TEX2018 and The Evolution of Telecom
If you work in the Telecom Industry, or if your business operates in the Telecom ecosystem, then one event that is a must to attend is Telecom Exchange — TEX2018. This event spans both coasts of the United States, taking place yearly in New York City in June, and in Los Angeles in November. For those unfamiliar with Telecom, it is usually thought of as a legacy industry from a bygone era; a dinosaur of sorts, taking its place alongside mainframes and gramophones, in the annals of history. However, that couldn’t be farther from the truth! Telecom is alive and well and is an industry that is continuously evolving to support and even pioneer new technologies.
Telecom, today, includes technologies such as Cloud, data networks, broadband, metropolitan Wi-Fi, mobile phones, next-generation wireless: 5G, subsea cables, and even IoT! Industries that work in harmony with Telecom include Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence. This year’s Telecom Exchange, TEX2018, in New York City was true to its industry and represented all the technologies mentioned above, and then some.
The event opened up with a keynote, delivered by Melvin Greer, Chief Data Scientist of Americas of Intel, discussing the opportunities and challenges of AI and data transformation on network platforms. Mr. Greer discussed using Artifical Intelligence as a catalyst for innovation.
There is a saying that Data is the new oil. This is especially true for Data Centers and Network Operators, who need Data to be proactive with their services. The industry is headed towards sensor-enabling every device and person on Earth! This will create copious amounts of Data, that can be leveraged by device manufacturers and service providers, to provide the ultimate in differentiation: Personalization.
For example, Vodaphone recently implemented a customer experience solution, where within three seconds of a customer contacting their support center, artificial intelligence will provide the agent with a list of all the products and services that this customer is most likely to sign up for! Personalization is where business is headed, and service providers need to pay attention to this, now!
What is your company doing to develop the skills of your employees?
The number one impediment for companies wanting to be proactive with regards to personalization is a lack of skilled resources. The discussion brought up a statistic that 87% of Data Centers and Telecom providers can’t find people with the right skills! Data Science is a hot field, and schools need curriculums in Data Science.
Following the keynote, there were 4 CEO roundtable presentations. The first one was titled:
If It Can Be Hacked… Network Security & The New Reality
One significant concept that was discussed was the fact that the bad guys are continuously scanning our networks to exploit vulnerabilities. Recently, 25,000 CCTV cameras were hacked to form a botnet to launch a massive DDoS attack. More than 100,000 Smart TVs and Refrigerators were converted into cyber weapons to send out millions of malicious spam emails. Hackers hijacked printers and set-top-boxes to mine bitcoins!
There were several potential solutions discussed.
1. The way to combat cybercrime is through knowledge sharing, similar to the way Healthcare evolved through data sharing. This is a compelling statement!
2. Consumers need to carefully choose IoT Manufacturers who build in the capability for over the air (OTA) patches. This will ensure security for vulnerabilities that don’t even exist yet.
3. Manufacturers need to develop and deploy a hardware-based kill switch that can instantly deactivate an infected device.
4. We, the consumers of IoT devices, need to start questioning the outbound connections of every device on the network. Who is this device talking to? Why is it going there? We can’t do this on our own. We need the help of Artificial Intelligence to effectively analyze the data streams.
5. We, as an industry, need to be wary of nations, which are hostile to the United States, who may intentionally sell us compromised devices, that would create a digital sleeper cell for cyberterrorism!
Ultimately, security is our collective responsibility. We need to ensure that access to data is only granted on a need to have basis, and that every user can be tied back to specific devices and IP Addresses via a Digital Signature.
The second CEO roundtable was called:
The Investment in Network Infrastructure: Who’s Responsible & Where’s the Profit.
The topic of 5G came up. People are concerned about how long the existing underlying infrastructure will last, and the consensus was that it’s better to run more fiber than less, and that people want dark fiber. There is a demand to build faster networks, which is being influenced by large OTT players, which in turn is ultimately being influenced by us, the people. The public is demanding more data-intensive applications, which are driving the demand for exponential growth in network speed. Because of this, the only way to remain competitive in Telecom is to recruit new people, who think differently and can help solve the dilemma of funding the new, faster, infrastructure, more creatively.
