- Operators are already utilizing AI for internal use cases
- But attention is now turning to how the tech can be used to generate new revenue streams
- There are a few layers of opportunity ripe for the picking
Forget 5G monetization. Telcos are now looking to artificial intelligence (AI) as their new savior, hoping that they can lean into generative AI to create new revenue streams for their businesses. But how, exactly, might that work?
Nvidia’s Global Head of Business Development for Telco Chris Penrose (yes, formerly of AT&T) told Fierce that there are three avenues operators are eyeing to generate revenue from AI. The first is perhaps the most obvious: providing GPUs-as-a-service.
Though hyperscalers are perhaps the most prominent GPU buyers, Penrose said telcos have also started scooping up the chips. And it makes sense, given they have the space, power and networking capabilities required to build the data centers in which GPUs live.
Given that globally there remains “more demand for GPUs than there is supply,” offering these assets to enterprise customers who need them is low-hanging fruit, he said. Governments looking for sovereign AI capabilities are a particularly easy target given telcos are oftentimes already close partners with these entities.
But that’s not the only opportunity telcos have. Penrose said they can also move up the stack to the software layer by providing platform services like data curation, model training and inferencing. Moving even higher up the stack into the application layer is the eventual holy grail, Penrose added.
“A really good example of this is actually in the customer experience area. If the telcos are spending all of this time creating an amazing customer experience for themselves, they can turn around and now offer customer service as a platform to businesses that have call centers themselves,” Penrose explained. “So, there’s this whole opportunity to move into the application service layer.”
Making it happen
Telcos are already well on their way to utilizing AI internally to generate a return on their investments. See also: our reporting on what AT&T, Windstream, Frontier, Verizon and others are doing on this front.
But Penrose isn’t the only one who thinks there’s room for growth via external-facing offerings as well. Orange Business Chief Products and Marketing Officer Usman Javaid told Fierce in an exclusive interview in November that the operator expects generative AI to help drive double-digit annualized revenue growth in the coming years.
This week, longtime telco partner Amdocs sought to put these efforts on the fast track with the release of a new generative AI suite of tools designed to make it easier for telcos to roll out new revenue-generating services and applications. These include an AI factory, AI agents and a data platform.
Anthony Goonetilleke, Group President of Technology and Head of Strategy at Amdocs, told Fierce that the new agents are “specifically trained on telco terminology and taxonomy. This ensures that the agents have a deep understanding of the telecommunications industry, its processes, and operations beyond what standard GenAI platforms can offer.”
He added that the AI Factory will allow telcos to capitalize on “increased attention on sovereign AI factory deployments,” by offering things like GPU-as-a-service, LLMs-as-a-service and more.
From what we’ve been hearing, AI is poised to be the star of the telco show at the upcoming Mobile World Congress conference in Barcelona. So, stay tuned for the latest updates and in-depth analysis when things kick off on March 3.