Nokia Announces Leadership Changes and Establishes New Technology and AI and Corporate Development Organizations
Espoo, Finland – 17 September 2025 — Nokia has unveiled significant changes to its leadership structure alongside the creation of two new organizations aimed at enhancing its technological innovation capabilities and business development support. Effective 1 October 2025, the newly formed Technology and AI Organization (TAO) and Corporate Development Organization (CDO) will strengthen Nokia’s focus on cutting-edge technology and strategic growth as the company navigates the evolving digital landscape.
New Leadership Appointments
In conjunction with the organizational changes, Nokia announced the appointments of two seasoned executives to spearhead these new divisions. Pallavi Mahajan will join Nokia as Chief Technology and AI Officer, leading the Technology and AI Organization. Konstanty Owczarek will assume the role of Chief Corporate Development Officer and head of the Corporate Development Organization. Both senior leaders will become members of Nokia’s Group Leadership Team starting 1 October 2025. Conversely, Nishant Batra has decided to step down from his role as Chief Strategy and Technology Officer and will leave the Group Leadership Team effective 30 September 2025. Nokia’s President and CEO Justin Hotard expressed gratitude for Batra’s impactful contributions over the past five years, highlighting his leadership in transforming Nokia Bell Labs and positioning the company at the forefront of 6G development.
Details on the Technology and AI Organization
The newly established Technology and AI Organization will integrate key units of Nokia Bell Labs, Technology and AI Leadership functions, and Group Security under one umbrella. This consolidation aims to leverage synergies between cutting-edge research, AI technologies, and security disciplines to provide Nokia’s customers with differentiated solutions during the ongoing AI supercycle.
Pallavi Mahajan brings extensive expertise in AI, networking, software, and edge computing to Nokia. Before joining, she held multiple leadership roles at Intel, most recently as Corporate Vice President and General Manager of Data Center and Artificial Intelligence Software. Mahajan’s experience also includes pioneering initiatives at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) in supercomputing and hybrid cloud strategies, as well as advancing self-driving network technologies at Juniper Networks.
About the Corporate Development Organization
The Corporate Development Organization will encompass Corporate Development, Strategic Partnerships, Mergers and Acquisitions, incubation initiatives, and NGP Capital investments. This integrated approach is designed to accelerate Nokia’s strategic evolution and execution, providing focused support across business units.
Konstanty Owczarek joins Nokia with a rich background in corporate development, investment banking, strategic management, and operational leadership. His previous roles include executive leadership at HPE’s High Performance Compute, AI & Labs division, where he was instrumental in steering strategy towards generative AI. Owczarek also served as Head of Strategy and Innovation for AIG’s Life and Retirement business prior to his tenure at HPE.
CEO’s Perspective
Commenting on the changes, Nokia CEO Justin Hotard stated, “To succeed in the AI supercycle, we need to focus on where we can drive differentiation through our core technologies, strengthen our capabilities in security and AI, and maximize the value of partnerships in our ecosystem. Having a dedicated Technology and AI organization will be an important asset for us and our customers. The new Corporate Development organization will accelerate our strategy evolution and execution, and support our businesses.”
He further added, “I am delighted to welcome Pallavi to Nokia. She is recognized for her rare combination of deep technical expertise, commercial acumen, and proven ability to scale multi-billion-dollar product portfolios at the intersection of AI, mobile, and edge computing. I am also excited to welcome Konstanty to Nokia. He brings with him a unique combination of expertise spanning strategy, corporate development and finance across a variety of industries.”
About Nokia’s Group Leadership Team
Additional details regarding members of Nokia’s Group Leadership Team are available at Nokia’s corporate governance page.
Brief Profiles of Incoming Executives
Pallavi Mahajan
- Nationality: Indian
- Education: Advanced Leadership Program at Stanford Graduate School of Business, M.Sc. in Software Systems from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, and B.Tech. in Computer Science from National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra.
- Experience: Leadership roles at Intel, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Juniper Networks, and research engineering at the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT). Known for driving innovation in AI, networking, mobility, cloud, and edge computing.
Konstanty Owczarek
- A seasoned expert in corporate development and strategic leadership with executive experience at Hewlett Packard Enterprise and AIG. Known for guiding major strategic pivots including generative AI initiatives and fostering innovation across industries.
This strategic realignment highlights Nokia’s commitment to leading technology innovation and advancing its position in the fast-evolving digital and AI landscape. The company aims to harness these changes to better serve customers and expand growth opportunities in the years ahead.
