Capgemini’s Project Marconi is using machine learning on a radio access network card using an Intel processor boosts spectral efficiency by 15 percent for low latency 5G applications

European consultancy Capgemini has developed a machine learning framework that works with OpenRAN hardware to boost spectral efficiency in 5G cellular networks

Project Marconi uses the Open Radio Access Network OpenRAN guidelines to maximize spectrum efficiency with real-time predictive analytics in a 5G Mediua Access Control (MAC) schedule. This is optimised for Intel’s AI Software and third generation Intel Xeon Scalable processors.

Capgemini used its NetAnticipate5G and RATIO OpenRAN platform to introduce advanced AI/ML techniques. The AI powered predictive analytical solution forecasts and assigns the appropriate MCS (modulation and coding scheme) values for signal transmission through forecasting of the user signal quality and mobility patterns accurately. The project improved AI accuracy to 55 percent and reduced AI inference time to 0.64msec, a 41 percent improvement.

In this way, the RAN can intelligently schedule MAC resources to achieve up to 40 percent more accurate MCS prediction which gives 15 percent better spectrum efficiency in testing. This is particularly important for applications that use low latency connectivity such as robotics-based manufacturing and V2X (vehicle-to-everything).

The Capgemini ML software on the Intel Xeon increases the amount of traffic each cell can handle and allows more subscribers alongside new Industry 4.0 services such as enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) and Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC) use cases.

“Our teams worked closely with Intel to create a truly innovative solution that can really move the needle for operators,” said Walid Negm, Chief Research and Innovation Officer at Capgemini Engineering. “We gathered and utilized over one terabyte of data and conducted countless test runs with NetAnticipate5G to fine-tune the predictive analytics to meet diverse operator requirements. In short, machine learning can be deployed for intelligent decision-making on the RAN without any additional hardware requirement. This makes it cost efficient in the short run and future proof in the long run as we move into Cloud Native RAN implementations.”

“Our 3rd Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processors with built-in AI acceleration provide high performance for deep learning on the Net Anticipate 5G platform. Together, our collaboration delivered ultra-fast inference data to enhance the Open-Source ML libraries resulting in an intelligent RAN that can predict and quickly react to subscriber coverage requirements while reducing TCO,” said Cristina Rodriguez, VP of Wireless Access Network Division at Intel.

The €16bn Capgemini group has now integrated engineering group Altran that includes Cambridge Consultants, and has opened 5G R&D labs around Europe.

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Sunline and Huawei have jointly released the Digital Loan One Box solution, a global contactless solution for financial services.

According to the two companies, the solution will be rolled out across countries and regions, such as Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, where financial inclusiveness is urgently necessary.

Digital Loan One Box adopts an open strategy, allowing financial institutions to launch a wide range of contactless services, such as online loan product campaign, customer E-KYC, risk assessment, fund disbursement and post-loan processing.

The solution responds to the urgent need from both FIs and their customers for digital financial services. This requirement is ever more pressing amid the pandemic that many countries continue to battle.

As the cornerstones of national economies, financial institutions need contactless, digital, and online financial services, especially in the current situation. However, global banks face similar challenges in the course of digital transformation: huge costs and risks to replace legacy systems, limited budget and uncertain return on investment for transformation, lack of open business and technology experience, increasingly fierce competitions, and more demand of contactless service driven by the pandemic, etc.

Contactless finance refers to services where customers and banks do not need to interact face-to-face. Via omni-channels, it supports plug-in-based services, built-in businesses and out-of-the-box features.

“Amid the ongoing pandemic, the solution comes at the right time for financial institutions. It can satisfy the demands of efficient lending and loaning for both financial institutions and customers during such special times. Within this industry, we will continue to develop a global ecosystem and scenario-based solutions from 2C to 2B with global partners,” said Jason Cao, President, Global Financial Services Business Unit, Enterprise Business Group, Huawei. “Together with customers and partners in the industry, we will start with 5G and seize the opportunities across five major tech domains – connectivity, cloud, computing, AI and industry applications. Ultimately, we will provide scenario-based smart solutions and technologies to facilitate the digital transformation for financial customers.”

