When I hear Nokia (NOK +5.46%), I think of the indestructible brick phone my parents owned. And I think about the 2021 meme-stock craze.
But over the past several years, Nokia has been rebuilding itself around three businesses: network infrastructure, optical networking, and enterprise technology. None of that is flashy. But something shifted this year that deserves more attention than it's getting.
Image source: Getty Images.
In May 2026, Nokia and Nvidia (NVDA +1.97%) announced a landmark strategic partnership in which Nvidia will invest $1 billion in Nokia -- at $6.01 per share -- to accelerate what the two companies are calling AI-RAN, a new category of radio access networks built natively for artificial intelligence (AI) workloads. Nvidia becomes a 2.9% shareholder in Nokia as part of the deal. T-Mobile (TMUS 2.49%) also signed on to run field trials of AI-RAN this year.
Think about what that structure implies. Nvidia doesn't write $1 billion checks to legacy companies. It bets on picks-and-shovels plays in markets it believes are about to explode. Nokia is now one of those picks.
NYSE: NOK
Key Data Points
The optical angle to consider
While the AI-RAN deal grabbed headlines, Nokia's optical networking business may be the more interesting story. The company is bringing a second indium phosphide semiconductor fabrication facility online in San Jose, California, later this year.
Indium phosphide is the substrate that powers high-speed optical transceivers -- the components that physically move data inside AI data centers at the speeds those workloads demand. Nokia builds these in-house. Most of its competitors don't.
That kind of vertical integration is a durable advantage in a supply-constrained market.
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
Why July 23 matters
Nokia is scheduled to report Q2 2026 results on July 23. That report will be the first one where investors can see how the Nvidia partnership is actually showing up in order books and whether the San Jose facility ramp is on schedule. If Nokia delivers on optical growth and provides forward guidance tied to the AI-RAN commercialization timeline, this stock could reprice quickly.
Nokia still carries execution risk from its 2024 acquisition of Infinera, and 6G timelines have a history of slipping. The AI-RAN market is early stage. These are legitimate concerns. But when Nvidia puts a billion dollars behind a thesis and the product pipeline is this deep, dismissing Nokia as a relic starts to look like the bigger mistake.
Nokia has spent years being treated like a punchline. I feel like it's been treated like a meme stock for retail traders who remembered the brand and bet on nostalgia. That trade is over. What's here now is a company with a $1 billion strategic backer, proprietary semiconductor manufacturing, and a seat at the table for the infrastructure build-out that every major AI company depends on.
