NTT Ltd., a Japanese IT infrastructure and services firm, and American chipmaker Qualcomm have joined forces to invest in and accelerate the development of the 5G device ecosystem, thereby accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) at the edge. 

 

Under a multi-year agreement, the two companies will prioritize the development of 5G-enabled devices to "accelerate innovation with global enterprise customers," which will serve as a catalyst for increasing widespread enterprise adoption of private 5G, NTT and Qualcomm said in a statement Tuesday, citing IDC research that estimates the private 5G market to be worth more than $8 billion by 2026.

 

NTT and Qualcomm said they will combine their expertise to address the need for 5G-enabled devices that support use cases, such as push-to-talk, augmented reality, computer vision cameras and sensors at the edge across the manufacturing, automotive, logistics and other industries, as per telecom. 

 

“Together with Qualcomm Technologies, we will strengthen the 5G ecosystem delivering the devices our customers require in a simple and cost-effective way, empowering them as they continue along their digital transformation journey,” said Shahid Ahmed, Executive Vice President, New Ventures & Innovation at NTT Ltd.

 

AI processing must occur in a hybrid form—both in the cloud and at the network's edge—for AI to grow and have an influence on enterprise operations and organizations' bottom lines. Qualcomm's silicon includes AI and ML models that are critical for expanding AI capabilities at the edge.

 

“Qualcomm Technologies’ 5G chipsets are prepared for the widespread adoption of AI applications at the edge and, together with NTT, we’ll enhance innovative change across the 5G device ecosystem.” said Jeffery Torrance, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Connected Smart Systems, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.