Innovation in China's edge computing industry is advancing by leaps and bounds

　　Innovation in China's edge computing industry is advancing by leaps and bounds

　　[Looking at China from the outside]

　　◎Reporter Zhang Mengran

　　Innovation in China's edge computing industry has exploded over the past year, according to Tech Monitor's exclusive analysis of the latest patent filings provided by innovation research firm GreyB.

In the past year, 7 of the 10 organizations that submitted the most patent applications for edge computing belonged to China, and all the top 10 universities belonged to China.

　　This innovation is driven by the rapid deployment of 5G in China and its pursuit of smart grids.

　　Looking ahead, the Linux Foundation predicts that by 2028, 38 percent of the world's edge computing infrastructure will be located in the Asia-Pacific region, and countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea are expected to be significant players in the adoption of edge computing in the region.

According to the report, Western European countries are also expected to be major contributors, accounting for 29 percent of global edge infrastructure, while the United States will account for a 21 percent share.

　　Edge computing advantages in China

　　The wide coverage of 5G networks is considered a key enabler for edge computing, as most edge devices require ultra-low latency to process and analyze high-volume data transfers in real time.

　　Although China launched its first commercial 5G service in October 2019, 6 months later than the US, South Korea and Switzerland, China's infrastructure is developing so fast that 15 were built in less than 2 months. 10,000 new 5G base stations.

　　According to data recently released by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, China will have more than 1 million 5G base stations by the end of 2021.

By comparison, the U.S. has only installed 500,000 5G base stations since 2019.

　　Dr. Robert Spalding, CEO of digital infrastructure provider Sempre and a former U.S. Air Force brigadier general, believes that the U.S. government does not currently view edge computing as a strategic issue.

"This industry is better suited to their business today than the business the country needs tomorrow," he said.

　　Spalding said U.S. telcos remain focused on today's telecom model, which is using a mix of 4G and 5G networks to serve smartphones.

That means they haven't explored the possibilities of pure 5G networks, including edge computing.

"As a standards-based software-defined networking system, you don't really get the full power of 5G." The way China is using standalone 5G technology, he said, frees them from many of the hardware-specific technologies built into older telecom networks.

　　Spalding believes this will allow China's tech giants to set the course for digital innovation over the next decade.

Chinese companies like Tencent, Huawei and ZTE will dominate the 5G era because they are actually deploying the infrastructure to support these edge devices.

　　Smart grid drives China's edge computing innovation

　　The latest patent filing data related to edge computing provided by innovation research firm GreyB shows that Chinese industry is using its vast 5G infrastructure to drive innovation to great effect.

Susant Kumar, the company's principal researcher, believes that while the number of patents is only one indicator of innovation in a country, when combined with other factors, they can also reveal the pace and goals of innovation.

　　Seven of the top ten organizations with the most edge computing patent filings since the end of the first quarter of 2021 are located in China.

The State Grid Corporation of China applied for the most patents with 456, followed by Guangdong Power Grid Corporation and US chip maker Intel.

　　This suggests that China's pursuit of a smart grid helps explain its advances in edge computing.

In 2016, China released the 13th Five-Year National Science and Technology Innovation Plan, which calls for becoming a global leader in numerous strategic technology fields, including smart grids.

　　The results of this ambition can be seen in cities including the eastern Chinese port city of Qingdao, where China's "largest 5G smart grid" is said to "eliminate faults in distribution lines within milliseconds" and significantly reduce 5G The power consumption of the base station.

　　"Because of its land area, China has the largest power grid system in the world, so it needs billions of devices and high-voltage lines to provide power," explained Professor Liu Jiangchuan, founder of edge computing service provider Jiangxing Intelligent. "If you Consider monitoring these power lines in real time, and edge computing will play a very important role if you want to modernize these grid systems and make them a reliable source of energy.”

　　Liu Jiangchuan explained that one of the most important innovations of State Grid is to improve the resilience of the energy network in harsh environments such as the Gobi Desert.

"In the past, you had to send people to these remote areas to maintain the network, but today, people are trying to replace aging monitoring equipment that uses batteries with real-time monitoring systems powered by edge computing."

　　Universities become key nodes of edge computing ecosystem

　　China's long-established universities have also become key nodes in the edge computing ecosystem.

GreyB data shows that since March 2021, the ten universities with the most patent applications are all located in China, with Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications topping the list with 189 patents.

　　Liu Jiangchuan attributes this to the transformation of Chinese academia from a passive actor purely focused on research to an active player leading global technology.

　　“About 20 years ago, Chinese universities were quite disjointed, but today, they have seamlessly integrated and caught up with the rest of the world in terms of advanced research publications.” Liu Jiangchuan explained that there is also a realization that academia should be closely aligned with industry Collaborate with the world to actually deploy real-world systems and integrate their work into industrial products.

"That's why in recent years, you'll see Chinese universities actively participating in industry product development, and you'll see many university professors serving as consultants, CEOs or chief scientists in the private sector."

　　"Science and Technology Daily" October 14, 2022 12th edition