< PreviousAFFORDABLE DEVICES, ASCENDING SOCIETY: I NSIDE KAIOS’ MISSION TO BETTER THE WORLD Never heard of KaiOS? You soon will – but as CEO Sebastien Codeville says, the company’s mission of lifting society, especially in areas including Africa, is more important than making money. High start-up costs. Intense competi- tion from some of the world’s largest multinational corporations, who are not exactly known for welcoming new competitors. Difficult regulatory rules to navigate – and different rules in every country. Not to mention the challenge of, well, inventing a handheld device – and inventing a device people will actually use. Simply put, the odds are decidedly stacked against anyone that wants to start a phone company – and, given the dominance of Apple and Android, even more so against anyone that wants to start their own operating system (OS) for smartphones. Clearly, no-one ever told the folks at KaiOS about this – or maybe they simply don’t care. In just a few short years, the San Diego, California-based company has be- come the third-largest mobile OS company in the world – and only plans on moving further up the charts. “There are many aspects, including talented employees drawn from across the technology ecosystem, and our dedication to the company’s mission of closing the digital divide, but by far partnership and collaboration have been invaluable to our success so far,” says CEO Sebastien Codev- ille of the company’s success. “Since 2016 we’ve focused on develop- ing partnerships that have enabled more than 80 million KaiOS-powered phones to have been shipped to over 100 countries. We work with leading carriers and OEM/ ODMs like Orange, MTN, China Mobile, HMD Global, and Reliance Jio to develop the most reliable yet cost-effective devices possible. We work closely together with these carriers to formulate low-cost data plans – priced between a 2G (voice and text) plan and a full-blown smartphone data plan – to facilitate mobile internet ac- cess without potentially crippling monthly data costs. “Additionally, we partner with leading app developers like Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter to ensure our phones offer digital services to enrich our user experience and address access gaps created by the digital divide.” KaiOS phones are available in a number of African markets, and also the Mid- dle East. Cole, an engineer by trade who spent his early career at Alcatel Mobile and Philips, says this is deliberate. “KaiOS Technologies’ mission is to help fuel the digital revolution in emerging markets since so many people in these areas remain without basic Internet access. This is large- ly due to a lack of affordable, yet powerful connected devices.” He expands on the need. “There’s a huge demand for reliable, affordable technol- ogy in regions like Africa and the Middle East, where over 800 million people lack basic Internet access. In these markets, smartphones remain too expensive for the average household and standard feature phones limit the digital opportunities available to users. “According to research by the GSMA, the $100-$200 price tag of a smartphone is preventing 64% of people in Africa from upgrading their phones to 3G/4G devices that can access the internet. KaiOS-pow- ered 3G/4G handsets address this issue as they’re affordable and come preinstalled with the KaiStore, where you can find relevant apps from local developers as well as those from popular content partners including the Google Assistant, Facebook, Google Maps, YouTube, and Twitter. “With this in mind, we believe Africa is the next frontier for a smart feature phone revolution. Through collaboration with partners – carriers, device manufacturers, chipset makers and content creators – we feel confident we can bring valuable and relevant digital services to communities across the continent.” Codeville is especially keen to discuss how so-called “smart feature” phones can transform people’s lives for the better and lift society. “Having a smart feature phone can transform people’s lives by providing access to digital resources, including com- munication tools so users can engage with their families, favourite brands, and the online community at large,” he says. “With access to the Internet, users can also tap into new educational resources, leverage mobile payment solutions and banking, watch videos, play games, and much more.” Smart feature phones can especially improve economic and social opportuni- ties for women, according to Codeville. MTN is one company KaiOS works with. KaiOS is now the third-largest OS company in the world. 10CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com INTERVIEW KaiOS“According to a GSMA report, mobile is the primary means of Internet access in emerging countries, particularly for women,” he says. “The majority of people who get a KaiOS-powered phone are going online for the first time, this is especially the case when it comes to women. Having Inter- net access helps them get information on health, finances, and education, which helps both them and their families.” He’s quick to say more. “We recently announced Life, a tool for users of KaiOS- powered smart feature phones across Af- rica and South-East Asia to make the best use of their Internet access and the digital resources that are now at their disposal. “Life will come pre-installed on most KaiOS-powered handsets and will com- prise a directory of curated content in categories like women’s empowerment, health, education, agriculture, financial inclusion, and digital skills.” With such explosive growth and a noble mission of societal enhancement, the natural question – however obvious it may be – is what comes next. Codeville has a ready-made answer to such queries. “We will continue to expand globally and establish partnerships so together we can offer smart feature phones to under- served markets and connect the next bil- lion users. We’ll also continue to enhance our technology offerings and develop the ecosystem, so we can deliver custom apps and content across all regions and provide advertising opportunities to content own- ers and brands through KaiAds.” He adds; “We plan to invest heavily in growing local developer communities now that global apps have been secured on the KaiOS platform. A strong focus for us will be to launch content and programs that address real-world issues in emerging markets, such as spreading digital literacy and providing digital platforms for social good initiatives. To do this, we’re forging partnerships with other organisations, in- cluding governments, NGOs, and industry alliances like the GSMA.” He ends with advice for any business looking to replicate KaiOS’ success – or blaze their own trail in the great wilds of We believe Africa is the next frontier for a smart feature phone revolution. Through collaboration with partners – carriers, device manufacturers, chipset makers and content creators – we feel confident we can bring valuable and relevant digital services to communities across the continent.” Sebastien Codeville, KaiOS CEO the world of commerce and societal better- ment. “Three factors have been important to our growth: a strong and disciplined focus on a specific product (need), working closely together with a wide variety of partners and addressing their needs, and lastly localisation (providing relevant, localised content and experiences).” And finally? “We’re only just getting started.” 11CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com INTERVIEW KaiOS12CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com FEATURE HANDLING INCREASING CAPACITY by Ben Mack TACKLING THE GROWING CAPACITY CHALLENGE More data being generated than ever before is creating more strain than ever on networks. So how can telcos increase capacity without breaking the bank – and account for future data demand?13CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com FEATURE HANDLING INCREASING CAPACITY ogy underpinning data centres is evolving. “The traditional centralised data centre is also expected to evolve into a distributed architecture where there may be a couple of centralised core cloud data centres and multiple, geographically distributed, ‘edge cloud nodes.’ These edge cloud nodes will serve the crucial function of hosting and managing applications that are latency and performance-critical. Additionally, the localisation of these ECN will enable significant savings for the operator from not having to transport traffic back to the central core data centre.” Cables Another high initial cost, but long-term investment to increase capacity is cables. Whether it’s an emerging market or highly developed area such as the United Arab Emirates, Shibu Vahid, head of technical operations at R&M Middle East, Turkey and Africa, says fibre cable networks are ideal, particularly in the Gulf. “As consumer demands for bandwidth increase, investments that ensure fibre connectivity right to the edge of the network will prove essential to providing the capacity that new volumes of traffic demand,” he says of the advantages. To prepare for future data growth, Liquid Telecom has been investing heavily in fibre cabling throughout Africa – not just in its “Cape to Cairo” network, but additional networks from Cairo to Dakar, Senegal and another network from South Africa to the Congo. So, too, has Africa’s Angola Cables been expanding recently, including complet- ing the world’s fastest cable system between Africa and South America (the South Atlan- tic Cable System, or SACS). Angola Cables CEO António Nunes says cables can be “game changers” for connec- tivity and capacity. “By developing and connecting ecosys- tems that allows for local IP traffic to be It’s perhaps the most obvious fact of tel- ecommunications of all: as the number of people, devices and data volumes multiply – and as speeds become ever- faster – so too does capacity demand on networks. But there are only so