Nvidia has introduced an innovative AI-powered software platform aimed at facilitating research into 6G technology by simulating communications environments in the cloud.
Nvidia unveiled the Cloud platform during Nvidia’s global artificial intelligence conference for developers.
The platform, designed to explore the capabilities of 6G technology, the anticipated successor to 5G, is expected to revolutionize wireless communications when it launches commercially around 2030. Leveraging AI and software, it marks a significant step forward in the evolution of the telecom sector, particularly in radio access network (RAN) hardware like base stations and antennas.
Nvidia’s platform features an application that simulates various environments, from single-cell towers to entire cities, enabling researchers and organizations to conduct real-time testing of 6G networks. Prominent early adopters of the platform include Ansys, Nokia, Samsung, SoftBank, and Northeastern University in Boston, according to Nvidia.
Among the initial adopters and ecosystem partners of this groundbreaking platform are Ansys, Arm, ETH Zurich, Fujitsu, Keysight, Nokia, Northeastern University, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, SoftBank Corp., and Viavi.
The NVIDIA 6G Research Cloud platform comprises three fundamental elements:
NVIDIA Aerial Omniverse Digital Twin for 6G: This component facilitates physically accurate simulations of complete 6G systems, ranging from single towers to city-scale networks. It integrates software-defined RAN and user-equipment simulators, along with realistic terrain and object properties, enabling researchers to simulate and optimize base-station algorithms based on real-time data.
NVIDIA Aerial CUDA-Accelerated RAN: Offering significant flexibility, this software-defined, full-RAN stack enables researchers to customize, program, and test 6G networks in real time.
NVIDIA Sionna Neural Radio Framework: Seamlessly integrating with popular frameworks like PyTorch and TensorFlow, this framework leverages NVIDIA GPUs to generate and capture data and train AI and machine learning models at scale. It includes NVIDIA Sionna, a leading link-level research tool for AI/ML-based wireless simulations.
Ronnie Vasishta, Nvidia’s Senior Vice President of Telecom, emphasized the necessity for significant advancements in wireless spectral efficiency to accommodate the expected surge in connected devices and new applications with the advent of 6G technology.
Analysts pointed out that traditional telecom gear suppliers are no longer the sole drivers in the mobile infrastructure market. Instead, they must forge partnerships with chip companies and cloud vendors to remain competitive in an increasingly dynamic landscape.
Charlie Zang, senior vice president of Samsung Research America, highlighted the transformative potential of the convergence between 6G and AI, envisioning a future of seamless connectivity and intelligent systems.
Recognizing the crucial role of testing and simulation in 6G development, leading providers such as Ansys and Keysight have partnered with NVIDIA to contribute to the advancement of AI with 6G.
Shawn Carpenter, program director of 5G/6G and space at Ansys, expressed their commitment to integrating their cutting-edge Ansys Perceive EM solver into the Omniverse ecosystem, revolutionizing the creation of digital twins for 6G systems.
Kailash Narayanan, president and general manager of Keysight Communications Solutions Group, emphasized the importance of wireless-specific design tools in building robust AI-enabled 6G communication systems.
