AsiaInfo CTO Ouyang Ye Attended the 2019 World Artificial Intelligence Conference: AI Makes 5G Ecosystem Smarter

2019-09-17 AsiaInfo

Recently, the 2019 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) jointly sponsored by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the State Internet Information Office, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as the Shanghai Municipal People's Government was held in Shanghai. With the theme of "Intelligent Connectivity, Infinite Possibilities", this conference gathered the most influential AI scientists and entrepreneurs in the world, who have made discussions and communication on cutting-edge technologies, industry trends and the hot issues in the field of intelligence.


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Dr. Ouyang Ye, chief technology officer and vice president of AsiaInfo, was invited to attend the "5G & AI Forum", where he shared his vision of 5G and AI technology together with Xu Yu, director of the Informationization Promotion Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Feng Junlan, chief scientist of China Mobile Research Institute, and Vice President Liu Song of Alibaba, Vice President Liu Songlin of iFlytek, Vice President Qie Xiaohu of Didi Chuxing, Vice President Liu Daofu of Cambrian, and Liang Weiming, director of Software Engineering Division of Forward-looking Technology Research Department of SAIC Group. Dr. Ouyang expressed his views on the evolution of the communication industry in the 5G + AI era, the science and technology ethics and industry rules of the AI era, and the "three global domains" of 5G.


5G Era The role of AI will change from "attachment" to "core component"


Dr. Ouyang Ye pointed out that in the evolution of mobile communication technology from 1G to 4G, whether it was for the CRM system or the Billing system in the service domain, or network infrastructure such as the wireless, core network or transmission network, AI has not been defined as a core function or standard network element in the communication standard protocol. In the 5G era, communication standards organizations such as 3GPP and ORAN began to define the functions of AI in communication networks and service systems.


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The concept of "AI Makes 5G Ecosystem Smarter" is not only reflected in the 5G customized communication service solutions, but also standardized and commercialized in the network element, node and communication core business systems. This is a big shift and improvement over the definition of traditional communication networks and business architectures.


In the 5G era, Network AI will not only be limited to the application layer, but also will be integrated into the communication network infrastructure itself. Both communication software function and hardware network element have begun to use AI to realize automation and intelligent empowerment. Taking AI as a core capability of 5G networks and services is one of the important signs of 5G intelligence.


In the inter-generational evolution rule of traditional communication technology, the scientists at Bell Labs first defined the physical layer, the data link layer and the network layer, and finally, the application layer; that is, they first established the physical layer, and then let the application layer to play its role.


Now, in turn, OTT companies are pushing the operators and vendors of communication hardware and software to meet the needs at the application layer and construct the infrastructure capabilities from the physical layer to the network layer reversely, which is very obvious in the 5G era. That is, starting from the entrance of the application layer or application, the operators and equipment vendors in the communication industry are forced to provide better hardware and software basic capabilities that can carry better user experience and perception.


AI Era Calling for new technology ethics and industry rules


Dr. Ouyang Ye believes that for the governance and ethics of AI, from the perspective of the development of communication technology itself, we should actively define the ethics and rules of AI in the standard system of AI and 5G while developing administrative rules. When the big data technology became popular 10 years ago, there was no GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) at the beginning, but in the process of development, rules have been gradually developed in the industry. The regulators in the communication industry have set some restrictions for the operators, and finally both of them will achieve a convergence; the process of regulation on big data privacy and ethical can be used by AI for reference.


5G + AI Global virtualization, global intelligence, global perceptibility


On June 20, AsiaInfo released its 5G strategy, namely, "global virtualization, global intelligence, and global perceptibility".


5G networks and services require us to focus on "virtualization" in the 5G era. After "virtualization", software and hardware are decoupled; Software is related with  network business and network infrastructure, after the "intelligence", the "intelligent" node is divided into two steps - starting with "automation" and then "intelligence"; The global "perceptibility" is to realize "perception", "cognition" and "prediction" with "5G + AI", and provide quality service to the users at the network and service level and let them have a good network and service-aware experience.


Dr. Ouyang Ye pointed out that AsiaInfo is a long-term provider of business software core systems and solutions in China's telecom industry. Through continuous capability optimization, we provide "carrier-grade" software products and quality solutions for large business customers in various industries. In addition to the telecommunication industry, we have also carried out successful operations in the broadcasting, postal, financial, automotive, and energy industries.


At the end, Dr. Ouyang wished all practitioners in the communications industry could use the AI knowledge and skills in a humble manner to make 5G smarter and more powerful, provide quality services for users in their respective fields and promote the sound development of the industry.