Accelerating Network Service Intelligence to Achieve New Value

In the development process of the telecommunications industry, communications networks have gradually taken on new characteristics such as high complexity, super-large scale, and high dynamics in recent years, influenced by technological innovations, market demands, and policy environments. This poses new challenges to network deployment and O&M.

It is now widely acknowledged in the industry to actively use digitalization and AI technologies to accelerate the transformation of communications networks. According to Omdia, a global analyst and advisory leader, more than three-quarters of enterprises in the communications industry have deployed or trialed AI-based services across multiple areas including customer support, fault diagnosis, and network planning.

As the world's leading provider of integrated communications and information solutions, ZTE actively promotes digital and intelligent transformation in the deployment and operation of communications networks, and focuses on "ultra-efficient deployment, ultimate experience, and network security", helping global operators embrace the era of AI.

Building Digital Infrastructure with Ultra-Efficient Deployment

To improve efficiency, ZTE adopts the solution of "all-domain digital and intelligent collaboration with single-domain intrinsic autonomy". For all-domain digital and intelligent collaboration, ZTE applies digital intelligence technologies across two dimensions: business processes (engineering, technologies, and services) and product networks (wireless, wired, core network, and digital energy). This approach facilitates data collaboration across the whole domain, achieving efficient network deployment and operation. Regarding single-domain intrinsic autonomy, ZTE  develops multiple intelligent tools for individual domains of services and products to  enhance the capabilities of single modules of network planning, construction, optimization, maintenance, and operation.

• All-Domain Digital and Intelligent Collaboration
  

Continuously promoting digital innovation, ZTE has developed its own digital delivery platform called intelligent engineering project management system (iEPMS). iEMPS features “data & computing dual-drive”, “real-time perception”, “intelligent decision-making”, “outward extension”, “smart collaboration”, and “multiparty win-win”. This platform covers end-to-end processes including contracts, supply chain, procurement, engineering, services, and finance, helping improve network construction efficiency. Based on the overall five-year plan of digital and intelligent evolution, this platform is progressing towards the intelligent online stage. In 2023, iEPMS achieved interconnection with the systems of operators in provinces and cities across China, including Zhejiang, Sichuan, Henan and Beijing, promoting both network construction efficiency and quality.

In the technical delivery field, ZTE has launched the digital and intelligent technical delivery platform iTech. Different from other models where products and tools are separated from digital services in the industry, the iTech architecture design has a leading edge. By using innovative technologies such as AI and big data, along with digital service capabilities, and supporting multiple products such as wireless, bearer, core network, and big data, the iTech platform builds an ecosystem of intelligent tools to achieve end-to-end service interconnection. The iTech platform provides full-service coverage, including precise network planning, synchronization between survey data and engineering parameters, automatic site commissioning, intelligent acceptance tests, network self-optimization, and intelligent network maintenance. Through the application of the iTech platform, communication time in network deployment is reduced by 50%, commissioning efficiency is increased by over 30%,  network-wide faults decrease year-on-year by 8.5%, and emergency fault recovery time is decreased by 20%, greatly improving the network deployment efficiency and network performance.

• Single-Domain Intrinsic Autonomy
  

The single-domain digital intelligence tools developed by ZTE encompass all communications products, including wireless, wired, core network, and digital energy, and cover the whole service process, from planning and construction to optimization, maintenance, and operation.

Taking wireless network planning as an example, ZTE has developed the intelligent planning tool VMAX-RSH, with big data+AI at its core. This tool employs intelligent analysis and comprehensive evaluation of multiple dimensions such as network coverage, capacity, user perception, and network competition to accurately, rapidly, and automatically output 4G/5G network planning solutions with an accuracy of over 80%. In addition, it can implement multiple tasks in parallel, enabling independent output of solutions. In 2023, this platform facilitated intelligent planning for over 50 projects around the world, effectively improving network planning efficiency and accuracy.

In engineering construction, multiple single-domain scenarios, such as iEPMS-based engineering plan management, material management, quality management, and acceptance management, are moving towards intent-based intelligence. For instance, AI review utilizing deep learning and image recognition has replaced manual review in the engineering quality inspection of communications networks. With the help of a scenario-based AI algorithm, quality work orders are immediately inspected upon submission, and immediately reviewed upon inspection, significantly reducing labor costs and shortening review cycles. Statistics show that the average quality inspection period for quality work orders has been shortened from 4.5 days to 20 minutes, improving network construction efficiency and comprehensively guaranteeing network construction quality.

