This summer, two students from Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) will begin internships at Qualcomm, marking a concrete step in a new collaboration to define the future of 6G. This partnership, focused on 6G and Edge AI research development, aims to shape the next generation of wireless technology.
The future business success of 6G remains uncertain, however. Qualcomm is making substantial, long-term investments in talent development and hardware deployment, despite this acknowledged lack of clarity regarding its eventual market success, according to KAUST.
Qualcomm is betting that early, deep integration with academic research and talent pipelines will give it a decisive advantage in shaping and dominating the eventual 6G and Edge AI markets.
Cultivating Future 6G & AI Expertise
KAUST students will gain access to industry-led 5G and AI courses through the Qualcomm Academy eLearning platform, according to SatelliteProME. This access includes complimentary training and certification licenses provided by Qualcomm Technologies. The company is also hosting KAUST interns this summer, including two from the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.
Qualcomm strategically invests in human capital at KAUST. This ensures a future workforce skilled in its proprietary technologies and a direct pipeline for innovation. Such an approach cultivates engineers proficient in its platforms, creating a long-term competitive moat.
Hardware Foundation for Edge AI
The collaboration with KAUST includes deploying Qualcomm’s Dragonfly AI200 and AI250 chips, according to Sharikat Mubasher. Plans exist to introduce the AI300 later on. This hardware deployment actively constructs foundational infrastructure for 6G and Edge AI.
Qualcomm's early integration of advanced AI chips marks an aggressive push into foundational technologies for future edge AI. This actively builds the infrastructure and talent for a future where 6G and Edge AI are inextricably linked.