Hongan Li, Senior Vice President, Sunline, added that: “Sunline is a global banking IT service company. We keep innovating to lead in FinTech and enrich the interconnection of life. During COVID-19, we realised the urgent need for technological innovation, digital services, and open financial services global wide. In light of this, Sunline and Huawei are now launching the Digital Loan One Box Solution. The solution is designed for financial institutions and customers, especially for those lacking technology capabilities. It is based on Sunline’s enterprise-level microservices framework for banks. The agile platform features high flexibility, loose coupling, high performance, and distributed deployment. It meets the dynamic horizontal scaling requirements of financial institutions of any size at both the business and system demands. Our aim is to provide a solution that is practical and helpful in this extraordinary time.”

The Digital Loan One Box Solution is built on Huawei FusionCube Hyper-Converged Infrastructure, adopting the enterprise-level microservices banking framework EDSP released by Sunline in 2020.

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Finnish telecom gear maker Nokia on Tuesday announced a collaboration with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru to establish a network robotics laboratory for research on socially relevant use cases based on 5G and emerging technologies.

The Nokia Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Networked Robotics will promote interdisciplinary research involving robotics, advanced communication technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to develop use cases across areas like emergency management, agriculture and industrial automation, the company said.

The centre will promote engagement and cooperation between academia, start-ups and industry ecosystem partners in research and development of use cases.

The centre supports and aligns with the government’s initiatives of Start-up India.

The Nokia CoE will be available to the IISc community and its ecosystem partners for advanced research projects involving designing next-generation networks and applications of Artificial Intelligence for solving pertinent social problems.

“Collaboration with a global technology leader, Nokia, will go a long way in helping our students to gain knowledge and insights and make significant contributions to the development of innovative and societally relevant 5G use cases,” Professor G Rangarajan, Director, IISc, said in a statement.

“This is a critical initiative and it will help us move closer to finding technology-powered solutions to enrich our lives.”

Some of the use cases which the collaboration will explore include using drones for remote management of agricultural orchards to promote water conservation and avoid human contact with pesticide.

The researchers will also explore other use cases such as drones using a 5G-enabled wide-area network to gather situational information, helping first responders to save lives by quickly accessing the affected areas during disaster relief and drones for applications such as anticipating crop fires.

The collaboration aims to help IISc in capacity building and human resources development in cutting-edge technology of robotics, 5G and autonomous systems.

“Emerging technologies such as the 5G have potential to enable an entirely new array of use cases with a profound societal impact,” said Sanjay Malik, Senior Vice President and Head of India Market, Nokia.

“With Nokia’s rich innovation heritage, we aim to engage with the bright and young minds at IISc to nurture and advance the latest technologies that can benefit communities. We are confident that it will lead to the development of groundbreaking use cases.”

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More Internet of Things devices were installed last year than total smartphones owned in the world, and installed units are expected to double from 31 billion currently to 75 billion in 2025.

That huge increase will push the IoT market to $1.3 trillion in value by 2026, according to Verified Market Research, at a 25 percent annual growth rate.

The introduction of 5G is expected to supercharge the adoption and proliferation of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) devices, as businesses utilize edge computing to improve latency and the volume of data.  

“Apart from enhancing the automation of industrial operations and control, 5G-enabled IIoT devices can also minimize the complexity of supply chain networks and warehouse management, helping businesses to efficiently operate in dynamic business environments,” said Mogana Tashiani, Frost & Sullivan technical insights research analyst.

A shift from legacy systems and processes to a subscription economy, in which businesses pay for usage instead of controlling its entire operation, is also seen as a key shift that will happen in the next few years, benefiting the IoT market.  

The COVID-19 pandemic is another major driver for IoT adoption, as businesses tried to tackle social distancing requirements, many simply switched to automated or remote monitoring solutions. Even though some businesses may revert back to the old ways, many anticipate keeping them after the pandemic.