Achieving Value-Driven Business Success with Ultimate Experience

To build future-oriented network O&M, it is necessary to focus on intelligent O&M based on user experience and the exploration of commercial potential. Leveraging the UniSeer intelligent O&M solution alongside AI and big data technologies, ZTE has proposed a “service-centric” active O&M model, aiming to create a mapping between user perception, service quality, and network status.

In terms of user satisfaction assurance, this solution implements all-domain insight, identifies and locates network problems and hidden troubles that may affect service quality and user perception, and achieves an intelligent closed loop of service experience through end-to-end assurance.

For network O&M, this solution implements intelligent closed-loop O&M functions such as large O&M models, automatic process engines, and event management, injecting intelligence into the O&M process. This transforms offline O&M into online O&M, and provides intelligent optimization for various complicated scenarios.

For business development, this solution supports business operation expansion through digital and intelligent profiles, the digital and intelligent empowerment of edge NaaS, and DaaS+SaaS.

In UniSeer intelligent O&M projects, ZTE gradually promotes the ultimate goal of "three-zero, three-self", providing users with a "zero waiting, zero touch, and zero fault" customer experience from a service perspective, and constructing a new network O&M experience of "self configuration, self healing, and self optimization" from a network perspective. ZTE utilizes deep packet inspection (DPI), digital twins, and intent engines to create a smart brain that enables cloud network integration and intelligent computing for the digital intelligence center, ensuring digital and intelligent empowerment for operators’ capability centers and assisting them in reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and transforming from manual to digital O&M. This solution visualizes operators' networks, automates O&M processes, intelligently analyzes technical problems, and enables rapid and remote operations in equipment configuration, O&M process automation, and network optimization. This reduces the impact on users, providing them with a stable, high-quality, and intelligent experience, and supports operators in digital transformation across planning, construction, optimization, maintenance, and operation.

Through the implementation of intelligent O&M, terminal user satisfaction of several operators' networks, which ZTE provides with managed services, has increased by 10%–20%, the number of users has grown by 10%–35%, network traffic has surged by up to 130% annually, resulting in significant improvements in operator-level benefits.

Safeguarding Network Operation Security with AI Technology

With the rapid development and wide application of cloud computing, big data, the Internet of things, and AI technologies, the scale of systems and volume of data are experiencing explosive growth. As network virtualization and the convergence of new and legacy networks continue, the network topology structure becomes increasingly complicated. The diversification of network attack methods also brings unprecedented challenges to network operation security. ZTE adopts a prevention-oriented and automatic control-oriented security management concept and practice, and incorporates communications large models and AI capabilities to guarantee network operation security.

• Cloud network: A heterogeneous resource pool is constructed to reduce the risk of faults caused by a single system. The hot standby function is deployed to implement seamless user switchover in the event of faults and to reduce the signaling storm risk. Cross-domain AI collaboration is introduced, combined with 4G/5G network load, to enable intelligent service guidance and balanced distribution. An end-to-end three-dimensional monitoring and digital twin system is built to implement cross-layer, cross-domain, and multi-dimensional measurement and perception, allowing for prediction and prevention of faults in advance.
• Transport network: ZTE focuses on constructing an end-to-end autonomous network that covers the entire lifecycle. The AI and data platform enable proactive network prevention, automatic optimization, and fault self-healing. Closed-loop management functions, including network simulation, AI O&M, transport capability map, and management of service quality differences, have been successfully applied in Shaanxi, Guangdong, Hebei, and Yunnan provinces of China.
• Wireless network: To address network risks such as illegal access and stealth attacks, ZTE has integrated intrinsic security features into the design of 5G base stations, including host intrusion detection, virus detection, asset data collection, security event analysis and handling, and security situation presentation, enabling real-time monitoring of the operating status of 5G base stations, rapid identification of abnormal behaviors and security events, and timely implementation of measures to effectively reduce the risks of external security attacks.

Opening a New Era of Digital Intelligence

With the rapid development of generative AI and large models, promoting network service intelligence has become an industry consensus. However, implementing general large models in the communications industry faces many difficulties. In response, ZTE has launched the "Digital Nebula" solution and platform, which  enables higher-order intelligent applications in communication network service fields such as intelligent Q&A, intelligent network assistant, intelligent preventive maintenance, precise customer service, and network insight.

The in-depth application of AI and other innovative technologies across various industries will serve as the primary drive for the next wave of digital transformation. In the future, ZTE will continue to work with partners to establish an efficient and intelligent ecological operation mode, build long-term digital and intelligent service capabilities, facilitate the digital and intelligent transformation across various industries, and promote the development of the digital economy.