India and the UK have agreed to explore collaborative opportunities in next-generation telecommunications, artificial intelligence (AI), and emerging technologies, including the Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN) and space technology. Additionally, the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) and London-based Sonic Labs have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on Open RAN-related policy and technical matters. This includes advancements in 5G Open RAN and the integration of AI in 4G and 5G, according to an official statement from the Ministry of Communications on Friday.
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High-Level Meetings and MoU Signing
These announcements come as Neeraj Mittal, the Secretary (Telecom) of India, visited the United Kingdom (UK) to engage with the Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT), UK, and explore opportunities for collaboration, further strengthening Indo-UK ties in critical areas. The visit included high-level meetings, field visits, and a significant MoU signing.
The Secretary (Telecom) met with Chris Johnson, National Scientific Adviser, and Dave Smith, National Technology Adviser of DSIT. The discussions centered on emerging technologies and their applications in 5G, 6G, and digital infrastructure security, the ministry stated.
The telecom secretary also met with Geoff Huggins, Director of the Digital Directorate, Government of Scotland, to discuss collaborative efforts in digital transformation through telecom, telecom security, and emerging telecom technologies, the statement added.
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Field Visit
Furthermore, the secretary met with Jean Innes, CEO of the Alan Turing Institute, to discuss potential collaboration in digital twins, AI for telecom security, ethical AI, and fostering an AI innovation and startup ecosystem.
Mittal conducted a field visit to one of the six Federated Telecom Hubs (FTH) in the UK, specializing in Cloud and Distributed Computing (CHEDDAR). This hub leads research in 6G distributed cloud, AI for 6G, green 6G, and advanced sensing technologies, the ministry said.
Additionally, Mittal visited Scotland's 5G Centre at the University of Strathclyde and the 6G Research Centre at the University of Glasgow's James Watt School of Engineering. He discussed collaboration in 6G innovation, future sensing technologies, technology exchanges such as the 5G stack, and student exchange programs to foster academic and industrial partnerships.
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UK-India Telecom Roundtable
Building on the foundation of the UK-India Technology Security Initiative (TSI), where telecom remains a key priority, a roundtable discussion was convened with key UK stakeholders from DSIT, business entities such as BT and Ericsson, and innovation hubs and centers, including Sonic Labs, UK Telecom Labs, Titan, and Joiner. Representatives from the UK Space Agency, the European Space Agency, Innovate UK, and the UK Technology Innovation Network (UKTIN) also participated, exploring avenues for mutual cooperation, the ministry said.
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Key Agreements and Future Prospects
The two countries have also agreed to establish joint Centres of Excellence focusing on telecom cybersecurity, AI in telecom, and digital twins; collaborate with British telcos to leverage mobile phone data for infrastructure planning, similar to India's success in using such data for metro route planning; make joint contributions to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for IMT 2030 (6G) standards development; establish new testing facilities; collaborate on digital twins, quantum communication solutions, and submarine sea cable security; promote India's indigenous 4G and 5G stack developed by C-DoT; and collaborate on space technology communication (TN-NTN), among other initiatives, the ministry said.
