By Paolo Talamo, Account Executive, Snowflake
The world of telecommunications is at a crucial turning point. On the one hand it continues to develop services that go far beyond traditional ones, on the other it is taking on a key role in different sectors, from transport to healthcare, which billions of consumers around the world rely on daily. According to PwC, Global data consumption on telco networks will almost triplegrowing from 3.4 million petabytes in 2022 to 9.7 million petabytes in 2027. This is enormous amounts of information that, if harnessed correctly, will open the door to a new era of modernization, transforming the way sector operates and allowing operators to offer a very high level service to consumers and, more generally, to society.
In this evolution, a fundamental role is played by technology, which sees artificial intelligence (AI) and automation already widely present in the sector. Automation guides the performance of certain tasks, while AI intelligently decides which tasks to consider. Together, these two technologies will become the cornerstone of the industry’s digital transformation journey, optimizing areas ranging from customer experience, to field operations response times, to the achievement of sustainability goals.
Here are four areas that will undergo important transformations over the next few years.
Shorter response times
One of the main benefits offered by artificial intelligence and automation in the world of telecommunications will be the improvement of the customer experience (CX). Social and technological changes are having a profound impact on customer expectations, priorities and behaviors. A concrete example is the use of chatbots. A research conducted by indigo.ai on the Italian market it highlighted that this ranks third among the most used tools for communicating with companies, with 47% of preferences. At the same time, around 50% of those interviewed say they would use chatbots more if they were even more precise, 26% would like more empathy, while 20% would like more timely responses. The results emerging from those under 24 highlight how they look at chatbots with even greater optimism, linking this technology to the progress of AI: 55% admit that ChatGPT has improved the perception of these tools, while 64% maintain that AI will bring progress within society.
Looking ahead, generative AI and Large Language Models (LLMs) will play an increasingly important role in meeting these needs. Specifically, LLMs represent a quick and effective means of accessing data. If a user has to contact their telecommunications provider for answers, they can compensate by using LLMs that are able to provide the requested information, even the most difficult to find, thus avoiding a negative experience. These models can offer the same customer support capabilities to help customers with the speed and accuracy they expect. A further development is represented by instant translation systems, which allow the use of agents from different countries, maintaining the service offered to the customer timely and satisfactory.
Make data accessible
For non-experts, working with data has always been extremely complex. Today, with the growing diffusion of generative artificial intelligence, these users can access and understand otherwise indecipherable information. The ability to ask questions in your own language allows you to benefit from data sharing. For engineers who design networks, but don’t work directly with data, LLMs will offer the ability to identify the insights they need, for example into local weather patterns, without having to deal with complicated and messy data.
In this way, the benefits of big data can spread throughout the enterprise, rather than being confined to data scientists, and transform enterprises into truly data-driven businesses.
Using AI in the field
It is well known how useful AI technology is for extracting the data necessary for strategic decisions related to network engineering, but it can also be extremely useful for obtaining concrete answers in the field, in real time. If a tree falls and damages a mobile service tower, for example, it can be difficult for operators present, who do not have access to all the data relating to the incident, to make decisions without sending crews to the scene.
In this case, the data selection capabilities of LLMs can come into play, simplifying data reception and assisting important decisions. LLMs make data from geospatial and localization services available which, combined with satellite images, allow operators to have a complete picture of what happened, allowing them to send the right person at the right time, achieving maximum efficiency .
Improve sustainability
A Vodafone campaign
Efficiency is becoming an increasingly important element when considering a telecommunications provider’s sustainability goals. Companies in the sector face growing pressure from consumers, investors and regulators to reduce their carbon footprint and achieve net zero emissions. At the same time, they are facing a growing demand for services, driven by trends such as smart working, digitalisation and cloud-based solutions. Energy-efficient technologies, such as autonomous grids, will play a critical role in the global decarbonization effort.
What is an autonomous network? In the same way that an autonomous car can save fuel by intelligently staying at an optimal speed without unexpected acceleration or deceleration, autonomous networks automatically find the optimal configuration for the network, reducing waste. Artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) can automate network management tasks, resulting in significant cost savings, faster responses to problems, improved customer experiences and, most importantly, reduced energy consumption. In the future, truly autonomous networks will manage their own consumption and operations, ushering in a new era of high performance and sustainability.
In general, AI and automation suggest a smarter future for the telecommunications sector. This market, now more important than ever for the global economy, is at a crossroads when it comes to technology. The intelligent use of automation and AI has the potential to delight customers and offer more sustainable and innovative services. Industry leaders must recognize the benefits of simplified access to data, moving beyond legacy technology, and using AI and automation to build a smarter future. Considering how integral telecommunications are now to numerous sectors within society, this is not a transition to be taken lightly.