SKT to Develop Telecom-Specialized AI Large Language Model with Deutsche Telekom

Development of Communication-Specialized LLM Trained on Multilingual Data Owned by Each Company
Scheduled for Release in Q1 Next Year

SK Telecom is partnering with global telecom company Deutsche Telekom to jointly develop a large language model (LLM).

On the 20th, SKT announced on the 22nd that it signed a memorandum of understanding for the joint development of a ‘telecom-oriented artificial intelligence (AI) LLM’ with Deutsche Telekom at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul. The signing ceremony was attended by SKT CEO Yoo Young-sang and Deutsche Telekom Chairman Tim H?ttges, along with other key executives from both companies.

The two companies plan to collaborate with AI firms such as Anthropic and Meta to jointly develop a telecom-specialized multilingual large language model in Korean, German, English, and other languages. They aim to unveil the telecom-oriented specialized LLM by the first quarter of next year.

The telecom-oriented LLM will have a higher understanding of telecom service-related domains and better comprehension of user intent compared to general-purpose LLMs, making it suitable for customer-facing services such as AI call centers. Based on this, telecom companies worldwide in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East will be supported to flexibly develop generative AI services like AI agents tailored to their local environments.

Telecom companies can reduce the cost and time of developing large platforms with telecom-specialized LLMs, securing new business opportunities and growth engines alongside the paradigm shift of traditional telecom businesses through AI innovation.

Additionally, the two companies will jointly develop AI platform technologies that telecom companies can use to create generative AI services, aiming to shorten development time and costs.

For example, when overseas telecom companies want to build AI call centers based on generative AI, they will be able to establish AI call centers that fit their telecom environments more quickly and flexibly on their own. Alternatively, if network infrastructure monitoring or field operations are enhanced with AI-based efficiency improvements, cost savings can be expected in the mid to long term.

Through this collaboration, the two companies expect to proactively respond to the rapidly increasing AI demand from telecom operators centered on generative AI, while promoting the expansion of the global AI ecosystem through the successful introduction of generative AI optimized for specific industries or domains.

CEO Yoo said, "Through cooperation with Deutsche Telekom, the world’s largest telecom company, we have created an opportunity to secure leadership in the global AI market and drive new growth," adding, "We hope that companies across various industries will widely utilize the AI technologies, platforms, and infrastructure of both companies to provide high value to customers worldwide."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.