SK Telecom Debuts AWS Wavelength-Backed Edge Platform

SK Telecom has tapped Amazon Web Services (AWS) to launch the carrier’s 5GX Edge platform to support low-latency services. SK Telecom has tapped Amazon Web Services (AWS) to launch the carrier’s 5GX Edge platform to support low-latency services. The platform takes advantage of AWS Wavelength at the edge of SK Telecom’s 5G multi-access edge computing (MEC) networks. Announced in December 2019, Wavelength embeds AWS compute and storage in what are called Wavelength Zones — AWS infrastructure deployments within the network operators’ data centers at the edge of the 5G networks. Wavelengths allows developers to deploy portions of an application that require ultra-low latency within the 5G network at the edge, and connect back to the rest of their application or cloud service running in AWS. It uses the same AWS APIs, tools, and functionality at the edge that developers are already using in AWS. SKT sees the new offering as critical to support next-generation 5G use cases including machine learning, internet of things (IoT), video games, and streaming. The carrier has already deployed its 5GX Edge platform in Daejeon, South Korea, and plans to expand the infrastructure next year to other areas including Seoul. More than 20 SKT customers have trialed the service since the network operator partnering with AWS in February. One is Woowa Brothers, which has developed a meal delivery application that uses the 5GX Edge platform to improve the reliability of autonomous delivery robots. The carrier has also entered into an agreement with Shinsegae I&C and Maxst to build an augmented reality navigation and guidance system for a large-scale shopping mall in Seoul, and with Looxid Labs, a provider of real-time eye gaze and brainwave tracking, to develop services for a senior center in Busan, South Korea. SK Telecom isn’t the first adopt AWS Wavelength to tackle low-latency edge compute. Verizon was a launch partner for the new program, having initially deployed the service in Chicago. Verizon in August announced plans to expand the service to San Francisco and Boston. Early applications for the Verizon launch include an effort by Avesha to help hospitals take advantage of cloud-based machine learning to analyze medical images for the presence of cancerous polyps.