en.Wedoany.com Reported - Japanese telecom operator NTT DoCoMo has deployed Nokia's MantaRay AutoPilot system for automated network optimization. The system is deployed on a public cloud, which DoCoMo claims is a world first. DoCoMo had previously used Nokia's MantaRay Self-Optimizing Network (SON) technology, with the two parties reaching an agreement in November last year.
The previous SON solution could continuously monitor network conditions and automatically adjust settings based on preset parameters and policies. However, setting these parameters and policies still required manual effort, making it difficult to adapt to changing network congestion patterns in real time. AutoPilot marks a shift toward intent-driven networks, automatically designing parameters and policies based on quality targets specified by DoCoMo. The operator stated that its built-in artificial intelligence capabilities analyze base station quality and performance, determine optimal parameter designs, and schedule implementation, completing a full optimization cycle within 15 minutes.
The continuous monitoring function enables the network to constantly and automatically adjust based on real-time traffic conditions. DoCoMo noted that when relying solely on MantaRay SON, the optimization cycle ran once per day, and both analyzing configuration changes and evaluating effects required human intervention. MantaRay AutoPilot uses AI to fully automate the entire optimization cycle—from parameter analysis and configuration to post-implementation performance evaluation—reducing cycle time to 15 minutes without human intervention, enabling faster and more granular network quality improvements.
MantaRay is a cloud-native system, and DoCoMo has fully leveraged this feature. DoCoMo stated that adopting a public cloud architecture allows direct network optimization via the cloud, enabling rapid implementation without being constrained by hardware procurement lead times, and plans to integrate the system with various cloud-based AI platforms in the future. The end result is more stable communication across a wider range of usage environments.
DoCoMo said this deployment paves the way for achieving Level 4 network automation. According to TM Forum's definition, Level 4 means the system provides decision support through predictive analysis or closed-loop management, equipped with extensive AI modeling and continuous learning. This represents a leap from Level 3, which requires more human oversight. A survey released by TM Forum last year showed that only 4% of global communications service providers considered themselves at Level 4, with the largest proportion (36%) still at Level 1. Respondents predicted that 23% would reach Level 4 this year, increasing to 85% by 2030. With this SON upgrade, DoCoMo is at the forefront of the industry.
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