Samsung Electronics, KT, and SK Telecom to Launch Korean AI RAN in October 2026

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Samsung Electronics announced that it has signed contracts with KT and SK Telecom to participate in the AI RAN project under the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT)'s "Hyper AI Network" initiative, serving as KT's exclusive global supplier and SK Telecom's primary supplier. Samsung is the only partner selected for both projects simultaneously. The project is scheduled to launch in October 2026, deploying 5G Standalone (SA) private networks in industrial environments such as shipyards and petrochemical facilities to validate AI RAN capabilities and accumulate real-world experience.

At HD Hyundai Samho's Yeongam Shipyard, KT will conduct on-site trials of physical AI services, covering welding and painting robots in manufacturing environments, as well as autonomous robots for telecommunications facility operations. Samsung will support KT with software-driven, AI-native solutions, including the integrated edge AI platform Network in a Server (NIS) comprising virtualized RAN (vRAN), AI Core, and AI applications, as well as the Samsung CognitiV Network Operations Suite (NOS) for intelligent network automation. With 5G connectivity and the edge AI platform, quadruped welding robots can autonomously perceive their working environment and perform precise welding.

NIS is designed for local deployment and local processing, bringing network and AI capabilities to where data is generated and decisions are made. It runs vRAN and 5G SA core software on Supermicro commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) compact edge servers equipped with AMD EPYC 8004 server CPUs and Wind River Cloud Platform, and its software-driven architecture supports on-demand introduction of GPU-accelerated computing. Samsung is thereby addressing industrial scenarios' network requirements for ultra-low latency, high reliability, and stable throughput.

At SK Incheon Petrochem, SK Telecom will validate physical AI services such as hazardous-area patrol robots and closed-circuit television (CCTV)-based monitoring. The facility is a major energy hub in the Seoul metropolitan area. The patrol robots transmit high-definition video in real time while moving, enabling AI analysis to detect potential hazards and facilitate integrated monitoring. Samsung will provide its AI-native NIS solution for SK Telecom's project, and the two parties will explore how AI-native connectivity can enhance safety and efficiency in petrochemical environments.

Samsung's AI RAN provides anomaly detection, throughput improvement, and energy efficiency gains, and has been validated in live networks worldwide. Samsung Networks was the first to successfully deliver 5G end-to-end solutions, including chipsets, radios, and core networks, with a portfolio covering private RAN, vRAN, Open RAN, AI RAN, cloud-native AI core networks, private network solutions, and CognitiV NOS.

June Moon, Executive Vice President and Head of R&D, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics, said that Korea has long been at the forefront of global digital and technological progress, and that Samsung, as a key local partner, is willing to work with leading operators through these AI RAN projects to drive the next phase of network innovation; as AI evolves toward embodied intelligence, networks are becoming the platform connecting next-generation intelligent machines such as humanoid robots and autonomous vehicles, and combining AI RAN with physical AI in real industrial scenarios is a step toward the connected future.

Jongsik Lee, Executive Vice President at KT, said that the project is an important starting point for validating the next-generation communications paradigm of AI and network convergence, and that KT will work with Samsung to demonstrate physical AI services in an AI-RAN-enabled private network environment and to master the key technologies and service models for leading the AI-native 6G era. Takki Yu, Head of SK Telecom's Network Technology Office, said that SK Telecom believes AI combined with the right supporting infrastructure can create greater value, and that it will leverage its AI expertise with Samsung to validate physical AI services in real environments and to promote AI RAN as a key technology supporting the government's Hyper AI Network initiative and its AI Highway agenda.