A new study released by Ciena shows that 60% of respondents believe AI will improve network operational efficiency by at least 40%
In a recent global study commissioned by Ciena, communications service providers (CSPs) demonstrate growing confidence in the positive impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), with 60% of the roughly 1,500 telecom and IT engineers respondents saying they believe the use of AI will improve network operational efficiency by at least 40%, while 85% say it will lead to “multiple avenues” of revenue.
To achieve the anticipated network performance enhancements, however, those surveyed said it will be necessary to build new fiber network infrastructure and operations solutions, with an astonishing 99% respondents saying they will need to upgrade fiber-optic networks to support more AI traffic. The top three strategies for ensuring that AI will improve their networks were upgrading networks with new traffic and network analysis software, selected by 49% of respondents; upgrades in switches and routers, selected by 43%; investment in 800G technology, selected by 40%.
As mentioned previously, 85% of respondents felt that CSPs can reliably monetize AI traffic across networks. “Specifically, 40% believe it will be from opening their networks to third-party integrations; 37% believe revenue will come from security and privacy services; the same number (37%) believe it will come from new product offerings; 35% believe it will be from the creation of tailored subscription packages; and 34% believe revenue will be from differentiation on quality of service for connectivity,” Ciena summarized.
Notably, AI optimism was not uniform around the world — Indian CSPs are among the most confident (95%) while U.S. providers are among the least confident (55%).
“Understanding emerging technologies like AI is an essential step toward staying competitive in today’s constantly changing digital landscape,” commented Jürgen Hatheier, Ciena’s international CTO. “The survey highlights the optimistic long-term outlook of CSPs regarding AI’s ability to enhance the network as well as the need for strategic planning and investments in infrastructure and expertise to fully realize the benefits.”
