ABI Research publishes telco cloud-native platform ranking

Application Binary Interface (ABI) Research published a competitive assessment that ranked Wind River, Red Hat, and Rakuten Symphony as the top three telco cloud-native platform providers, and it said operators were deploying these platforms across core and Radio Access Network (RAN) to optimize operations and prepare networks for the next phase of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) supercycle.

The report described an intensifying cloud-native transformation in the telecom industry, noting an expansion of network cloudification beyond the core alongside rising requirements for automation, security, and the growing importance of open ecosystems.

ABI Research evaluated container-as-a-service (CaaS) offerings optimized for 5G core and RAN workloads and assessed capabilities such as Kubernetes automation, telco-grade security, observability, and lifecycle management; the firm also highlighted Red Hat OpenShift for its Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) integration and multi-cluster policy governance.

Wind River ranked first overall, with ABI Research citing extensive deployments among Tier 1 operators and deterministic performance for RAN and edge environments; Red Hat placed second and Rakuten Symphony placed third, with ABI Research noting Rakuten Symphony leveraged Rakuten Mobile operational experience to provide automation-first solutions that reduced deployment timelines and operational complexity.

“Telco cloud-native platforms are no longer a future vision, they are being deployed today across core and RAN,” said Dimitris Mavrakis, Senior Research Director at ABI Research. “Operators need platforms that combine Kubernetes automation with telco-grade security, observability, and lifecycle management. Wind River, Red Hat, and Rakuten Symphony exemplify this approach, enabling carriers to scale efficiently while meeting stringent performance and reliability requirements.”

The findings appeared in the report titled Telco Cloud-Native Platforms: CaaS Layers for Core and RAN, which was published as part of ABI Research's Telco AI research service.