The AI-RAN Alliance, a new collaborative initiative aimed at integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into cellular technology to further advance radio access network (RAN) technology and mobile networks, was launched today at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Bringing together technology, industry, and academic institutions, the alliance’s founding members include Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), Arm, DeepSig Inc. (DeepSig), Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Ericsson), Microsoft Corporation (Microsoft), Nokia, Northeastern University, NVIDIA, Samsung Electronics, SoftBank Corp. (SoftBank) and T-Mobile USA, Inc. (T-Mobile). The group’s mission is to enhance mobile network efficiency, reduce power consumption, and retrofit existing infrastructure, setting the stage for unlocking new economic opportunities for telecommunications companies with AI, facilitated by 5G and 6G.
Alliance members will leverage their technology expertise and collective leadership to focus on three main areas of research and innovation:
- AI for RAN – advancing RAN capabilities through AI to improve spectral efficiency.
- AI and RAN – integrating AI and RAN processes to utilize infrastructure more effectively and generate new AI-driven revenue opportunities.
- AI on RAN – deploying AI services at the network edge through RAN to increase operational efficiency and offer new services to mobile users.
Network operators in the alliance will spearhead the testing and implementation of these advanced technologies developed through the collective research efforts of the member companies and universities.