Towards the forthcoming transition to a fully connected world (e.g., Internet of Senses, digital twins), support of connected intelligence
requires service advertisement, discovery, negotiation and management that goes beyond the complexity and scalability that existing
technologies and subscription-driven MNO processes can handle. In Beyond 5G (B5G) networks, cyber-physical assets and intelligent
end points will be capable of translating current service requirements to comprehensive technical specifications dynamically (e.g.,
QoS/QoE management per service chunk) as well as request for full customization of their service terms in line with current
availability of tenants/resources and their application requirements. Distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) hold the key for natively
disintermediated, cost-efficient, and anonymous B5G communications, enabling transparency and trust to be established across the
integrated DLT, radio access and core network continuum. The SOVEREIGN research programme aims to fuel artificial intelligence
(AI) with DLT-backed data in order to innovate the B5G service chain and the B5G protocol stack towards the support of fully
decentralized, instantaneous, and anonymous resource trading across the B5G network ecosystem (end terminals, infrastructure, OTT
service providers, etc.). SOVEREIGN aims to empower intelligent end points in B5G networks, to gain full control of their identities,
connectivity, sessions, service terms, and shared data upon accessing B5G spectrum, antennas, network slices and services. To this
end, SOVEREIGN will conceptualize and develop a modular end-to-end service architecture integrating DLT-empowered service
provisioning, fully decentralized AAA operations, forward-thinking protocols for self-sovereign identity management and anonymity/
data privacy preservation as well as user-driven AI-enabled mobility management and traffic steering over joint DLT/B5G system
infrastructures.