If you’ve never heard of them before, don’t worry I hadn’t either until I got involved in Telin’s DTW Ignite journey.
At its core, Catalyst Projects are collaborative tech experiments run under TM Forum, the global alliance of telecom and tech companies. They bring together communication service providers (CSPs), software vendors, hyperscalers, startups, and even researchers or universities to work on solving real-world problems in telecom and digital infrastructure. These aren’t multi-year R&D efforts; they're focused and meant to prove something concrete in a short amount of time. Usually, it all culminates in a live demo at events like DTW Ignite, where the team gets to show what they’ve built in front of a global audience.
Each year, TM Forum scans through the dozens (sometimes hundreds) of active Catalyst Projects and selects a few that stand out as truly visionary. These are the ones they see as having the potential to move the needle to break out of “business as usual” and push into new territory. Getting a Moonshot badge means your project is not only technically ambitious, but it’s aligned with the kind of transformation the telecom world needs to see over the next 5 to 10 years.
To put it simply:
👉 Catalysts are where the industry builds together.
👉 Moonshots take things a step further, aiming for bigger impact.
So when two of the projects Telin joined were selected as Moonshots, it meant a lot. It showed that the work we’re doing the ideas, the teamwork is being noticed and gaining recognition from a global community.
Oh, and fun fact: one of those Moonshot projects is being led by Telin. Yep, we’re not just participants, we’re shaping it.
This year, Telin is proud to participate in four TM Forum Catalyst Projects, two of which have been honored with Moonshot designation — a recognition given to the most visionary and disruptive projects presented at DTW Ignite.
Catalyst Projects are not solo showcases. They’re collaborative innovation efforts that bring together telcos, technology vendors, hyperscalers, and academic institutions to solve critical industry challenges through short-cycle, proof-of-concept implementations. These aren’t ideas in a deck — they are working demos built in cross-company teams, presented live to global decision-makers.
AI-driven network automation for traffic and service resilience - Phase II
1. AI-Driven Network Automation for Traffic & Service Resilience – Phase II
Moonshot Catalyst | URN: M25.0.821 | Project Lead: Telin
Telin proudly leads this Moonshot project, which explores AI-driven approaches to autonomous service resilience. The project aims to achieve AN Level 4/5 capabilities — enabling proactive fault detection, intelligent rerouting, and intent-based automation via CaaS (Connectivity-as-a-Service). Our focus is to enhance network operations in real-time, leveraging predictive telemetry and orchestration frameworks.
This initiative is a collaboration with some of the world’s top operators: Verizon, Orange, Chunghwa Telecom, MTN, TIM, SEACOM, and NTT. Supporting technology partners include Beyond Now, DGS, Infosim, Shabodi, TA/E/NCE, and the University of Würzburg.
2. Evolving to Full Network Autonomy
Moonshot Catalyst | URN: M25.0.792
This project tackles the transition from human-led to system-led operations by demonstrating a fully autonomous network at Level 5 (L5). It focuses on reducing operational complexity, expanding business monetization opportunities through open networks, and delivering superior customer experiences through agile and intelligent automation.
Telin joins forces with Telstra, T-Mobile, and STC as project champions, while global tech partners such as Microsoft, Red Hat, Infosys, Nokia, and Qvantel provide technical depth and infrastructure support.
3. Accelerating Dynamic Network Marketplaces
Open Innovation Catalyst | URN: C25.0.836
In this project, Telin collaborates to develop a programmable site-to-cloud VPN service marketplace using TMF, CAMARA, and MEF APIs. The solution allows businesses to dynamically request and manage multi-cloud VPNs in a seamless, cross-operator environment — a leap forward in enabling agile and API-driven service delivery.
This marketplace model is expected to benefit industries such as finance, healthcare, education, and IoT.
4. Broadband as a Service – The Future of Wholesale Broadband Ordering (Phase II)
Open Innovation Catalyst | URN: C24.0.619
This initiative focuses on improving wholesale broadband provisioning by introducing standardized APIs and data models. The goal is to make broadband ordering more scalable, interoperable, and cost-efficient across multiple CSPs — reducing barriers for market entry and accelerating time to deployment.
Telin contributes to this project alongside leading global operators, driving better integration across the broadband supply chain.
DTW Ignite is just around the corner, June 17 to 19 in Copenhagen and it’s safe to say: we’re feeling the pressure, the excitement, and everything in between.
This time last year, Telin was just attending. Now? We’re stepping into the Catalyst Zone with not one, but two Moonshot projects that we’ve been building with global partners. And in one of them, we’re leading the charge.
One project focuses on AI-driven network automation — where the goal is to reroute traffic before it causes service issues. Think predictive resilience, not just reactive monitoring. We’ve been working to make the demo as clear and real as possible: simple UI, live simulation, and (hopefully) zero glitches on the floor.
The other project is about full network autonomy. We’re trying to show what it could look like if a network runs itself, safely, smartly, and with minimal human intervention. It's ambitious, and there’s a lot of deep thinking baked into the backend logic.
We know the Catalyst Zone is intense. People from Vodafone, Meta, AWS, and others will stop by. Some will be curious. Some will ask hard questions. That’s what makes it fun.
We’re not going to overpromise. We just want to represent our team, our region, and our ideas as honestly and clearly as we can.
And maybe… just maybe.. we’ll spark some new collaborations while we’re at it.
The Catalyts Arena DTW Ignite Copenhagen
One of the most exciting parts of this entire journey has been the collaboration.
This is Telin’s first time participating in TM Forum’s Catalyst program and for all of us on the team, it’s our first time working this closely with a global consortium. Across time zones, tools, and backgrounds, we came together to build something that (hopefully) matters.
Each project brought its own set of challenges, discussions, and yes, a few intense debates. From syncing with TM Forum committee members, aligning use cases with industry standards, to figuring out the best way to demonstrate complex ideas in just a few minutes, it’s been a masterclass in collaborative problem solving.
Internally, it’s been just as powerful. This Catalyst journey has brought together a cross-functional team from Telin led by Delfi and Hafiz also the main members Rya, Fajar, Ofi, Hakim, Arif, Dicky, Ogip, Hegar, Rexosa each contributing from their own angle. Some of us focused on technical, others on marketing and event promotion. Everyone showed up. Everyone delivered. Not to mention the relentless support from our senior leaders Pak Wendhy as well as Pak Bentarto, Pak Yanto, Mas Deniar and Mas Ardian.
There were heated moments too. But that’s how real collaboration looks and through it all, we were united by something bigger: the chance to not just “join” a global conversation, but to help shape it.
This is what our CEO meant when he said Telin should be recognized not just as a participant, but as a contributor on the global stage. It’s not about logos or booths. It’s about the people behind the projects and product minds who make it real.
And for us, this experience has been nothing short of transformative.
Not just for the showcase we’ll deliver next week, but for the long-term impact it will bring to how we build, how we lead, and how we collaborate both within Telin and with the world.
Catalyst Attendees Choice Awards 2025
This journey wasn’t just about building a demo deck or diagrams, infographic, marketing material but it was about showing up and learning together. For many of us, it was our first time collaborating in a global forum like this, and we’re grateful for the opportunity. From late-night calls across time zones to technical discussion with partners we had just met weeks before, we learned how to create, adapt, and contribute as one team.
It started with a vision from our CEO, but it grew into something bigger: a shared experience that gave us confidence to lead, and perspective on what it means to be part of something global.
And if this is just the beginning… we’re excited for what’s next.
See you in DTW Ignite 2025! 🚀
