Dialling into the Future: How AI is Shaping Telecommunications
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Introduction
In today's digitized world, telecommunications play a pivotal role in connecting individuals, businesses, and even governments. It has revolutionized the way we communicate, improving efficiency, accessibility, and collaboration on a global scale. With the advent of technology, telecommunications have rapidly evolved, shaping our modern society and enabling remarkable advancements in various sectors. In terms of information access, telecommunications play a crucial role in providing internet access, empowering users with vast knowledge for online education, research, and e-commerce. It facilitates real-time news updates, keeping individuals informed about current events and emergencies. Businesses benefit significantly from telecommunications, enabling remote collaboration, reducing travel costs, and supporting flexible work environments. Additionally, it facilitates access to cloud services, offering cost-effective storage and various software and infrastructure solutions.
On a social level, telecommunications have a positive impact on healthcare by enabling remote services and telemedicine, ensuring accessible medical assistance, especially in underserved areas. It also improves education through online platforms, distance learning, and virtual classrooms, enhancing educational opportunities globally. Many telecom companies were actively working on deploying 5G networks to enhance connectivity and provide faster data speeds. Investments in 5G infrastructure were widespread, with several countries launching or planning widespread 5G coverage. With the rise of remote work, online education, and increased use of streaming services, the demand for data services continued to grow. Telecom operators were adapting to this demand by expanding their network capacities and improving data delivery.
The sector was witnessing continuous technological innovations, including the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning in network management, optimization, and customer service. These technologies were expected to contribute to improved efficiency and customer experience. The ongoing global push for increased connectivity, especially in developing regions, was driving growth opportunities for telecom companies. Initiatives to bridge the digital divide and provide affordable access to underserved areas were gaining prominence. As the volume of data transmitted through telecom networks increased, security and privacy concerns became more prominent. Telecom companies were focusing on implementing robust cybersecurity measures to protect user data and maintain the integrity of their networks.
Growth and subsequent challenges
The Indian telecommunications sector has experienced significant growth, becoming the second-largest global communications market. With over 800 million people connected to high-speed internet and one billion subscribers, the sector faces challenges due to a complex regulatory framework. Telecom companies operating across states are burdened by more than 1,200 compliance obligations from numerous statutes, rules, and regulations.
Compliance requirements include performance monitoring reports, security clearances, renewal applications, licensing fees, and obligations related to DTH services and KYC documentation. Telecom operators must provide users with a 30-day notice before terminating tariff plans, ensure data security during customer transitions, and meet quality of service standards. Additionally, they must establish infrastructure for monitoring networks and conduct yearly security audits. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, introduces new compliance obligations for safeguarding user data. Telecom service providers handle vast amounts of sensitive information, necessitating robust cybersecurity practices and adherence to privacy regulations. Collaborations with third-party providers also bring new challenges, requiring transparency in data usage, breach reporting, and data impact assessments.
Regulatory compliance
To navigate this intricate regulatory landscape, telecom companies can leverage regulatory technology (RegTech) solutions. These digital tools help establish a transparent compliance ecosystem, providing real-time updates, central digital document repositories, and streamlined compliance programs. By adopting RegTech, telecom businesses can efficiently manage compliance, save resources, and build trust among investors, customers, and shareholders. As the telecommunications sector continues to grow, ensuring regulatory adherence through technology-driven compliance becomes crucial for success in the digital economy.
Telecom must introduce new methodologies to ensure that the continued deployment of AI systems in mobile networks remains lawful, ethical and robust. "The dependence on data, the complexity of algorithms, and the possibility of unexpected emergent behaviour of the AI-based systems requires new methodologies to guarantee transparency, explain ability, technical robustness and safety, privacy and data governance, non-discrimination and fairness, human agency and oversight, and societal and environmental wellbeing and accountability. These elements are crucial for ensuring that humans can understand and — consequently — establish calibrated trust in AI-based systems."
So, what are the next steps for us, and how can we ensure that we continue to stay ahead of the evolving risk landscape when it comes to AI-based systems?
