The world‘s telecommunications operators, or telcos, have joined forces to explore new business opportunities and take the lead in artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, according to a chief executive at a South Korean mobile carrier.

The Global Telco AI Alliance, launched in 2023, held its inaugural meeting on Monday at the Mobile World Congress 2024, the world’s largest mobile tech show taking place in Barcelona, Spain. Five companies, including SK telecom Co., Deutsche Telekom AG., Singapore Telecommunications Limited, Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC, and SoftBank Group Corp., have joined the alliance to date.

“The telecommunications industry used to be divisive, which meant telecommunications companies fell behind in the sector due as we all adapted to change at different speeds, and the mission of the alliance is to prevent this segregation moving forward,” SK Telecom Chief Executive Yoo Young-sang said at the show.

The GTAA announced on the same day that the partners agreed to establish a joint venture committed to developing a large language model (LLM) for telecommunications companies.

The joint venture‘s goal is to collectively advance LLM technology and capitalize on its potential to enhance wireless services or introduce innovative AI-based innovations, such as vertical LLMs. “Vertical LLMs will become increasingly important for the world’s companies to determine their sustainability as the year unfolds,” Yoo said.

For its part, SK Telecom‘s strategic focus centers on developing A Dot, its AI-powered Personalized AI Assistant (PAA). By likening today’s LLM landscape to the Gold Rush, which began in 1848 in California, the United States, Yoo said chip manufacturers and data centers are today‘s gold seekers and predicted that PPAs will be the next game changer.

By Jeong Ho-jun and Han Yubin

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