“COVID-18 is exposing a litany of challenges for manufacturers that highlight how important unlocking data and digital industrial innovation is to the industry’s future,” said James Destro, general manager at Hitachi Vantara.

Several major technology firms have retrofitted their IoT portfolio to fit with the coronavirus pandemic, as well as launching AI-embedded thermal scanners, robots, and cameras to ensure office workers maintain social distancing measures.

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The use of robotics has gradually gathered momentum over the past decade or so. If you were to step into a factory or even a warehouse right now it’s likely you’d see robots in full flow. But to date that’s just where they’ve stayed: firmly on the factory floor.

However, we’ve recently seen huge advances in AI, sensors, speech recognition and computer vision. All these technologies are combining with shrinking hardware costs and the rollout of 5G to make robotics more accessible than ever before. In our Technology Vision 2020 report, released in February earlier this year, we predicted that the convergence of these technologies would lead to a surge in the use of robotics ‘in the wild’ – non-enclosed public spaces – over the next three to five years.

This prediction was dramatically altered though by one of the biggest events to occur in our lifetime: Covid-19.

An accelerated immediate future

The pandemic has had a monumental impact on every walk of life and virtually every industry and business has been affected in some way. With social distancing in force and workers health the number one concern, this dramatic change of environment has paved the way for an acceleration in robotics in all aspects of society. As people have been asked to stay at home, robots have become critical to the ‘contact-less’ solutions businesses and governments have been striving for.

In the short-term, one area robotics is able to tackle effectively lies in managing volatility in demand and workforce available, while also creating a safe working environment for workers. Within warehouses, robotics are being used to manage uncertain demand and helping companies dynamically scale up or down their site productivity.

Robots are taking on new responsibilities during the pandemic ‘in the wild’ too, in many cases joining frontline workers in the fight against the virus as quickly as they can be produced. In Shenxhen, a start-up called Youlbot built an antivirus robot in just a couple of weeks. Its six ultraviolet bars can sanitize surfaces and its infrared camera scans for fevers among patients and the public. Similarly, Danish firm UVD Robots has developed a self-driving disinfection robot that uses UV light to completely disinfect rooms in just 10 minutes. It’s easy to see how useful these and similar robots would be in helping communities come out of lock-down, from public transport and schools to hotel rooms and restaurants. 

A growing impact long-term

Taking the long-term view, the entire robotics ecosystem is set to be dramatically accelerated as the case for robotics and automation becomes clearer in light of the pandemic. Industrial companies will increasingly turn to robotics to react to structural changes that will likely occur as a result of Covid-19. Take the supply chain, for example, the pandemic has shown how companies have to rethink their processes to be able to withstand macroeconomic shocks. Automation manufacturing and logistics processes can help to mitigate the sudden increased costs from having to move manufacturing capabilities quickly.

Again, looking beyond those controlled spaces, expect robotics to have a growing role ‘in the wild’. This will be backed up by the increase in 5G technology, just as 4G networks grew with the rising popularity of smartphones, with any robotics use cases requiring increased data transfer rates and low latency. This, in turn, will see the need for humans to maintain and control robots remotely grow, and new demand techniques and tools for teleoperations and VR training increase.

So, while today’s robotics leaders are stepping up to address the needs of businesses and society right now, those set to benefit long-term will be building the foundation of a more automated future. It’s key to form partnerships, enable new capabilities and work with governments to demonstrate new opportunities now.

