SK Telecom announced on February 26 that it has successfully developed and demonstrated AI-RAN (Artificial Intelligence Radio Access Network), a next-generation base station technology that combines AI services with telecommunications infrastructure.
AI-RAN enables a single piece of equipment to simultaneously provide communication services and AI workloads. The technology is designed to maintain stable network quality while supporting diverse AI applications within the same infrastructure.
The demonstration was conducted in a live network environment, marking a step toward so-called “Network AI,” where telecom networks can autonomously analyze conditions and optimize performance in real time.
SK Telecom collaborated with Nokia and HFR to develop and validate multiple AI-RAN architectures using NVIDIA GPU-based general-purpose servers. GPU-based AI-RAN systems can be configured in various forms depending on the extent to which GPUs handle telecom processing functions.
In partnership with Nokia, SK Telecom developed a structure that combines GPUs for AI computation with dedicated accelerators for certain telecom functions, and verified its performance in an outdoor test environment. With HFR, the company implemented an architecture in which GPUs alone manage both communication functions and AI services.
SK Telecom also incorporated virtualization technologies to objectively evaluate key performance indicators, including network quality, data processing capacity and power efficiency. During the trial, large language model (LLM)-based AI services were delivered alongside telecom services, demonstrating the scalability and flexibility of AI-RAN.
In addition, the company worked with Intel to validate AI-based integrated resource management technology in a virtualized base station environment. This system operates multiple general-purpose servers as a unified platform, with AI analyzing and predicting CPU load and system status in real time to dynamically allocate wireless network resources. The approach is expected to improve operational flexibility and reduce energy consumption.
SK Telecom plans to showcase AI-RAN and its AI-powered integrated resource management technologies at MWC26. The company will also introduce on-device AI antenna optimization technology that analyzes and controls device transmission antenna conditions in real time to reduce interference and enhance uplink quality, along with AI agents and integrated communication and sensing technologies.
Ryu Tak-ki, Head of Network Technology at SK Telecom, said the AI-RAN and AI-driven resource management demonstration represents meaningful progress toward autonomous, self-optimizing wireless networks. He added that the company will continue refining AI-RAN software and intelligent orchestration technologies to further advance network automation.
