2021 Predictions: The Time for AI to Thrive Finally Comes

We’ve been hearing this a lot: AI will change the telecom industry. But years passed, and yes, artificial intelligence and machine learning have been becoming bigger and better, but they haven’t yet changed that much. We have seen neither truly disruptive innovation nor the long awaited revolution. 

Why and how should this change now?

2020 has been an unprecedented year, and 5G networks start to take over

With its sudden and unexpected developments, 2020 has been a big wake-up call for telecoms. Recent years were about technological evolution, but this one forced operators to speed up, and recast their infrastructures, networks, operations and services.
These 12 months have shown the industry that a real revolution is in demand. A revolution that will include the emergence of 5G services and popularization of AI/ML use across all different use cases.

5G services – what is that all about?

Vast deployment of 5G networks has sure made the emergence of new, disruptive services a bit more possible. With greater bandwidth, increased speed and reduced latency, communication service providers can finally start implementing innovative services, finally marrying CPS, VAS and IoT into one uniform ecosystem. But 5G connectivity isn’t the only enabler needed for the great digital revolution.

Operators must also prepare their core network, infrastructures, management software and operations, so that those will be able to provision and maintain these new services. And this is where AI/ML plays the critical role - enabling a competitive advantage.

AI/ML – the drivers of 2021 technological transformations

Most of the telecoms – big and small - are already implementing AI-driven solutions in one way or another. But 2021 will be the year in which all operators will have to consider applying pervasive AI technologies if they want to meet market and customer demand regarding new services.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning can help telcos take better care of the vast amount of data that they are and will be dealing with connected with every single customer and the service each one receives. Behind the scenes, AI/ML engines can build a holistic picture of a customer, their behavior patterns, preferences and needs. Data gathered in this manner can be then used smartly to provide better customer support in terms of product/service personalization and the overall approach to the client, to protect them from incoming threats and fraud thanks to solutions such as predictive and preventive maintenance, and to optimize network maintenance and management so as to increase the quality of services and customer experience.

AI – the possibilities of the future available today

Many operators are already benefiting from those technological advantages. Some of the biggest players on the market are introducing AI and ML software that help them generate, gather and utilize customer data in order to create well-targeted campaigns in real time. This means they can provide clients with the precise service or product that they are seeking at any given time. These technologies have also helped operators personalize customer experience. For example, AI/ML lets providers contact and provide support to customers who are thinking about leaving them for a competitor. Others are using artificial intelligence to protect themselves better from outside threats by introducing intelligent fraud management systems, as modern and comprehensive AI/ML solutions allow telecoms to predict certain events and perform preventive or corrective actions much faster than ever.

These technological benefits of artificial intelligence and machine learning, especially when it comes to bringing 5G services to life, will be the difference between survival and extinction in the future, and everything suggests that 2021 will be a year of trial for many telecoms and communication service providers in general.

If you’d like to learn more about 2021 predictions, and to discover what the future holds for telecommunications, download our free ebook here.