Considerations

As robotics gather pace, there are still a number of considerations that businesses and developers must take into account in order to ensure the integration into society is a smooth one:

• Partnerships: It’s vital businesses look at the wider robotics landscape and build ecosystems that understand the standards, protocols, software and architecture already being developed to ensure they’re offering a competitive differentiator. Partnering with industry bodies or other companies can help to navigate this.
• Talent: A lack of skills in robotics across the industry could curtail efforts if businesses don’t focus on building their talent pipeline across patents, developers, technologists, architects and UX specialists. Using training, hiring new people, as well as collaborating with academia and industry is recommended to fill this gap.
• Automation anxieties: Concerns about automation have been temporarily pushed aside out of necessity. But what happens when we’ve got control over the pandemic – do robots continue to fulfil these tasks, or do businesses roll them back in storage? Whether it be through reskilling programs, or human-machine collaboration, businesses need to ensure they show considered, long-term thinking on how technologies will supplement their workforce. Otherwise, they face a significant backlash over putting profits before their people.

There are still questions to be answered about how businesses can best ease fears over the increase of robotics in society. However, as the world attempts to get back on its feet, robotics has shown that it does have a positive role to play. It should be an exciting time for businesses too. People being more used to daily robotic interactions could open a lot of new channels for businesses to interact with the world around them – this means increased customer interaction, data collection and even branding opportunities. Covid-19 has changed everything for everyone, but robotics is an area set to come out of the pandemic stronger than it was going into it.

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The pandemic has repeatedly reaffirmed our needs for robots. The time has come for industrial robots to take over factory floors and showcase the suite of benefits they bring to manufacturing.

Robots are generally known to automate repetitive tasks and free up valuable time for their human colleagues to take on more complex and creative tasks; the current social distancing measures have built a stronger case as to why we need robots. 

Industrial robots have a long legacy of assembling everything from heavy automobiles, airplanes, electrical appliances, and are now even bring developed for more domestic tasks such as sorting out your trash.

Globally, robots have demonstrated remarkable versatility and strength in taking over human labor with consistent speed and precision. This highly efficient employee has won over factory owners. The global industrial robot market size is predicted to hit US$66.48 billion by 2027, exhibiting a CAGR of 15.1% during the forecast period, states Fortune Business Insights.

Although there is a phenomenal growth in industrial robots, a new report titled Rogue Automation by Trend Micro Research found that some robots have existing flaws that make them susceptible to cyber-attacks. 

The research paper aims to “reveal previously unknown design flaws that malicious actors could exploit to hide malicious functionalities in industrial robots and other automated, programmable manufacturing machines.”

Since robots are generally connected to networks and programmed via software, they could potentially pose as entry points for bad actors. The report listed several real-life examples of flaws found in the software produced and distributed by Swiss-Swedish multinational corporation ABB, one of the world’s largest industrial robot producers. Researchers also spotted vulnerabilities in the popular open-source software named “Robot Operating System Industrial” or ROS-I.  

Researchers discovered vulnerabilities in an app written in ABB’s proprietary programming language and used to automate industrial machines. The discovered flaw is the very tool that hackers can leverage on and gain access to networks, exfiltrating valuable files, and sensitive data.

“Industrial secrets are traded for very high prices in underground marketplaces and have become one of the main targets of cyberwarfare operations,” the study noted. 

The research also found a vulnerability that attackers can exploit to interfere with a robot’s movements via a network. By spoofing (an unknown source disguising as a known, trusted source to communicate) network packets, attackers can cause unintended movements or interrupt existing flows of set procedure, but adequately configured safety systems could make it challenging for hackers to succeed. This vulnerability found in a ROS-I’s software component was written for Kuka and ABB robots. 

The report clarified that appropriate measures were taken to deal with the discovered vulnerability. “One was removed by the vendor (ABB) upon our responsible disclosure. The other vulnerabilities fostered a fruitful conversation with ROS-Industrial, which led to the development of some of the mitigation recommendations described,” as written in the report.

Robotics are continuing to show their worth on the factory floors, and while they’ve been a fixture in many industries such as car manufacturing for decades, they are becoming increasingly advanced and versatile. Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), cloud, and 5G are fueling the evolution of highly automated and increasingly intelligent industrial robots. 

The International Federation of Robotics estimates that by 2022, we will see close to 4 million industrial robots in factories worldwide. At the same time, the intricately connected networks between machines and systems are susceptible to the growing scale and robustness of cyberattacks.

