Steve Wozniak Talks Tech and Global AI Rivalry at MWC25

ICYMI Press Recap Tuesday 4 March: Best bits from the MWC25 Barcelona showfloor

Fireside chat with Apple Co-Founder, Steve Wozniak  

Steve Wozniak’s eagerly anticipated appearance at Talent Arena  was standing room only. The crowd, already large from listening to Athina Kanioura of PepsiCo and Stephen Hood of Mozilla, filled the venue as they awaited Wozniak’s arrival.

He covered various topics, from building tech as a child: “You cannot get a driver’s licence at 10 years old, but you can get a ‘ham’ radio licence!”, to Elon Musk’s politics: “When you run a business you look for consensus and sharing… I don’t like what’s going on in this regard”, to AI regulation: “You should have citations… you could see where on the internet it came from and that would help you judge better”.

Tech game-changers converge on the mainstage

The morning’s keynote  opened with a wave and a wink from robot ‘Digit’, showing its utility on the factory floor as it obeyed live commands from Agility Robotics CEO Peggy Johnson. For her, the next evolution will be introducing robots into the home environment, but she was quick to stress that “safety is the number one challenge right now for humanoid robotics”.

Also onstage was Lenovo’s CEO Yuanqing Yang, discussing the potential of personal AI twins that use your experiences to mirror your reasoning, and the rise of AI PCs (he predicted 80% of PCs will be AI PCs in the next three years).

Arthur Mensch of Mistral AI called for greater European ambition (but also pragmatism) when reducing the continent’s reliability on US technology. He also drew attention to an overlooked opportunity for telcos to “invest in data centres and become hyperscalers”.

Global AI rivalry intensifying?

Geopolitics has been a prevailing topic across many of this week’s sessions. On the Johnson Stage, experts discussed AI development during Trump’s second term and its impact on European and global markets.

The issue of regulation versus innovation was front and centre, with CEO and Co-Founder of Hyacinth AI Mark Somol stressing there’s “no question that this Trump administration is focused on money and power” and that benefits from AI investment will “initially go to the big tech companies”.

However, as José Ignacio Torreblanca of the European Council on Foreign Relations said, Europe and the rest of the world don’t necessarily need to lead on AI investment or innovation at this stage, they can catch up across other areas, such as application of AI.

Meanwhile, Mallory Knodel, Executive Director of the Social Web Foundation, expressed her concern over a general lack of incentive for businesses to cooperate, pointing out AI is currently being developed in silos because of such high competition.

Talent Arena 

The imposing entrance of Fira de Montjuïc, with its neo-classical columns, is in sharp contrast to the modern façade of Fira Gran Via. The inside, however, is 21st century – scattered with stylish street art and vivid neon. Talent Arena draws a more youthful crowd than MWC, here to show off their skills, find mentors, be inspired and improve their career chances in a competitive industry. Highlights include:

• BIEL Smartgaze Glasses: BIEL Glasses use AI, robotics, and geolocation to help those with uncorrectable visual impairments navigate congested spaces. A beep in the ear signals impending collisions, demonstrating how someone with tunnel vision can detect obstacles like bollards and steps.
• scentXP: Olfactory sciences come to life in scentXP’s demo, run by Puig. One of the Arena’s most popular stands, visitors eagerly try the fragrance recommender, already in Sephora stores, and AirParfum technology. This tech prevents ‘nose blindness’ by wafting fresh air over fragrance bottles to keep smells from fading, making it useful for museums, cultural centres, distilleries, and perfumeries.

Highlights from last night: Scott Galloway pulls no punches

Scott Galloway put the 🔥 in his fireside chat, closing out day one  of MWC25 with his characteristically provocative and divisive style.

An interesting bookend to a day brimming with positive AI reflections, Galloway held nothing back as he urged the EU to “step up”, adding that if the EU got its “sh*t together and started acting like a Union… [it] could inspire a great new age of European leadership and economic growth”.

MWC25 Doha announcement

MWC is coming to Qatar later this year, as announced  by GSMA Ltd. CEO John Hoffman in the Leaders Lounge today, alongside His Excellency Mohammed bin Ali bin Mohammad Al Mannai.

MWC25 Doha takes place on 25-26 November 2025 at the prestigious Doha Convention Centre in Qatar, bringing together industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators to focus on advancing the next generation of digital societies in the Middle East and beyond.