By introducing an ethical dimension to run parallel to areas such as security and privacy within the design process, telecom could replicate a sustainable and proven model which would enable it to address ethical risks early in the development cycle. Such a model could definitively ensure the compliance of network-based AI systems with the principles of trustworthy AI based on ethics by design. In practice, this could potentially be operationalized through a combined methodology of guidelines, questionnaires and software which, according to the expert contributors of our latest AI ethics report, could be used throughout the development cycle to assess, for instance, the explicability of an algorithm or the unbiases of training datasets. By integrating such a combination of methodologies within the design process itself, telecom can deliver a sustainable, comprehensive, and novel framework which can support AI deployments which are lawful, ethical and robust. AI – with the best possible conditions for innovation.
AI for telecom: Real-life examples
Verizon Communications
Verizon, one of the largest CSPs in the world, is investing heavily in AI and ML technologies to improve network performance and customer service A recent partnership with mobile network operator Cellwize has resulted in the creation of a new intelligent platform that is facilitating the rollout of Verizon 5G sites and simplifying the development of network applications. Other AI-related partnerships include one with IBM and another with Google, whose Cloud Contact Center AI service will offer Verizon customers a more intuitive and natural way of interacting with Verizon’s support service using advanced natural language processing (NLP) features.
Vodafone
The British telecom giant Vodafone Group launched an assistant app called TOBi, a highly intelligent text bot capable of supporting users in dealing with issues, managing subscriptions, and purchasing new equipment and services.
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AWS Migration Services
Intellias collaborated with a major national telecommunications company, helping them transition to AWS for enhanced data processing and business intelligence. The telecom provider sought to optimize costs, improve scalability, and accelerate growth through AWS migration. In a two-month proof of concept, Intellias swiftly designed a custom cloud solution architecture, assessed resource requirements, and estimated infrastructure costs. This collaboration aimed to significantly reduce infrastructure expenses, boost revenue, and enhance customer retention by offering personalized services. The successful partnership between Intellias and the telecom giant paved the way for continued cooperation in delivering high-end solutions.
Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom has been making considerable investments in AI at various levels. From an AI-powered chatbot called Tinka, capable of providing over 1500 answers to customers’ questions, to intelligent business planning tools, Deutsche Telekom is actively embedding AI elements into its infrastructure and service portfolio.
Thanks to the power of the cloud, 5G, and AI, telecom companies can now provide customers with personalized assistance and answers, all in a friendly, human-like way. In the not-so-distant future, we might bid farewell to traditional human customer service agents as virtual assistants and chatbots take centre stage. The role of AI is expanding beyond customer insights; AI is getting good at predicting what consumers will do next and helping businesses make smarter decisions. This promises to cut costs, make customers happier, and keep them coming back for more. The potential for AI in telco is huge. Big players in the industry are embracing even smarter automation systems, which means smoother day-to-day operations and happier customers. Telecom companies on a digital transformation journey are finding success by getting AI into action early and building the right software. With AI’s supercharged data and human know-how, the sky’s the limit.
Bottom line
In the realm of AI and telecommunications is guiding an era of remarkable change. Dealing with complex networks, vast data, soaring expenses, and fierce competition, telecom providers find AI as a powerful partner. The application of AI not only streamlines operations but also elevates customer experiences and decision-making. As AI-powered virtual assistants and chatbots become commonplace, customers benefit from personalized interactions, while companies find themselves on the cusp of an AI-driven revolution. Telecom’s future is one where predictive analytics, cost-effective and elevated service quality reign supreme.
The telecommunications sector is not just at the brink of technological innovation; it is fully immersed in an era where AI holds the potential to redefine it. The adoption of AI in telecom promises a landscape where agility, cost-effectiveness, and enhanced customer satisfaction go hand in hand. Embracing AI’s capabilities today, telecommunications companies are poised to lead the way in delivering cutting-edge services and shaping the future of connectivity. It is a world where every interaction is smarter, every operation more efficient, and every connection more meaningful, setting the stage for a telecommunications industry that thrives in the age of artificial intelligence.
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Author: Adarsh Kumar
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