Dr. Nicholas Patterson, a cybersecurity lecturer at Deakin University, commented that the security risks are not limited to industrial robots but also home-based robots such as robotic vacuum cleaners and drones.

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Nokia is setting up a robotics lab at the Indian Institute of Science for Research. Dubbed the ‘Nokia Centre of Excellence for Networked Robotics’, the center will serve as a hub for research into robotics, advanced communication technologies and artificial intelligence (AI).

A particular focus will be the development of “socially relevant” use cases across areas like emergency management, agriculture and industrial automation. The aim is to promote engagement between academia, startups and industry stakeholders. The initiative also aligns with Start-up India, an initiative started by the Indian government in 2015.

On announcing the launch, Nokia said emerging technologies such as 5G have potential to enable an “entirely new array of use cases with a profound societal impact.”

“With Nokia’s rich innovation heritage, we aim to engage with the bright and young minds at the Institute to nurture and advance the latest technologies that can benefit communities.

“We are confident that it will lead to the development of ground-breaking use cases.”

The Centre of Excellence will comprise a state-of-the-art network robotics lab, which will be available to the Institute’s community and partners for advanced research projects involving and designing next-gen networks and applications of AI for solving pertinent social problems.

The collaboration will see Nokia leverage its expertise in robot orchestration, robot network controller and human-robot interaction. The Institute, meanwhile, will engage its cross-disciplinary faculty and researchers, and provide its in-house expertise in algorithms, drones and robotic systems.

Some of the use cases which the tie-up plans to explore include using drones for remote management of agricultural orchards to promote water conservation and avoid human contact with pesticide, as well as the use of drones employing 5G-enabled wide-area network to gather situational information to help first responders, and drones that can help anticipate crop fires.

Drones in India

As noted by Computer Weekly, drone laws for non-defence applications have recently eased up somewhat in India. The country’s Ministry of Civil Aviation has given exemptions to government agencies for drone operations in the fight against COVID-19. Now, programs in development by airline SpiceJet, Google-backed Dunzo, among a slew of others, have the greenlight to operate on an experimental basis until September 30 this year.

This will allow those operators to pilot drones beyond the visual line of sight for transportation of goods, with the limited experiments serving as a basis for further laws which could allow long-range drone operations, such as for deliveries. Currently, laws limit drone operations to line of sight operations, limiting applications to surveillance.

“The ultimate relevance of technology is to find solutions to improve the quality of our lives,” said Professor G Rangarajan, Director at Indian Institute of Science, commenting on the partnership.

“Collaboration with a global technology leader, Nokia, will go a long way in helping our students to gain knowledge and insights and make significant contributions to the development of innovative and societally relevant 5G use cases.

“This is a critical initiative and it will help us move closer to finding technology-powered solutions to enrich our lives.”

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The global internet of everything (IoE) market is estimated to register a CAGR of 15.2% during the forecast period of 2020-2030, according to a new market intelligence report.

Governments of most developed and developing countries are focusing on smart city projects to implement new technologies, which ensures optimal utilization of the available resources. The primary aim of these smart cities is to provide superior connectivity that ensure a healthy lifestyle by keeping pollution levels in check through sensors and alerts.

In 2019, spending on smart city initiative reached approximately $95 billion, which indirectly hints have investments in Internet of Everything (IoE).  As governments are investing and focusing on smart cities the adoption of technologies like Blockchain, smart sensors, Internet of Things (IoT), wireless communication, and 5G has increased. Deployment of these advanced technologies is expected to ensure improvements in terms of city orientation and solutions to many problems such as safety, energy utilization, traffic, pollution, and recreation.

Various kind of electronic equipment is used to build solutions for smart traffic, smart homes, smart security, and utilities. As a result, there is an increase in demand for connected devices such as smart meters, home gateways, smart appliances, sensors, smart plugs, IoT, and IOE.

Internet of Everything also plays an important role connecting people, things, data and processes in network of billions of automatic connections. These automatic connections will create a vast amount of data that can be analyzed and used for decision making and thus can have boundless applications in a smart city and beyond.

