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IT infrastructure and services company NTT has strategically partnered with Qualcomm Technologies to invest in and accelerate the development of the 5G device ecosystem.
This aims to facilitate private 5G adoption, which is critical to powering AI at the edge.
As part of a multi-year engagement, NTT and Qualcomm Technologies will prioritise the development of 5G enabled devices to accelerate innovation with global enterprise customers, a critical catalyst in driving widespread enterprise adoption of private 5G, a market which IDC estimates will exceed $8 Billion by 2026.
Qualcomm Technologies’ capabilities in application specific semiconductors and 5G chipsets, combined with NTT’s work in private 5G, will strengthen the 5G ecosystem, advance AI processing capabilities at the edge and spur innovation across industries.
NTT and Qualcomm Technologies will use their combined expertise to meet the need for 5G-enabled devices that support use cases, such as push-to-talk devices, augmented reality headsets, computer vision cameras and sensors at the edge across the manufacturing, automotive, logistics and other industries.
“This collaboration is truly an exciting one because we are answering the demand we’re hearing from our clients,” NTT executive vice president of new ventures and innovation, Shahid Ahmed said.
“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.”
Qualcomm SVP and general manager of connected smart systems Jeffery Torrance said its 5G chipsets are prepared for the widespread adoption of AI applications at the edge.
“NTT is the voice of the customer and combined with Qualcomm Technologies’ semiconductor expertise, we can enable OEMs to build the devices that will benefit a wide range of use cases and customers,” Torrance said.
In May, Qualcomm said it was shifting its focus from providing chips exclusively for communications devices and doubling down on its efforts to support AI workloads.
The company is transitioning to becoming an “intelligent edge computing” firm, Alex Katouzian, a senior vice president at Qualcomm, said during a keynote speech at the Computex show in Taipei.
