Moving towards Net5.5G R2 with AI WAN

Details: Staff Writer; Category: Wireless Networks; 21 October 2025; 17922 views

Over 160 operators worldwide have published AI strategies, and research from the GSMA indicates that there are three key ways in which AI integration is helping them increase revenue and improve efficiencies: monetizing traditional services, expanding new services, and improving O&M efficiency.

A campaign by the World Broadband Association (WBBA) to empower Net5.5G with AI has been recognized by operators across the industry, with the group’s Director General Martin Creaner observing that the widespread adoption of applications like AI-generated content (AIGC) is creating a surge in global demand for network bandwidth and connections. Carriers and enterprise customers urgently need next-generation network infrastructure capable of delivering differentiated experiences, and the WBBA’s Net5.5G R2 White Paper aims to provide clear and practical technical pathways and system support to help them embrace the AI era.

At the Net5.5G Intelligent IP Network Summit held during the 11th Ultra-Broadband Forum (UBBF 2025) in Paris, Leon Wang, President of Huawei's Data Communication Product Line, explained how Huawei's AI WAN Solution has undergone a comprehensive upgrade to redefine the IP bearer network for the Net5.5G era with an AI-centric approach.

As the telecoms sector moves from the Ultra-broadband to the intelligent Ultra-broadband phase, the advent of AI adds three new capability dimensions on top of the existing ultra-broadband, low latency, and visibility features: AI devices, AI connections, and AI O&M.

Through a three-layer architecture - comprising AI-Centric devices, AI-Centric connections, and an AI-Centric brain – Huawei’s AI WAN solution helps accelerate carriers' transition toward the Net5.5G R2 AI UBB phase.

The first step is to redefine experience awareness. To this end, AI WAN provides application identification and customer acquisition engines, helping operators to offer application-level value monetisation. This enables them to expand their user bases and grow their revenue.

To address stagnant growth in the home broadband market and severe package homogenization, Huawei's AI WAN Solution incorporates StarNet identification and profiling engines. The solution enables carriers to design differentiated service packages. It also leverages multi-dimensional profiling to raise potential customer identification accuracy to over 90%. With Huawei's AI WAN Solution, a top Thai carrier raised ARPU by 33% and tripled new package subscribers in three months.

The next step is to redefine computing network limits with AI WAN’s lossless and highly efficient network, enabling operators to explore new business opportunities in intelligent computing dedicated lines. Amidst explosive enterprise demand for AI computing power, Huawei's AI WAN Solution helped China Telecom Shanghai launch intelligent computing private lines services, overcoming the performance bottlenecks of traditional networks. The StarNet lossless algorithm enables flow-level precise congestion control, enhancing cross-domain computing efficiency from 40% to over 95%. Furthermore, it works with the vector conversion engine to ensure data security. The solution not only supports collaborative edge-cloud training, but is also projected to increase carriers' package ARPU tenfold, achieving ROI within just two years.

The third step is implementing multi-dimensional security protection to redefine resilience and build a secure infrastructure. In response to increasingly complex network attacks, Huawei's AI WAN Solution strengthens security resilience across the device, network, and configuration layers. It supports session-level fault isolation and quantum-resistant encryption technologies. Through online configuration simulation, the solution can verify tens of thousands of devices within 10 minutes, eliminating human error. This multi-dimensional security framework safeguards customer services with enhanced resilience. This solution helped an international carrier achieve zero service interruptions, zero data leaks, and zero network accidents, ensuring secure and stable service operations.

Lastly, redefining the O&M model with AI helps to improve operational efficiency while reducing costs.

As networks continue to scale, traditional O&M models are under immense pressure. Huawei's NetMaster system provides 24/7 network protection, enabling a shift from passive response to proactive O&M. In fault handling, China Mobile Guangdong reduced diagnosis time from 45 minutes to just 5 minutes by utilizing a knowledge base of over 300,000 cases. For risk identification, MasOrange Spain deployed an L4 IP autonomous driving network using Huawei's AI WAN Solution. This shortens the mean time to repair (MTTR) and helps the carrier cut costs and improve efficiency.

UBB network infrastructure serves as the cornerstone for advancing toward AI UBB. With the release of Net5.5G R2, Huawei's AI WAN Solution will fully redefine network value. Wang emphasized that Huawei looks forward to collaborating with more leading global carriers to build an AI-Centric network system to help carriers seize opportunities in the intelligent era, sustain business growth, and inject fresh momentum into global intelligent transformation.