The ability to IoE to simplify complex business process and handle vast amount of data has also improved the scope of its application in healthcare, transport and logistics, and other industries.

Internet of Everything (IoE) Market: Key Takeaways

• During the forecast period healthcare segment is estimated to register a CAGR of 20.3%, leading the way for the market

• Mobile & wearable device segment to dominate in 2020 with a market share of 38.5% followed by smart cities and connected cars  
• Software segment is expected to be the key component of Internet of Everything by registering a growth of 17% Y-o-Y
• South Asia & Pacific internet of everything (IoE) market is expected to witness high growth rate with investment by governments for smart city projects and increasing penetration of smartphones

COVID-19 Impact Analysis on Internet of Everything (IoE) Market

The economy is facing an unprecedented impact due to COVID-19. However, it has tested the capabilities of technologies such as IoT, IoE, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and others as businesses have been swift in adopting them to deal with overnight lockdowns and remote working conditions.

Organizations rapidly adopting work from home policy have spent about 10-15% of their budgets in the Q1-2020 on workplace collaboration related technologies. Many manufacturing and retail companies are currently affected by production, shipping, and distribution delays due to pandemic, so in response companies are adopting digital twins to create digital representation of the end-to-end supply chain that helps customers to explore dynamic sourcing options.

The pandemic has fuelled a surge in IoT healthcare applications like telehealth consultation, remote monitoring, digital diagnostic, and robot assistance. The telehealth consultation has increased to 620 digital visits per day from 20 digital visit before COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, Asia Pacific region had only 7% of IoT solutions in healthcare sector, which has witness a growth by 5% in COVID-19 pandemic.

The growing awareness amongst people to avoid touching vulnerable surfaces such as light switches, door knobs, and other things, particularly after touching the parcels or packages, is expected to propel use of smart home devices like smart speakers, doorbells, security systems to open doors, switch on light, etc. This emerging trend is expected to increase the demand of smart home devices by approximately 40% through the forecast period.

“Key players are forming alliances with players that offer and deliver innovative and differentiated services in various industrial sectors. Thus, partnerships, collaborations, and acquisitions to enhance customer base and presence in the market is anticipated to be an emerging trend. Players are focusing on offering IoE cloud-based solutions that to maintain better security,” says Report Analyst.

Increasing Penetration of Smart Devices is Spurring Market Growth

Penetration of smart devices like smartphones, smart watches, smart appliances, and others is increasing in various sectors such as healthcare, transportation, retail, manufacturing, and others.

According to estimates, the number of internet-connected devices or smart devices will reach approximately 50 Bn in 2020. Due to increasing penetration of smart devices the demand for IoE will skyrocket as it assigns digital identifier to smart devices, providing users, a new way to connect, communicate, and share. Smart devices such as smartphones help form an intelligent network that can be accessed and controlled online under IoE.

The IoE describes an environment where smart devices can sense the environment through the use of sensors to detect the status, process data, retrieve useful information, measure the condition, connect over public or private networks using standard protocol, and communicate over the internet and control the behavior adaptively.

The penetration of smartphone is increasing as smartphones are used for monitoring and controlling the process of smart home products. This will allow users to control power usage of different appliances, smartphone capabilities, and sensors, which will play an important role in identification, tracking, and localization. The number of smartphones worldwide exceeded 2.8 billion in 2019, which highlights tremendous scope for IoE in the near future. 

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Baidu, Inc. recently announced that it will increase its investments in cloud computing, AI education, AI platforms, chipsets, and data centers in the coming ten years as part of its efforts to construct “new infrastructure” for the smart economy of the future.

Under the plan, Baidu aims to have 5 million intelligent cloud servers by 2030 and train 5 million AI professionals within 5 years, which will help facilitate the widespread application of AI in transportation, city management, finance, energy, health care, and manufacturing to eventually achieve industrial intelligence.

