SoftBank Embraces AI RAN to Drive Innovation
SoftBank is leveraging artificial intelligence in its radio access network to drive innovation and revolutionize the telecommunications industry.
AI Integration in Telecom Networks: SoftBank’s Bold Move
At MWC25 in Barcelona, SoftBank Corp announced its ambitious plan to harness artificial intelligence (AI) in telecom networks, utilizing plug-and-play base stations. This strategy promises to significantly enhance performance and spectrum efficiency.
The Benefits of AI in Networks: Insights from Ryuji Wakikawa
Ryuji Wakikawa, head of SoftBank’s Advanced Technology Research Institute, discussed the major innovation of AI in networks with Mobile World Live. He highlighted that recent demonstrations have shown a 20% improvement in throughput and spectrum efficiency.
SoftBank has been developing AI for networks, akin to distributed computing, since 2019. Wakikawa emphasized that a key driver for this initiative is to fuel innovation.
He remarked, “This is an opportunity for operators to generate revenue through AI.” He believes that embracing AI is essential for operators to innovate once again.
The Challenge of Innovation in the Telecom Sector
Wakikawa noted the stark contrast between the rapid pace of AI innovation and the slow progress in telecommunications. “AI innovation moves very quickly, while telecoms are quite slow,” he observed, adding, “There’s a lot of innovation between each new generation, but major updates only occur every ten years.”
The Challenge of Open RAN and AI’s Future Potential
Wakikawa acknowledged that SoftBank sees no compelling reason to adopt Open RAN as its performance isn’t as competitive as hardware-based systems, which can handle more layers. Additionally, being software-based, it struggles with massive computing needs. “From an operator’s viewpoint, what we get is the same: connectivity.”
Discussing cutting-edge mobile technology, he mentioned that operators have been talking about it for nearly two decades, but little has been done due to unclear use cases and business models. However, Wakikawa now sees a strong use case for AI, as it demands substantial computing power, which can be deployed at the mobile edge.
He acknowledged that most consumers haven’t seen significant improvement with the switch to 5G, as all applications are served from the cloud. “From 4G to 5G, we haven’t seen much gain and haven’t yet recouped the 5G investment as ARPU is declining,” he said. Nonetheless, SoftBank remains confident in AI’s potential for the future of telecom networks.