What’s New at Celona in 2026?

Why It Matters

Celona’s accelerated private‑5G solutions lower deployment time and cost, enabling enterprises to scale automation and AI workloads faster than ever before.

Key Takeaways

• Private 5G scales across sites with up to ten‑fold fewer radios.
• Deployments now complete in weeks, not years, using edgeless architecture.
• Dual‑mode AP20 combines 4G and 5G for neutral‑host flexibility.
• Orion AI‑ops platform adds agentic AI for autonomous network management.
• Customers report up to 50% total cost reduction versus Wi‑Fi upgrades.

Summary

Celona’s 2026 product briefing highlighted a rapid evolution of its private 5G portfolio, targeting operational‑technology (OT) environments. The CTO and product team walked through field data, three live demos, and a roadmap that emphasizes faster, more scalable deployments for enterprises shifting from traditional Wi‑Fi to cellular solutions.

Key innovations include the edgeless private‑5G architecture that reduces hardware footprints, the dual‑mode AP20 that supports both 4G and 5G for neutral‑host scenarios, and Orion, an AI‑ops platform now powered by agentic AI for autonomous network monitoring and optimization. These advances enable deployments in weeks rather than years and deliver cost efficiencies through dramatically fewer access points.

Customer case studies underscored the impact: Cargill replaced 44 Wi‑Fi APs with just five private‑5G radios, achieving roughly a 50% lower total cost of ownership, while Mariana Minerals rolled out a 400‑acre network in under a month. An industry‑wide event drew 150 technical leaders, who confirmed that private 5G is now seen as complementary to Wi‑Fi and essential for emerging AI‑driven factories and robotics.

The broader implication is a decisive shift from IT‑centric networking to OT‑focused connectivity, giving manufacturers, logistics firms, and data‑center operators a faster, cheaper path to mission‑critical, low‑latency communications that underpin automation, robotics, and physical AI applications.

Original Description

Mehmet Yavuz, Co-Founder and CTO at Celona, discusses the evolution of private cellular networks and their increasing role in enterprise connectivity. Yavuz highlights the shift from experimental deployments to large-scale operational use cases, particularly in industrial and OT environments. He shares real-world data from recent deployments, emphasizing the practical advantages of private 5G in addressing challenges like coverage at scale, rapid deployment timelines, and high-interference environments. The presentation also previews technical innovations, including dual-mode 4G/5G access points, edgeless core architecture, and the integration of AI-driven operations (AI Ops) to simplify the management of these networks.

Reflecting on the company's seven-year journey, Yavuz emphasizes how their thesis of making cellular enterprise-friendly has gained significant traction. He provides specific examples of current successes, such as Cargill's deployment across numerous sites and Mariana Minerals' rapid four-week setup of a 400-acre mining facility. A major highlight is the expansion of private 5G into "AI factories" and data centers, where extreme electromagnetic interference (EMI) often cripples traditional Wi-Fi. By utilizing cellular technology's 30 dB noise immunity advantage, these facilities maintain critical connectivity for technicians and augmented reality applications. Yavuz argues that private 5G is not replacing Wi-Fi but acting as a necessary complement for mission-critical, high-mobility, and outdoor industrial needs.

The presentation concludes with a look at future-proofing through Agentic AI and the introduction of the AP20 dual-mode access point. This hardware allows for simultaneous 4G and 5G operation, supporting transition strategies for legacy devices while enabling modern high-bandwidth applications. Celona continues to scale globally by adapting to various regional spectrum regulations, such as CBRS in the United States and mid-band allocations in Europe and Asia. By shifting the focus from basic connectivity to operational KPIs and integrated OT management, Celona aims to further simplify the deployment of private cellular networks so they can be managed with the same ease as traditional local area networks.

Presented by Mehmet Yavuz, CTO and Co-Founder. Recorded live at Mobility Field Day 14 in San Jose, CA on May 6, 2026. Watch the entire presentation at https://techfieldday.com/appearance/celona-presents-at-mobility-field-day-14/ or visit https://TechFieldDay.com/event/mfd14 or https://Celona.com/ for more information.