many connections, so many towers, cables and satellites, and so much spectrum available. Meeting the challenges of increasing ca- pacity, while managing cost, was one of the main themes of the Capacity North Africa conference in April. “I see the demand coming from two sides: one from the carriers, and one from the content providers,” said Mohamed Nasr, vice president of cable innovation, planning and management at PCCW Global, during a panel discussion that took place at the event on cables and capacity. Mohamed Eldashory, global projects and submarine cable development director at Telecom Egypt, said there’s another factor causing increased demand on capacity in the region. He said: “It’s mainly driven by [the] industry [e.g. content providers and busi- nesses providing web services], especially from the Gulf.” Hassen Hamza, presales and business development manager at Nexign, says data demands will only increase exponentially. “As we continue to see exponential growth in use of smartphones and consump- tion of high-resolution and user-generated videos, online transactions on social media channels, online gaming, Internet of Things (IoT) applications [and more], there will be an associated exponential increase in capac- ity demand,” Hamza says. “This will be a particular challenge for operators in emerging markets, as they don’t have the infrastructure to manage this challenge.” Cooperation Perhaps the best method for telcos to increase data capacity cost-effectively is to partner with other businesses – vendors, suppliers and operators – says Houlin Zhao, secretary-general of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations agency. Bocar Ba, CEO of the SAMENA Telecom- munications Council, agrees. He says the world is simply too interconnected, and the costs too high, for any one company to “go it alone.” “We need each other. We need to engage with the leaders of other industries.” Ba says cooperation works because each individual business has its own area of expertise, but costs are shared. Examples of partnerships are rife. For example, Telecom Egypt and Airtel late last year announced a partnership to share costs for two subsea cable systems: one from Egypt to India, and another from Egypt to Italy. United Arab Emirates Telecommunica- tions Regulatory Authority (TRA) director general H.E. Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori sums up the benefits of cooperation for telcos: “working together is success.” Data centres Another example of cooperation is in the data centre space. Initial capital expendi- tures for physical data centres are high, but partnerships can be a way to lower the capi- tal investment. In March, for instance, VIVA Bahrain reached an agreement to utilise Etisalat’s SmartHub data centre in Fujairah to increase connectivity and capacity. In addition to forming partnerships, more Middle East and African telcos are invest- ing in data centres in anticipation of future data demand. In Africa, for instance, Liquid Telecom has opened several data centres in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Rwanda. And as telcos invest in data centres in an- ticipation of that future, Fuad Siddiqui, vice president for the Middle East and Africa and APAC at Nokia Bell Labs, says the technol-14CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com FEATURE HANDLING INCREASING CAPACITY exchanged locally and regionally, the effi- ciency of networks can be vastly improved,” he says. “As these developments progress, they will have considerable impact for the future growth and configuration of the global Internet.” Satellites and spectrum Another possible solution for cost-effective- ly increasing capacity – particularly in rural areas or areas without much existing infra- structure – is for telcos to invest in satellites. That’s the thinking behind what Saudi satel- lite company Taqnia Space is doing. According to CEO Eng. Abdullah M. Alosaimi, the firm has signed with STC to provide satellite connectivity in Saudi Arabia. In 2018, Taqnia signed a multi-year deal with Eutelsat to offer more capacity to customers in Saudi Arabia. YahClick CEO Farhad Khan says the costs of satellites are now down to a level compa- rable to fixed or mobile services. “We’ve evolved our technology to where anyone with a need for broadband can have it,” he says. Yet Imran Malik Khan, vice president of global sales and fixed data at SES Networks, says while satellites have seen “tremendous improvements” in recent years in terms of their ability to transmit data more quickly and at lower cost, speeds are still “just a drop in the bucket” compared to cables. “We’re not going to be replacing cables.” To relieve challenges on existing capacity, Chafic Traboulsi, regional vice president and head of networks for the Middle East and Africa at Ericsson, says a relatively easy solution would be for governments to make more spectrum available to be used. While more spectrum might be feasible in