Etisalat is returning as the corporate brand of UAE telecom group e&, four years after the company adopted the e& identity. The change was announced as the group marked 50 years of operations and outlined a strategy focused on artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure.
“Etisalat is the name we are taking forward - a name that reflects our heritage, our strategy and our ambition for the AI era,” the company said in a filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
Etisalat changed its group brand identity to e& in February 2022 as part of a plan to become a global technology and investment group. The company has now brought the Etisalat name back as it enters its next phase.
The company’s new strategy is built around four business engines: telecoms, AI and business solutions, infrastructure, and fintech. Digital infrastructure will play a central role in supporting the expansion of AI services.
Etisalat plans to increase international connectivity capacity to more than 500 terabits per second by 2030. The target is more than 25 times the company’s current capacity. It also plans to add diversified routes and low-latency infrastructure to support cloud providers, AI campuses and customers. Jassem Mohamed Bu Ataba Alzaabi, chairman of Etisalat Group, said the company sees infrastructure as a foundation for AI development.
“This project reflects our conviction that the UAE should not simply adopt AI, but govern it and build with it. That requires digital infrastructure at a scale that would prepare us for the future,” he said.
The rebrand follows strong recent financial performance. Etisalat reported second-quarter revenue of AED 19.2 billion, up 9% year-on-year. Its total customer base rose by nearly one-third to 251.5 million. The group operates across 38 countries.
The company has also reduced some international investment exposure. In July, it agreed to sell its entire stake in Vodafone Group for USD 5.95 billion. The move came as new Group CEO Masood M. Sharif Mahmood focused more closely on the company’s core businesses. The return of the Etisalat name connects the group’s 50-year history with its strategy for AI, connectivity and digital infrastructure.
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