MCI Pivots to TechCo with Smart Industry Push

MCI’s Deputy of Smart Investments, stated at a press conference for the Digital Transformation in the Petrochemical Industry event that the company is shifting its strategic direction from being a telecom operator toward becoming a technology company (TechCo). MCI has announced plans to invest 50 billion tomans in the petrochemical industry.

At the beginning of the conference, Ahmad Motamedi, a professor at Amirkabir University of Technology and former Iranian ICT minister, warned about Iran’s technological gap with the world, saying: "Iran’s largest supercomputer operates at a capacity of half a petaflop, while Saudi Arabia uses a supercomputer with 100 petaflops in its oil industry. This gap highlights our serious technological backwardness."

Referring to the dominance of advanced technologies in global powers, he added: "In the U.S. and China, supercomputers with thousands of petaflops are in operation. Today, the main battleground is technology, because behind every economic or military conflict lies a technological revolution."

Later, Mahdiar Agha-Nasir, MCI’s Smart Investment Deputy, revealed the company’s new strategy to transform into a "TechCo" and announced: "A new era has begun for MCI. We are no longer just a telecom service provider but are becoming a technology partner for industries."

He outlined two key pillars of this transformation: providing smart solutions for digital transformation to government organizations and large industries, and investing in startups and tech companies through Hamrah Fund.

Agha-Nasir noted the launch of specialized event series by Hamrah Fund, stating: "Our first event focused on the petrochemical industry—a sector of strategic importance due to its role in generating foreign currency revenue. We plan to expand these events to other major industries."

Referring to a successful collaboration with Tavanir in the "Ba-Energy" project, he said: "This project was a major step in optimizing energy consumption. MCI is ready to actively participate in other energy transformation initiatives."

Agha-Nasir also highlighted the pivotal role of 5G in industrial transformation, stating: "As a leader in telecom infrastructure development, MCI sees 5G deployment as the foundation for a new industrial revolution in Iran. Achieving this requires designing industrial use cases in universities and developing them in collaboration with operators."

He announced investments in university hubs, adding: "We support tech-driven ideas in academic centers to accelerate these projects." Regarding MCI’s "Smart Solutions" core mission, he explained: "This unit actively engages with various industries to facilitate their digital growth through innovative solutions. We firmly believe in the impact of these interventions."

The deputy of Hamrah Fund detailed the ongoing investment event: "The deadline for submissions has been extended to the end of May. Screening and judging will take place in June, and the finals will be held in the first week of July. The main requirement is having at least a minimum viable product (MVP) or a technology readiness level (TRL) of 5."

He set the maximum investment per project at 50 billion tomans, adding: "In coordination with the Presidential Innovation and Prosperity Fund, projects may also receive up to 100 billion tomans in financing."

In closing, Almasi-Rad highlighted Hamrah Fund’s role in Iran’s tech ecosystem: "As MCI’s venture capital arm, this fund—alongside key players like the Oil Industry Research & Technology Fund and the Persian Gulf Petrochemical CVC Fund—will play a crucial role in developing the petrochemical industry."