-
Samsung cut a network slicing deal with KDDI at MWC Las Vegas to form a new global alliance
-
The vendor is also working with AMD to give its customers more choice on vRAN silicon
-
The vendor notes it has AI research centers worldwide already
Mobile World Congress Las Vegas – Samsung is steaming ahead with its virtual RAN (vRAN) projects and validation, the company's Head of Marketing and 5G Business Development Derek Johnston told Silverlinings.
The vendor revealed on Tuesday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Japanese operator KDDI to form a new 5G global network slicing alliance. Network slicing, you’ll recall, can only take place when an operator actually has a cloud-native standalone 5G network in place.
The companies said they will introduce an array of commercial dynamic 5G network slicing services through the alliance. It's been a big week for network slicing news at MWC Las Vegas, as T-Mobile has expanded its network slicing beta to developers nationwide in the U.S.
AMD additions
Samsung also revealed this week that it is working with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) to validate its x86-based processors with Samsung vRAN software. Johnston said that the company is working with AMD to make sure the processors are up to the same level of commercial readiness as their Intel x86 rivals.
“Having choice out there for our customers has always been an important aspect of vRAN,” Johnston said of the AMD deal.
Where’s the AI?
Samsung hasn’t been as upfront about its AI efforts as many other silicon and network vendors recently. Johnston, however, noted that Samsung already has various AI research centers around the world and some of that work plays directly into the virtual radio space.
Want to discuss AI workloads, automation and cloud-native infrastructure challenges with us? Meet us in Sonoma, Calif., from Dec. 6-7 for our Cloud Executive Summit. You won't be sorry.