Lumen Technologies Maps AI Networking Growth Strategy at Citi Conference

Lumen Technologies is positioning itself as an enterprise networking platform for AI, combining its fiber network, programmable software and cloud/data-center ecosystem to support real-time data movement and applications such as healthcare diagnostics, fraud detection and retail inventory management.

The company is shifting toward on-demand, consumption-based digital services, including Network-as-a-Service, cloud on-ramps and its Multi-Cloud Gateway. The Alkira acquisition expands orchestration across clouds, data centers, edge sites and buildings.

Lumen expects to expand from 12 million to 58 million fiber miles by 2031 while targeting free-cash-flow stabilization, EBITDA growth in 2026 and positive business-segment revenue growth in 2028. It is prioritizing higher-margin digital revenue and selective connectivity deals over large new construction projects.

Chief Executive Officer Kate Johnson said the company is positioning its network and software capabilities around enterprise demand for artificial intelligence, arguing that customers increasingly need to move data among buildings, cloud platforms, data centers and edge locations in real time. Speaking with Citi communications and infrastructure analyst Mike Rollins, Johnson described Lumen’s strategy as creating an “enterprise networking for AI” platform. She said the offering combines a large physical network, a programmable digital layer and a connected ecosystem of cloud providers, technology companies, data centers and other network endpoints.

Johnson said the shift changes Lumen’s role from selling fixed physical circuits through procurement processes to providing technology capabilities tied to business outcomes. She cited real-time diagnostics in healthcare, fraud detection in banking and inventory management in retail as examples of applications that require AI-supported, programmable networking.

A programmable network allows customers to view and manage network circuits, bandwidth, performance and security through a “single pane of glass,” rather than requiring physical interventions. Customers can provision services, adjust bandwidth and security settings, and control the routing and flow of data remotely, she said.

She contrasted that approach with traditional telecommunications models built around point-to-point, static circuits with fixed monthly billing. Lumen is instead pursuing on-demand and consumption-based services, Johnson said, which she described as better suited to AI-related data flows that are not predictable in advance. The company has also developed cloud on-ramps that connect directly to cloud providers rather than using traditional colocation facilities, according to Johnson. She said the architecture can bypass colocation fees while providing higher capacity, improved security and lower costs.

Another example involves centralized security policy management. Johnson said Lumen’s platform can allow companies to manage policies through a centrally provisioned cloud service rather than across hundreds or thousands of locally managed firewalls. She said the approach can reduce hardware spending for customers and enable faster deployment of services.

While Johnson said Lumen’s software capabilities allow it to operate across other providers’ fiber networks, she maintained that the company's own fiber network is still a key differentiator.