“New infrastructure–which encompasses emerging technologies like AI, cloud computing, 5G, IoT, and blockchain–will be the driver for China’s economic development in the coming decades,” said Baidu Chief Technology Officer Haifeng Wang, underscoring the importance of the plan.

As a world-leading AI platform company, Baidu is well positioned to make large contributions to the development of new infrastructure in China, which will support the implementation of AI applications in different industries.”

The investment plan will see Baidu deploy 5 million intelligent cloud servers by 2030, an ambitious target that would create a combined computing capability equal to seven times the total calculable computing power of the world’s existing top 500 supercomputers.

Viewing human capital as a core component of new infrastructure, Baidu also intends to train 5 million AI professionals in the next five years. Baidu has been working with more than 200 leading universities in China to develop courses related to AI and deep learning and has already trained more than 1 million AI experts.

As a developer of both AI infrastructure and AI applications, Baidu is well-positioned to contribute to building new style infrastructure, which is at the core of China’s “New Infrastructure” policy to accelerate economic growth and industrial upgrade.

Baidu has more than 7,000 published AI patent applications in China, the highest in the country. The AI open platform Baidu Brain has made available more than 250 core AI capabilities to over 1.9 million developers, while PaddlePaddle, the largest open-source deep learning platform in China, services 84,000 enterprises. Baidu’s Kunlun and Honghu AI chips are among the highest preforming AI chips and are built for a wide range of scenarios. Baidu Cloud is China’s leader in public cloud and AI cloud services with more than ten data centers across the country.

This new infrastructure is already allowing Baidu to lead the intelligent transformation of different industries. Baidu’s smart finance products serve nearly 200 financial institutions, while Baidu’s intelligent healthcare prouducts are deployed at more than 300 hospitals and 1500 grassroots medical institutions. Baidu Brain for Cities is already in place in Chongqing, Suzhou, and other cities, supporting more intelligent city management. Baidu’s new investments will enhance its ability to rollout AI applications in these scenarios, as well as in manufacturing, energy, and transportation.

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Projects have fallen off his wish list during the Covid-19 response but Vodafone chief executive Jason Paris has no plans to apply the brakes to deployment of its 5G network, as the firm focuses on the “internet of things.”

“It is a massive opportunity for business, offering lower latency, speed and security,” he said.

“New Zealand was the 22nd country in the world to roll it out and that was important for us not to get left behind.

“5G brings applications for remote health, autonomous vehicles and things like smart sensors, which allow schools to halve their heating bills, for example.”

Paris said while some operating expenditure and strategic moves had been shelved as the firm shifted into “survival minimum” mode, there were those investments that were the “right things to do” for the longer-term business and its customers.

He told a Trans-Tasman Business Circle video conference yesterday that because data usage was up overall that didn’t mean telcos were making more money.

“Our roaming revenue stopped overnight during shutdown. People are using wifi at home and more people using more data means we have to upgrade our services, with the extra cost of doing that.”

He said from a customer perspective there was also an increased number of hardship requests and provision for bad debts. “So we are helping customers navigate that.”

Shareholder backing

Paris said that, until its sale to the Infratil/Brookfield Asset Management consortium last May for $3.4 billion, Vodafone NZ had been effectively “held back” for the previous five years during which investment was constrained and it was executing to a Vodafone Group strategic template, 50 per cent of which was irrelevant to New Zealand.

“Under the consortium, we are focused 100 per cent on our New Zealand strategy, so we now have a massive opportunity to be more cloud-based and more agile.”

He said the New Zealand and Canadian ownership mix had also created a positive dynamic. “They have different bents, with their level of aggression and retail balancing well – overall we have a clear vision as to where we’ll be in three to five years’ time.”

Unlocking regional talent

Vodafone was reviewing how changes to the workplace could change the way it ran its own business.

As an example, some companies which had previously declined to have people working outside Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch, were now unlocking regional capabilities.

Paris said that might result in reduced office space, and headcount, across Vodafone’s main offices.

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