the Gulf partially because of de-regulation, that’s not the case in much of North Africa, argues Atef Helmy, advisor to the board of directors at Orange Jordan. He believes governments in North Africa use spec- trum licence fees as a source of income. He believes fees are often too high, and the consumer demand too low, for there to be a compelling business case for telcos to invest in technologies, such as 5G or upgrading infrastructure to handle growing demands on their networks. Another challenge, Helmy says, is there not being enough fibre in some areas – a challenge compounded by the fact some North African countries do not allow opera- tors to invest in fibre. “These [challenges] need to be resolved.” Smarter networking And then there’s investing not in more architecture or networks, but in networks that are smarter. Essentially, “intent-based networking” (IDN) uses artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to manage a network more efficiently – freeing up more capac- ity. There’s a difference between IDN and “software-defined networking,” or SDN. According to Michael Toussaint, research director at Gartner, IDN can help design, plan and operate networks, while SDN is the architecture for a network. IDN can work for either an SDN or non-SDN network. Huawei launched an intent-based networking solution in February at Mobile World Congress. As Faisal Ameer Malik, CTO of the enterprise solution sales depart- ment at Huawei Middle East, tells Comms- MEA sister title Network Middle East, Huawei’s solution is aimed at enterprise us- ers, extremely large public cloud users, and industry service providers, and carriers. Similarly, Cisco launched an intent-based networking initiative in 2017, “intending to create an intuitive system that anticipates actions, tackles security threats, and contin- ues to evolve and learn.” It remains to be seen if operators will adopt their own IDN at large scale, or if IDN will be something they subscribe to in order to run their networks more efficiently; the technology is only in the early stages at the present time. But as data demand continues to rise exponentially, telcos will need to explore a range of solutions to make sure there’s enough capacity – lest their business suffer. As Ndichu writes: “current technologies only allow us to glimpse into how the net- work will evolve. One thing is for sure: the network will never be the same.” As we continue to see exponential growth in use of smartphones and con- sumption of high-resolu- tion and user-generated videos, online transactions on social media channels, online gaming, Internet of Things applications, there will be an associated expo- nential increase in capacity demand.” - Hassen Hamza, presales & business development manager at NexignIt’s not often you get the CEOs of the Middle East and Africa’s largest telcos, top ex- ecs from major suppliers and vendors, government ministers, and even the head of a United Nations all together in one place. But this year’s SAMENA Telecommunications Council’s Leaders’ Summit did just that – and it’s safe to say the discussions that took place will help shape the region’s 5G future for years to come. A 5G FUTURE, CONNECTED COLLABORATION AND RIHANNA- KISSING ROBOTS: WHAT WENT DOWN AT THIS YEAR’S SAMENA LEADERS’ SUMMIT IN DUBAI There’s a certain element of fantasy when visiting Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai. After all, the mega-resort is purpose-built to be an unforgettable, otherworldy experience for vacationers and staycationers alike – almost as if it had been pulled up from the depths of the sea and deposited at the very top of the Palm Jumeirah for us landlubbers. But what went down on April 17 was very real – and will have very real implications for the Middle East and Africa far into the region's future. While 5G is a topic that’s been debated by anyone and everyone for years now (even, true story, extensively by a “news” outlet at the most recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain that, no joke, produced dozens of stories about how 5G technol- ogy will, somehow, bring about the actual Apocalypse and literal physical appearance United Arab Emirates Minister of Tolerance H.E. Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan speaking at the SAMENA Leaders' Summit in Dubai. 15CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com RECAP SAMENA LEADERS’ SUMMITObaid Al Mansoori was next. He, too, stressed cooperation. He said: “working together is success.” As hundreds of attendees looked on, Huawei Middle East president Charles Yang summed up in his speech the promise of 5G. “We think 5G will bring a faster, safer and smarter world.” Yang also highlighted the numerous 5G projects and use cases Huawei has been involved in – particularly in the Middle East and Africa – such as building more We need each other. We need to engage with the leaders of other industries.” Bocar A. Ba, SAMENA Telecommunications Council CEO of the devil), such discussions carry a whole lot more weight when you get the collective influence and firepower this year’s SAME- NA Leaders’ Summit brought together. Put together by the SAMENA Telecom- munications Council with patronage from the United Arab Emirates’ Telecommuni- cations Regulatory Authority (TRA), the main sponsors for the day-long affair were Huawei – who, in addition to bringing along a two-legged humanoid robot named Titan that (in all seriousness) could dance and make jokes (despite an unsettlingly similar physical appearance to the evil Megatron from the Transformers movies – even weirder considering it once actually had a pash with the singer Rihanna on stage and hung out with aspiring supermodels on the German version of the Topmodel reality series), presented a number of their 5G solutions and hosted the “5G is ON” forum discussing where we’re currently at and where we’re heading with 5G technology. Things kicked off at about 9:30 a.m. with an opening address from SAMENA CEO Bocar A. Ba. This was followed by a speech from STC group CEO Eng. Nasser Bin Sulaiman Al Nasser, who discussed the importance of building ICT infrastructure and cooperation to lift society. TRA UAE Director General H.E. Hamad The SAMENA Leaders' Summit in Dubai. 16CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com RECAP SAMENA LEADERS’ SUMMITbase stations. He also said Huawei had the first affordable 5G smartphone to the market, and that 5G was the “most secure” network ever. Tech for equality Among the most high-profile delegates was Houlin Zhao, Secretary-General of the United Nations agency known as the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Zhao, visiting Dubai for the first time since the ITU’s 20th Plenipotentiary Conference (known as PP-18) took place at the Dubai World Trade Centre last October (a multi-week event that brought together more than 2,500 delegates from every UN member state, and even the Prime Minister of Vanuatu), was particularly complimen- tary of the progress the Middle East in particular has already made in developing and rolling out 5G services. But much of Zhao’s speech – and a later discussion with some of the dozens of journalists from throughout the region and beyond who attended – focused on the power of technology to promote equal- ity around the world, particularly gender equality. Governments, he said, have a role in this, too, by promoting ICT, particularly among young women. Another high-profile guest was the gov- ernor of Saudi Arabia’s Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), H.E. Dr Abdulaziz Bin Salem Al Ruwais. Like Zhao, he also made a point of talking about how tech can empower peo- ple – a topic Telecom Regulatory Author- ity of India chair Dr R.S.Sharma, another guest speaker, also discussed. GSMA Director General Mats Granryd, speaking at the SAMENA Leaders’ Sum- mit for the third year in a row, argued that “intelligent connectivity” and things such as big data could help with slowing or stop- ping the spread of infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis in India (the nation with the highest number of cases of the highly infectious disease worldwide). But he was especially excited about the potential of 5G and mobile technology to improve women’s rights by giving women more agency – such as through mobile payments which allow women to control their own money. “This is the single most important thing we can do.” ‘We need each other’ As the day of meetings, discussions and speeches came to a close (and after a speech by UAE Minister of Tolerance H.E. Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, who said the telecommunications industry has an important role in promoting toler- ance because it allows people to connect with each other), SAMENA’s Ba hailed it as a success. But, he said, it’s important to continue to collaborate – not just to roll-out 5G, but to make the world a better place. “What has been the most important message across all the stakeholders is col- laboration,” he said. “We need each other. We need to engage with the leaders of other industries.” While collaboration with large or- ganisations like Huawei is particularly useful, some of those other industries to engage with, Ba said, include healthcare and education. The reason: engaging with a diversity of stakeholders is critical to successfully implementing 5G technol- ogy – including engaging internationally between countries. “We cannot build 5G in one country without talking to another.” It almost comes without saying, but Ba also stressed the discussions that took place need to continue. “We need to follow-up,” he said. “The consensus is a given. I have en- joyed the healthy debate. There is a real enthusiasm to work together to succeed.” An enthusiasm that should – hopefully – lead to a better future for us all. Guests at the SAMENA Leaders' Summit in Dubai. Huawei's An Jin speaking at the SAMENA Leaders' Summit in Dubai. 17CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com RECAP SAMENA LEADERS’ SUMMITCALLING THE ROBOTS: DAVID HANSON ON HOW TELECOMMUNICATIONS ENABLE AI The future of artificial intelligence and humanity is, as of yet, still being constructed. But as David Hanson – founder of Hanson Robotics and the “father” of international superstar Sophia – says, telecommunications are the basic foundation from which that future is currently being built. Hanson Robotics founder David Hanson. INTERVIEW DAVID HANSON 18www.commsmea.comCommsMEA May 2019AI and robotics has gained enough real world use that it’s not going away. The technology has not stopped progressing.” Such sentiments aren’t exactly the most ground-breaking thing ever, not in the world of 2019. But it carries a bit more weight when it’s said by someone like Da- vid Hanson. Hanson, after all, is the famed roboticist and founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics. But he’s probably best known as the “father” of Sophia, the world-famous robot so realistic most people use the pro- noun “she” instead of “it” to describe her. “The AI revolution has only begun,” says Hanson as we chat on ultra-plush red velvet couches in a light-filled tearoom on the sidelines of the Maximo Middle East User Group Conference at the even more ultra-plush Emerald Palace Hotel on the outer west crescent of Dubai’s Palm Jumei- rah on a sticky April morning. The golden columns, soaring windows and abundance of natural light filtering in has the effect of making one think they’re in a mosque or church listening to a preacher discuss a holy text. Indeed, Hanson’s words – said slowly and in a way anyone can understand – have an almost religious significance to them. This, Hanson says, has major implica- tions for the future of humanity itself. “It’s really [about] ‘who do we want to be [as a species]?’ AI has to be able to under- stand us.” It is undeniable artificial intelligence has advanced by proverbial leaps and bounds in the past few years – and is advancing at an ever-faster rate. Even Hanson admits his “daughter” Sophia, though she’s consid- ered state-of-the-art now, may one day be seen as obsolete as a tape recorder; after all, as advanced as the Voyager space probes were when they were launched in the 1970s, they have far less computing power than today’s smartphones or even the iPods of more than a decade ago. And yet, while AI (including Sophia) may be in the so-called “uncanny valley” today in terms of realism (though Hanson says this isn’t necessarily a bad thing; “people still make eye contact, they still smile” when interact- ing with Sophia, he says), more “realistic” things – what Hanson calls “effective AI.” “All of these are intersections of busi- ness interests and the value they create for customers. That’s really the social contract all businesses have.” Hanson’s words are later echoed by Gaby Matar, group managing partner at eSolu- tions Maximo. Telecoms, says Matar, are the infrastructure, the foundation, upon which AI is built. Without infrastructure, we cannot move on, he says. We could speak for hours in the pleasant tearoom with the expensive-looking wood coffee table between us, but his status as Sophia’s father means Hanson’s schedule is sometimes arranged almost as precisely as his daughter’s circuitry. Before we get up to shake hands and head our separate ways, he offers parting philosophising to chew on. “It’s about the future quest to breathe life into machines. The mechanised can be made human. We must continue the quest to make these things beneficial.” AI is only possible after a time of uncanni- ness – much like how computer-generated graphics for films and video games have progressed from a time when they were quite rudimentary – claims Hanson. Similarly, a scenario where AI “rises up” and “replaces” humanity, a la the dystopian scenario in the Arnold Schwarzenegger- starring “Terminator” series, is only pos- sible if we humans “do it to ourselves” and input “garbage” into AI, Hanson affirms. But where do telecommunications fit into all this? Utopic, dystopic, somewhere in between? Do telcos have a role to play in the development – and practical use – of AI? Leaning forward, Hanson has an answer. “Telecommunications are the vehicle for AI. They really are the building blocks.” Load balance on networks, customer service, user interfaces, even the very bandwidth required – telecommunications make all of this possible for AI develop- ment. And AI, in turn, can help with these Sophia, from Hanson Robotics, was one of the stars of GITEX 2018 in Dubai. David Hanson is the 'father' of the world-famous robot Sophia. It’s about the future quest to breathe life into machines. The mechanised can be made human. We must continue the quest to make these things beneficial.” David Hanson David Hanson presenting at the Maximo Middle East User Group Conference in Dubai in April. 19CommsMEA May 2019www.commsmea.com INTERVIEW DAVID HANSONNext >