This discussion resulted in three action items to build better partnerships, and finance infrastructure:
1. Establish a Youth Council to attract young blood to Telecom, and have industry leaders be guest lecturers in colleges and universities.
2. Create a Women’s Council to attract more women to Telecom.
3. To solve the problem of financing the massive investment in infrastructure, we will need to think our way out of it. Items #1 and #2 above will add new perspectives, which can fuel creative thinking to help build better partnerships based on providing value — and not necessarily the transaction of cash changing hands. Make your customer’s needs your needs, and you will be successful.
The third roundtable was called:
Next Generation Wireless: 5G, DAS, Small Cells & the Necessary Infrastructure
The session commenced with a prediction that within 5 years every floor of every building will be a cell site! However, there is a problem. Our current legacy backbone network won’t support 5G. Therefore, we need a new and cost-effective network infrastructure. As a result, now is an excellent time to install fiber, as the underlying technology won’t change anytime soon. This raised the question if everyone is laying all this fiber, how do we monetize our investment in the new infrastructure?
The challenge we are facing with building new infrastructure is twofold:
1. The cost of wireless infrastructure is too expensive. Costs must go down to be feasible.
2. The current generation phones (microchips) won’t support the next generation infrastructure. Therefore, to monetize the investment, consumer devices must go through a refresh, which won’t happen right away.
We can’t afford to spin our wheels in this no-win scenario, because there are countries that have already successfully deployed 5G infrastructure. The United States must solve the problem of upgrading our infrastructure, or risk becoming a second-rate player!
Two creative ideas that were mentioned, which can help solve the monetization problem are as follows:
1. Governments should utilize their wireless infrastructure for Smart City initiatives. This will make them more competitive, and as a result, they can recoup their investment cost.
2. Landlords can pick up some of the investment cost, and then pass it along to tenants. As of this writing, there is a cost difference, in rental rates in New York City, between connected and non-connected buildings.
This session ended on a similar note to the previous one, where we will solve the cost challenge of 5G by being creative, and with collaborative value propositions.
The event closed with CEO Roundtable 4:
Humans Vs. Machines: AI, Skynet & Network Safeguards
The session opened with a discussion on practical applications where AI can assist in the workplace:
1. Automation + AI results in new jobs being created, which provides a significant boost to the workplace. This also shapes new university curriculums.
2. AI assists with providing Emotional Intelligence when interacting with our customers.
3. With the advent of IoT, deluges of data are being produced. AI will help analyze the deluge of data efficiently and correctly, which is something a human can’t possibly do!
Robots in the Data Center!
Besides robots being employed to pull cable, data centers are utilizing robots of a different variety. Data center operators are rolling out applications with chatbots and Alexa like features, to be able to differentiate themselves in the marketplace.
Here are some other practical applications for AI in the real world:
· AI hooked up to an exoskeleton can help augment human strength.
· The Federal Government is deploying nano-bots for defense purposes. Nanobots are hooked up with cameras and microphones, which make an excellent reconnaissance tool!
· The US Military is utilizing AI to monitor the cognitive state of fighter pilots. For example, if the pilot is disoriented, AI will augment their cognitive state to safely fly the aircraft!
The role of AI in Medicine
Given that AI is permeating every area of our lives, there are concerns about the ethical use of AI in medicine. For example, AI is being utilized for immunotherapy that is based on your personal DNA, as opposed to the one size fits all approach that’s available in today’s medical world. There are two concerns with having this kind of power:
1. We need to ensure that this kind of technology does not fall into the hands of people or nations that would like commit ethnical cleansing, as the results would be devastating.
2. This kind of technology generates data on a personal level that has never existed before. We need to be careful to secure the data to ensure people’s privacy are protected.
As an industry, we need to outline the legal and ethical ramifications of the rollout of this new technology to the masses.
The audience got really excited when a discussion came up around watching out for psychopathic AI! This presentation kept the audience riveted until the last moment!
In conclusion, Telecom, today, is booming, with lots of innovative new technologies, such as 5G, Artificial Intelligence, and even IoT! Telecom Exchange, TEX2018, was a real hit! If you didn’t make it to this year’s event, hopefully, you can make it to next year’s!
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