Private edge AI and 5G to enable new Industry 4.0 apps – Nokia on 2025

A couple of submissions from Nokia, here, in response to RCR‘s request for industry soothsayers to step forward, and tell us about the year ahead – in industrial networking, computing, sensing, analytics (and everything in between) in the name of digital change.

Carlijn Williams, Head of ECE Marketing, Nokia:

“For all those industrial enterprises that are already embracing Industry 4.0 transformation, setting the foundations for digitalization requires two enabling technologies: wireless connectivity to connect all assets, and on-premises edge to process OT data. In fact, according to Nokia’s Industrial Digitalization report, as the edge is playing a foundational role in enabling low latency use cases that stretch beyond connectivity, 40% of private wireless adopters have also deployed an on-premises edge.  

“The upcoming digital transformation will be driven by industrial use cases’ needs. Industrial enterprises are finding that beyond analytics, AI can create business value in many different use cases. However, operational technology’s key factors need to be considered: reliability, accuracy, privacy, security, and frugality. Enterprises can set the foundation for these with a unified industrial digitalization platform that combines edge computing and AI alongside mission-critical connectivity. This kind of platform moves computing tasks from centralized data centers to devices located at the network’s edge.”

Stephane Daeuble, Head of Solution Proposition and Market Development, Nokia:

“The platform’s mission-critical connectivity provided by 4.9G, 5G, and Wi-Fi, connects workers, industrial machines, robots, vehicles, devices, drones, and IoT sensors. Real-time data from these sources is gathered and processed on-site to create useful contextual awareness insights that can help keep workers safe, reduce energy usage and emissions, ensure quality control, boost productivity, and enhance worker collaboration.

“Additionally, AGV/AMR becomes more coordinated, self-driving vehicles more efficient, and machines can be remotely operated. Moreover, other connected worker use cases, such as push-to-talk/video communication or digital twins to gain access anywhere in the plants, give the needed contextual awareness to empower the worker, help better decision-making, and lower the impact of the lack of skilled OT workers.”