments; it does not mean that any changes have been approved or anticipate the outcome of future European decisions. In particular, he noted that how competition authorities assess potential consolidation transactions in the telecommunications sector will be relevant in determining whether companies can grow in size.

Technological sovereignty without autarky

Gayo advocated open technological sovereignty, which does not mean producing in Europe everything its businesses use. In his view, the goal is to retain decision-making capacity over the critical elements of the digital ecosystem. To assess that capacity, he proposed considering who controls the data and platforms, and whether companies can switch providers or technologies without being locked into a solution.

The executive identified three conditions for making progress: regulation that encourages development and investment, companies with sufficient scale, and the ability to sustain investment over the long term. He also warned that technological autonomy requires time and investment; among the limitations he mentioned is that Europe does not manufacture chips at the necessary scale.

In telecommunications, the regulatory debate includes the use of radio spectrum. Gayo argued that it should be considered an essential resource for developing mobile networks and competing, as well as a source of public revenue through auctions. He also linked the sector’s investment capacity to decisions on business consolidation, which are assessed by the competent authorities.

AI: productivity, service, and training

On artificial intelligence (AI), Gayo rejected excessively catastrophic views and highlighted its potential to reduce errors and improve customer service. In his assessment, these tools can enable more personalized services than traditional segmentation models, as well as contribute to productivity and lower costs.

His approach for businesses focuses on the people who understand internal processes. Gayo said their experience is key to identifying how to apply AI and argued that they should receive training to understand what these tools can do. Technology alone does not guarantee operational improvements: its adoption also depends on companies knowing how to integrate it into their processes.

The executive added that the expansion of AI will change network traffic. In his view, both the volume of data circulating and the information users send to systems for processing will increase, making upload traffic more important.

For businesses, the statements raise two connected debates: how to adapt their operations and internal capabilities to AI, and how the European framework for investment and scale will evolve. Gayo’s proposals are a business perspective on these issues; they do not constitute regulatory changes that have already been approved or guarantee any particular outcome for the sector.