No company is ahead of Ericsson when it comes to 5G, the Swedish firm's boss has told CNBC.

Refuting claims that China's Huawei is leading the pack on the fifth generation of mobile internet, Ericsson CEO Borje Ekholm said he sees "no one ahead of us" on the technology.

"I find it's a bit difficult to say that we're behind when I see no one ahead of us," Ekholm told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Ekholm said that, though geopolitical tensions surrounding Huawei are "creating uncertainty in the market," the "notion that we get a free ride" as a result is false. He added that Ericsson's equipment was the first to be used in North America and Europe.

Dexter Thillien, senior industry analyst at Fitch Solutions, said it's "not true" to claim that Huawei is the "only player" in 5G, highlighting Ericsson and Finland's Nokia as two strong alternatives to the Chinese tech firm.

"Europe can be able to operate without Huawei," he told CNBC in a phone interview, adding that the U.S., Japan and South Korea have been able to launch 5G networks without the need for Huawei equipment.