Backgrounder:

The AI RAN Alliance, formed earlier this year, is a groundbreaking collaboration aimed at revolutionizing the RAN industry. Partnering with tech giants, the goal is to transform traditional Radio Access Networks (RANs) into intelligent, self-optimizing systems using advanced AI technologies.  Their website states:

Bringing together the technology industry leaders and academic institutions, the AI-RAN Alliance is dedicated to driving the enhancement of RAN performance and capability with AI. Moreover, we aim to optimize RAN asset utilization, and unlock new revenue streams. By pioneering AI-based innovations in RAN, we aspire to profitably propel the telecom industry towards 6G.

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 telecom companies with AI, facilitated by 5G and 6G.

Image Courtesy of the AI RAN Alliance.

Purpose:
The AI RAN Alliance is dedicated to eliminating the inefficiencies of traditional RAN systems by embedding AI directly into network infrastructures. This shift will enable, for example, dynamic resource allocation, predictive maintenance, and proactive network management.

Industry Benefits:
Enhanced Network Efficiency: Real-time optimized bandwidth allocation and improved user experiences.
Economic Advantages: Cost savings from AI-driven automation and reduced energy consumption.
Innovative Revenue Opportunities: New services such as real-time AI Assistants on your mobile devices.

Key Focus Areas:

• AI for RAN
• AI on RAN (RAN for AI)
• AI and RAN

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New AI RAN Alliance Chairman:

On August 15, 2024, the AI RAN Alliance appointed Dr. Alex Jinsung Choi, Principal Fellow of SoftBank Corp.’s Research Institute of Advanced Technology as Chairman.

“The AI-RAN Alliance is set to transform telecommunications through AI-RAN advancements, increased efficiency, and new economic opportunities,” said Choi. “As Chair, I’m excited to lead this AI-RAN initiative, working with industry leaders to enhance mobile networks, reduce power consumption, and modernize infrastructure with 5G and 6G with AI/ML. Our goal is to drive societal progress through AI-RAN, transitioning from traditional to next-generation communications infrastructure.”

Satadal Bhattacharjee, Sr. Director of Marketing, Infrastructure BU, ARM, said, “We’re excited to collaborate with Choi, the Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance. Like Choi, we believe that AI will fundamentally change the way wireless services are deployed, fostering broad innovation and enhancing operational efficiency. We look forward to working with key industry leaders from silicon to software to fulfill the promise of ubiquitous AI and 6G.”

Jim Shea, Co-founder and CEO of DeepSig, said, “As a pioneer in AI-native communications together with his prior experience growing the O-RAN ALLIANCE, Choi will lead this important initiative that is shaping the future of intelligent radio access networks. DeepSig’s extensive AI/ML wireless expertise will play a key role in this exciting collaboration to leverage advanced technologies to help the industry unlock unprecedented network efficiency and accelerate innovation.”

Mathias Riback, VP & Head of Advanced Technology U.S., Ericsson, said, “I’m thrilled to welcome Dr. Choi as Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance. As a non-standardization organization, the Alliance can uniquely complement the work of existing SDOs by focusing on shaping innovative use cases that integrate AI with RAN. In addition to realizing benefits from AI in RAN implementations, it will be important to advance ‘AI on RAN’ use cases, where mobile networks play a critical role in enabling AI applications. Ericsson is fully committed to fostering a collaborative environment that unites all players in the evolving AI ecosystem to shape the future of telecom together.”

Shawn Hakl, VP of 5G Strategy, Microsoft, said, “At Microsoft, we recognize artificial intelligence (AI) as a pivotal technology of our era. We are excited to be a part of the AI-RAN Alliance and are particularly pleased to see Choi step into the role of Chair. Choi’s leadership will be key as we collaborate to leverage AI in optimizing RAN infrastructure investments and expanding the capabilities of RAN to introduce new AI-driven services for modern mobile applications.”

Ari Kynäslahti, Head of Strategy and Technology, Mobile Networks at Nokia commented, “Nokia is proud to be part of the AI-RAN Alliance and contribute towards integrating AI into radio access networks. The potential of AI to optimize networks, predict and resolve issues, and enhance performance and service quality is significant. As we embark on this transformative journey, collaboration is essential to harness our collective expertise. We are pleased to see Dr. Alex Choi appointed to this role, and look forward to him guiding our efforts to achieve these goals.”

Tommaso Melodia, William L. Smith Professor, Northeastern University, said, “We are pleased to have Choi as the Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance, leading our efforts to transform the industry. Choi has been a strong advocate for the evolution towards a more open, software-driven, and AI-integrated future. Under Choi’s leadership, the AI-RAN Alliance is set to fast-track the development of new services and use cases by leveraging openness, softwarization, and AI integration to enhance network performance, energy efficiency, spectrum sharing, and security, ultimately redefining the landscape of global communications.”

Soma Velayutham, GM, AI and Telecoms, NVIDIA, said, “The AI-RAN Alliance is a critical initiative for advancing the convergence of AI and 5G/6G technologies to drive innovation in mobile networks. The consortium’s new leadership will bring a fresh perspective and focus on delivering the next generation of connectivity.”

Dr. Ardavan Tehrani, Samsung Research, AI-RAN Alliance Board of Directors Vice Chair, said, “We are excited to have Dr. Alex Choi leading the AI-RAN Alliance as the Chair of the Board. The Alliance will play a pivotal role in fostering collaboration, driving innovation, and transforming future 6G networks utilizing AI. Under Dr. Choi’s leadership, the Alliance will strive to deliver substantial value to end users and operators through pioneering AI-based use cases and innovations.”

Ryuji Wakikawa, VP and Head of Research Institute of Advanced Technology, SoftBank Corp., said, “SoftBank is committed to realizing an AI-powered network infrastructure, and we strongly believe that Choi’s extensive background and expertise will be a great force in advancing AI-RAN technology and driving significant progress for the mobile industry in this AI era with lightning speed.”

John Saw, EVP and CTO, T-Mobile, said, “We are thrilled to have Alex Choi as Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance. AI is advancing at an unprecedented rate and with our 5G network advantage we have a unique opportunity to harness this momentum. By developing solutions that make the most of both RAN and AI on GPUs — and working alongside Choi and the top industry leaders within the Alliance — we believe there is potential for change that will revolutionize the industry.”

Dr. Akihiro Nakao, Professor, The University of Tokyo, said, “Dr. Alex Jinsung Choi’s appointment as Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance represents a pivotal step in advancing AI within the telecommunications sector. His leadership is expected to unite academic and industry efforts, nurturing the next wave of innovators who will drive the future of AI and telecommunications. This initiative will not only fast-track the adoption of AI across diverse applications but also foster international collaboration and set new standards for efficiency, energy management, resilience, and the development of AI-driven services that will reshape the telecommunications industry and benefit society worldwide.”

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References:

https://ai-ran.org/

https://ai-ran.org/news/industry-leaders-in-ai-and-wireless-form-ai-ran-alliance/

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