Looking beyond the horizon: The trifecta of AI-RAN
The rapid pace of technological evolution has had a profound impact on our society, how we access information and how we interact, be it for business or for leisure. So, what is the next big transformation?
AI-RAN, which means integrating artificial intelligence (AI) more deeply and widely with radio access networks (RAN) has huge innovation and transformative potential. AI and RAN will mutually augment each other. Cloud RAN and different types of AI workloads will benefit from platform synergies.
AI-RAN is an innovation engine for the future
With AI-RAN, we are creating an engine for future evolution where AI enables RAN innovation and RAN enables consumer and enterprise AI application innovation. Many aspects of AI-RAN are still to be defined, and Nokia is working very closely with operators, leading technology partners and academia to pave the technology evolution paths that will take us there.
Nokia is one of the founding members of the AI-RAN Alliance, which has established a three-dimensional framework for AI-RAN.
How RAN can enhance the capabilities of AI applications: AI on RAN. We are working on extended RAN capabilities to further enhance consumer and enterprise applications, and to open up new business opportunities for our customers. An increasing share of today’s mobile applications already uses AI to deal with increasing amounts of data. RAN data exposure and programmability will play a key role here. Furthermore, we can expect the number of AI-enhanced applications for both consumers and enterprises to increase exponentially, which means that mobile networks are going to face a potential surge in uplink data traffic.
How AI can enhance RAN capabilities: AI for RAN. We already use AI today to optimize radio network performance and efficiencies. Nokia has embedded AI in products that help analyze data, optimize and automate radio networks and enhance energy efficiency in our customers’ commercial 4G and 5G deployments. We also use AI extensively in network design, deployment and optimization services. In base stations, the share of AI-augmented features will grow. Consequently, AI-computing in the base station will need to scale up – and with our AirScale portfolio, Nokia is ready to support that.
How we can leverage the synergies of AI-optimized computing for RAN workloads and different kinds of AI workloads: AI and RAN. As AI workloads for RAN increase and other AI workloads move further out to the Edge Cloud, platform synergies and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) opportunities become strategically important.
Nokia, together with industry partners, is working to design and drive the future of mobile networks based on these three dimensions. We see that RAN has the potential to evolve from a connectivity platform toward a multi-purpose computing platform that helps unlock new efficiencies and monetization opportunities.
Let me also mention that the AI-RAN Alliance welcomes new members who want to work with us to realize the full potential of AI-RAN. To start the membership application process, visit the AI-RAN Alliance webpage.
6G will not work without AI
In parallel with the development of AI-RAN, the telecom industry is also preparing for the arrival of 6G. It will be yet another technological leap, deeply impacting system design and standardization. In practice, 6G will be AI-native with AI being considered right from the beginning of the design process.
There will be AI enablers at all network layers of 6G, however, the most important development will be the AI-native air interface. I’m proud to say that in close collaboration with customers and industry partners, Nokia has developed the world’s first prototype of the AI-native 6G air interface. Our prototype is an important step, which helps us fine-tune the AI models and the evolution paths of AI computing in our AirScale base stations.
The convergence of AI, RAN and Cloud, and 6G evolution are not just changing how we build and monetize radio access networks – they are empowering us to create a future filled with unprecedented opportunities.
I hope many of you had the chance to attend Nokia’s Tech Winter Horizon 2024, a virtual event focused on AI-RAN, to hear from Nokia experts and our close industry partners, NVIDIA, SoftBank and T-Mobile. In case you missed it, you can watch the recording here.
