Vodafone opens London digital hub and boasts 5G could boost economy by £30bn (plus 4G coming soon on the Tube!)

Vodafone has opened its brand new Speechmark digital hub in London with space for 1,000 employees, while also talking up its future 5G (and 4G) rollout plans and the benefits they will bring.

As London Mayor Sadiq Khan opened the newly built office, that houses a consumer, digital and technology workforce and came as a result of a £6.5m investment, Vodafone announced the rollout of 5G could boost the economy of London by £30 billion between now and 2030 – according to a former HM Treasury economist commissioned by Vodafone.

This will happen due to the introduction of things like ‘digital buildings’, autonomous vehicles, improvements to emergency responses, AI, and low latency data connectivity in industry.

Vodafone is currently investing £1m a week to upgrade and improve its network throughout the whole of London, in order to keep up with demands for data of around three million gigabytes of data a week – equivalent to streaming Netflix in HD for 115 years.

Also at the event, Vodafone talked more about becoming the first UK operator to strike a deal with Transport for London to trial wireless connectivity (starting with 4G) in tunnels and station platforms on the eastern end of the Jubilee Line.

From Spring 2020, customers will be able to use their phone throughout their journey on the tube in the covered area. 5G will be added in due course following the successful outcome of the pilot scheme.

Vodafone’s 5G coverage now covers 77 towns and cities in the UK and Europe (15 in the UK), and is also the only network to currently offer 5G roaming.

More info: Vodafone