- The new “On-Site Validation” enables real-time checking of antenna installs against as-planned configurations before engineers leave site.
- By cutting the delay between installation and verification, vHive hopes to reduce rollout delays, network performance issues and the need for return visits.
What happened: vHive Launches AR-Powered On-Site Validation Solution to Streamline MNO Network Installation Accuracy
vHive, a company specialising in infrastructure digitisation, announced on 2 December 2025 the release of On-Site Validation, a real-time field-verification solution intended for use by mobile network operators (MNOs) and their contractors.
On-Site Validation uses a patent-pending Augmented Reality (AR) system to let technicians validate, on the spot, whether an antenna installation matches the “as-planned” configuration before the network configuration is activated. The check reportedly takes only a few minutes and is performed immediately after installation. If everything aligns (“green-lighted”), contractors can leave—potentially avoiding follow-up visits.
According to vHive, rapid pace of 5G and Fixed Wireless Access deployments has outgrown the industry’s traditional ability to ensure installation accuracy in a timely manner. Design plans may shift, on-site conditions may change, and crews sometimes work with outdated information — leading to mismatches between what’s planned and what’s actually built.
vHive argues that On-Site Validation realigns the delivery chain by delivering “true As-Built certainty” in real time and at scale, reducing revisits that slow down deployments and risk degrading network performance.
Also read: Bezos plans solar-powered data centres in space
Also read: Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy at AWS: Revolutionising cloud computing
Why it’s important
As telecom operators worldwide rush to expand 5G (and potentially 6G in future), the complexity and pace of infrastructure upgrades are only increasing. Mistakes or deviations between planned and actual installations can lead not only to operational delays but also to degraded signal quality or network reliability — issues that can be expensive and damaging for operators. By offering a way to validate installations immediately and autonomously, vHive’s On-Site Validation could help reduce both time-to-service and risk of performance problems.
Moreover, from an operational standpoint, the tool may help trim costs associated with rework and site revisits. Given labour costs, site-access constraints (especially towers), and regulatory or safety compliance burden, minimising the need to return to a site after installation can yield substantial savings.
However, while the concept is certainly appealing, a few questions remain. For instance:
- How accurate and reliable is the AR-driven validation under varying field conditions (weather, lighting, obstructions)?
- Will operators and contractors adopt the new workflow and integrate it into their existing site processes — or will legacy habits prevail?
- Finally, what happens if the AR check flags deviations: will operators accept those corrections as sufficient, or is further manual verification still needed?
There is also potential for broader implications: if tools like On-Site Validation become standard, this could accelerate how quickly new cells, capacity upgrades or antenna swaps are deployed — ultimately helping operators meet growing data demand.
Yet as with many novel tooling solutions, the real test lies not in the press release but in real-world rollouts and adoption by operators — and whether the promised time-savings and quality improvements actually materialise.
