• The South Korean companies are already close collaborators
• They are also both members of the AI-RAN Alliance
• A key focus will be AI-enabled channel estimation that enables automated signal transmission in real time

SK Telecom (SKT) and Samsung Electronics are to jointly develop “core 6G technologies, with a primary focus on artificial intelligence-based radio access network (AI-RAN) technology,” the long-time South Korean partners have announced. 

The companies plan to “develop and test key technologies for the 6G era, including AI-based channel estimation, distributed multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, AI-RAN-based schedulers and core network architectures.” 

That the companies are collaborating on next-generation network options is not surprising: They are long-time partners and both are members of the AI-RAN Alliance, the industry group launched in late February 2024 (with Samsung as one of the founders) that includes AI-for-RAN, the use of AI tools to improve the performance and efficiency of radio access networks, as one of its key pillars. They recently jointly proposed an AI-based channel estimation technology that was officially approved by the alliance as a work item. 

The partners note that through predicting and correcting signal transmission in real time, AI-based channel estimation enhances network performance “by enabling faster, more accurate data delivery in environments where radio waves are distorted by obstacles, such as buildings or walls”, while AI-RAN schedulers and AI-based core networks “determine when, where and how to send data, ensuring efficient resource allocation even when many user devices are connected.”

Distributed MIMO technology, meanwhile, “allows multiple base stations or antennas to work together to transmit and receive data”, which is more efficient than the traditional RAN architecture process whereby a single base station handles data processing.  

Samsung Research is to develop AI-RAN technologies, while SKT’s network technology office “will lead data provision and test infrastructure setup based on its nationwide network operations”.

“Through field-focused collaboration with SKT, we will be able to verify the effectiveness of AI-based wireless technologies in real-world settings and secure key AI-RAN technologies at an early stage,” stated JinGuk Jeong, head of the Advanced Communications Research Center (ACRC) at Samsung Research. “We hope that continued collaboration between our companies will help pave the way for the rollout of 6G.”

Takki Yu, VP of SKT’s Network Technology Office, added: “The convergence of AI and wireless communications will be crucial to 6G competitiveness. Through our collaboration with Samsung Electronics, we plan to secure world-class AI-RAN-based 6G technologies and lead the global 6G ecosystem.”

AI-for-RAN is the pillar of the AI-RAN Alliance proposition that the network operator community agrees make sense, but not many telcos have joined the alliance as one of the other pillars, AI-and-RAN (the integration of AI and RAN processes on the same underlying infrastructure), is not regarded as being a near-term, obvious and efficient infrastructure option for many. 

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV