LAS VEGAS: Cloud and virtualization technology provider VMware announced that its innovative intelligent AI-enabled edge can help telecom operators deliver improved fifth-generation or 5G service quality to their fixed wireless access (FWA) subscribers.
“In fixed wireless access, this technology (Edge AI) can sit on top of 5G and deliver high bandwidth to both consumers and enterprises,” said Sanjay Uppal, vice president of Software-Defined Edge at VMware.
Executives believe that fixed wireless access tends to experience more packet loss than fiber-optic or copper-based technologies.
“At Broadcom, we’re adding AI intelligence to this space, enabling us to provide a much higher quality of service, not just with fixed wireless access, but also with converged networks using fiber optics and satellite.”
Last year, Hock Tan’s Broadcom acquired VMware for $69 billion in an effort to bolster its enterprise software business.
Analysts say Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware will usher in a new era of managed services, with Broadcom selling VMware’s virtualization and cloud services capabilities globally.
The US-based multinational said it is optimistic about the telecom business as service providers are rapidly adopting next-generation (5G) technologies, and offers a telco cloud platform for radio access network (RAN) and core.
“To make edge AI workloads fit into the network, we’ve built an intelligent overlay that started with an SD-WAN solution and now goes beyond that,” Uppal said.
He said the platform identifies workload and infrastructure capabilities and then makes decisions with a “careful overlay” around quality of service, security and access control.
Emerging innovations in the industry, such as AI, will provide workload efficiencies for communications service providers, enabling smoother network transformation.
The Palo Alto-based company said it offers cloud-native and virtual network capabilities for resiliency and faster service delivery.
Uppal further said the innovation will drive the company to offer AI Dynamic Multi-Path Optimization (DMPO) as part of an “intelligent overlay” that will enable operators to combine the two – fixed wireless access and fiber links – to provide an aggregated link to control network traffic.
“We already have 500,000 devices deployed, monitoring 5 trillion data points every year.”
VMware’s Telco Cloud Platform supports both containerized and virtualized network functions, modernizing telco cloud infrastructure and reducing complex operational processes, enabling faster rollout of innovative 5G services.
Earlier this year, Bharti Airtel partnered with Nokia, VMWare and Dell in Finland to build a unified 5G standalone core infrastructure based on cloud-native enhanced service automation and a secure, reliable and scalable network.
(The author is participating in VMware Explore in Las Vegas at the invitation of VMware LLC.)
