- The network edge and AI are driving opportunities for telcos to diversify into new business
- Enterprises seek edge computing from telcos on top of connectivity
- AI automation is being designed into 6G from the ground up, not bolted on later
DELL TECHNOLOGIES WORLD, LAS VEGAS — The network edge and AI are driving opportunities for telcos to diversify into new business, according to a leader in Dell's telco business.
Enterprises come to telcos seeking connectivity, and then they need more, said Andrew Vaz, VP product management in the Dell Infrastructure Solutions Group, in an interview with Fierce. "It's a nice takeaway for the telecom operator. It's like, 'You want fries to go with that burger?'" he said.
Much of that interest is driven by telcos' enterprise customers seeking managed services from telcos on-prem or on the edge. AI-RAN helps telcos satisfy that interest by running multiple workloads in a single box, Vaz said.
For example, an enterprise in India built greenfield, automated plants for manufacturing automobile parts. "Their goal was to build a fully as-close-to-autonomous manufacturing plant as they could," Vaz said. Autonomous robots connected by a private wireless network move materials. The plant uses AI and video to inspect parts. And AI performs visual security and safety checks.
Using AI and automation, the facility can run 24/7 and more safely than traditional manufacturing operations, Vaz said.
Similarly, agricultural businesses use sensors to improve crop yields. Water utilities, military and airports are all using AI and automation. The software is containerized, running on platforms with GPU, CPU and private 5G combined in a single box, Vaz said.
Telcos provide connectivity for these enterprises — SD-WAN, for example — and the enterprises come to the telcos for edge compute as well. "You can combine the SD-WAN and edge compute on the same device and put that on-prem, with customer premises equipment offering a more advanced service," Vaz said.
To that end, Dell debuted the PowerEdge XR9700, a ruggedized telco server optimized for the edge, in February, with plans to ship at the end of the year. The device is about the size of a backpack, making it easier and safer for technicians to carry it up utility poles, and is a fully enclosed unit with built-in liquid cooling, capable of operating from -40 degrees C to 40 degrees C. "We basically spray the CPU to keep it cool in the device," Vaz said.
What about network automation?
Network automation is another priority driving operator conversations with Dell, Vaz said. Dell is doing a proof-of-concept with Telstra to implement closed-loop network operations using AIOps — for example, optimizing server CPU utilization by moving workloads or reconfiguring, Vaz said.
Telcos are writing agents to monitor the network, check security and respond to anomalies, transitioning from rule-based to agent-based automation, he said.
And AI automation is foundational to the emerging 6G standard, with autonomous healing and operations written into the spec, not added later, Vaz said.
Customer data, disaggregated infrastructure and sovereignty are competitive advantages for telcos and other operators in the current economy, according to Michael Dell, company chairman and CEO, in a briefing with press and analysts earlier this week.
Telcos are finally transforming after more than a decade of promise, said Sandro Tavares, who until recently led Dell's telecom marketing and now heads enterprise server marketing (including telco), in an interview with Fierce this week. That transformation is built on a foundation of open RAN, he said — although open RAN still represents less than 25% of actual deployments globally, according to a report done by Dell in partnership with Analysys Mason a year ago.
Also this week, Dell launched a broad set of advancements for its on-premises stack to help enterprises and their telco partners build sovereign AI infrastructure.