Tata Communications&#8217; Bold Bet on IoT is Paying Off
IoT was once considered highly transformative. But over time, its relevance has somewhat diminished prompting a reassessment of its impact and potential. Companies like IBM and Google, for example, have announced the closure of their respective IoT divisions. However, Tata Communications (previously known as Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited) is betting big on the technology and has an IoT division focused on providing industry-grade IoT solutions to businesses around the world. Today, Tata Communications is at the forefront of IoT development in India offering innovative, comprehensive and scalable solutions for smart cities and their citizens. The company has a host of IoT-powered solutions catering to the needs of numerous industries as well as administrations. The company’s IoT solutions are deployed in multiple smart cities in the country. “On the industrial side, besides the manufacturing sector, we are deploying our solutions for one of the largest steel manufacturers in India. We are also deploying them for clients in the oil and gas industry, pulp and paper industry and we are also in the resource industry,” Praveen Arora, vice president and business head (IoT), Tata Communications, told AIM. Building confidence for wider adoption The technology is still in a nascent stage and the potential is immense. One of the reasons why the technology has not scaled as it should have is because the market remains fragmented, according to Arora. Currently, there exists a gap and Tata Communications is trying to bridge the existing gap by creating a platform-based approach and building a digital fabric that connects a wide ecosystem. “Through this hyper-connected world, we strive to bring all elements together and foster integration. Another aspect to consider is the maturity of the solution. When new technologies emerge, organisations may hesitate to be early adopters due to fear and uncertainty. We have focused on delivering value and ensuring successful deployments, building confidence for wider adoption of the solution at scale,” he said. Furthermore, in India, there are varying levels of digital technology adoption across industries. Sectors like automotive and aerospace have been quick to embrace digitalisation due to the potential for significant value generation. However, mid-sized industries are still in the process of adopting digitalisation, with some just starting to explore industry-specific solutions. “As the manufacturing sector becomes more focused, there is a growing need for cost-effective solutions that bridge the gap in automation and digitalisation, aligning with Industry 4.0 requirements, albeit at a different pace compared to advanced industries.” Now, with the advent of the 5G network, IoT is poised to revolutionise the IoT landscape, bringing about significant transformations. “It offers reliable, low-latency connectivity, enabling faster and more scalable solutions. Additionally, 5G facilitates edge computing capabilities, further enhancing its potential in the IoT ecosystem.” Smart City Solutions Today, Tata Communications offers a host of IoT-powered smart city solutions to enhance performance and well-being while reducing costs and resource consumption. Currently, the company is engaged in more than 10 cities under the Smart Cities Mission. “We are in Delhi NCR, in some cities in Gujarat, and in Calcutta. We are present in many private townships as well for smart street lighting automation,” Arora said. Besides smart lighting, the company is also engaged in video-based analytics and smart parking, among other things. The company’s solutions consist of the network, the devices platform, the application and the analytics layer. “From devices to platforms to networks, all the solutions have been entirely developed in-house in India, showcasing our indigenous capabilities.” Stressing further on the solutions, Arora mentions that by automating the street lights with IoT devices, smart cities have managed to reduce electricity consumption by 16%. “By automating streetlights and empowering field force services, we have enhanced street lighting maintenance. For example, if, in a specific city, the workforce required to maintain street lights is 100, automation decreases it to 20 due to the field force’s digitalisation awareness. With our advanced dashboard, they can proactively detect and address faults related to power supply, hardware, or lamps,” Arora said. Tata Communications is also taking its smart city solutions to other countries. “Various emerging geographies are looking at our smart city solutions, “Arora said. The company is working with Zain KSA to bring its smart street lighting solution for one of the key cities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Leveraging AI/ML and Gen AI Since the IoT devices generate huge amounts of data, Tata Communications leverages AI to convert the data into more ingestible meaningful chunks. “We run our AI/ML based engines to decipher the data and create a meaningful output. These are tightly integrated in all our suite of solutions and we also have edge integrated in most of our solutions because firstly, we analyse the data on the device itself.” “An example of machine learning application is in our video-based IoT solutions where we detect specific cases based on incoming video images and graphics. Our self-learning engine enhances efficiency and delivers highly accurate solutions surpassing standard out-of-the-box options in the market.” Besides, Tata Communications is also exploring the use of generative AI. According to Arora, the company is exploring the use of the technology in a multitude of applications; however, it’s still in the nascent stage.
From devices to platforms to networks, all the solutions have been entirely developed in-house in India
Tata Communications is at the forefront of IoT development in India offering innovative, comprehensive and scalable solutions for smart cities and their citizens
["IoT India", "tata communications"]
["machine learning", "TPU", "AI", "IoT India", "tata communications", "ML", "RAG", "Aim", "analytics", "generative AI", "edge computing", "R"]
["AI", "machine learning", "ML", "analytics", "generative AI", "Aim", "RAG", "edge computing", "TPU", "R"]
I have a keen interest in creative writing and artificial intelligence. As a journalist, I deep dive into the world of technology and analyse how it’s restructuring business models and reshaping society.