5G provides fuel for edge computing, Industry 4.0: Anand Ramamoorthy, Micron

Micron Technology, Inc. is a leading American producer of computer memory and computer data storage including dynamic random-access memory, flash memory, and USB flash drives.

As a leader in innovative memory solutions, Micron is helping the world make sense of data by delivering technology that is transforming how the world uses information to enrich life for all.

Here, Anand Ramamoorthy, MD, Micron Technology India, tells us more. Excerpts from an interview:

DQ: How are industry leaders preparing for the advent of 5G?

Anand Ramamoorthy: As the world now transitions into what's next, technology is still accelerating: Artificial intelligence (AI) is disrupting workloads; 5G is revolutionizing data movement; and the intelligent edge is expanding the reach of data-centric computing across the globe. All these changes are forcing us to reimagine how data moves within and between computing systems.

The advent of 5G is placing new demands on mobile memory and storage, while creating new opportunities for innovation in gaming, content streaming and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR). Client architecture is shifting as AI moves to user applications, once again placing memory and storage at the heart of innovation.

At Micron, we are advancing mobile platforms through delivery of low-power DRAM and industry-leading multichip packaging technologies. We are deeply committed to supporting customer innovation driven by 5G and AI to deliver new levels of user experience, from data centers to intelligent edge. And continue to develop DRAM and NAND with increasingly complex architectures and smaller feature sizes, with high-quality standards.

DQ: What are the ways in which the semiconductor industry is gearing up for the impact of 5G?

Anand Ramamoorthy: The semiconductor industry, which has powered every generation of microchip for the past 50 years, is gearing up for 5G and with the scheduled rollout, industries like streaming, manufacturing and more will reap multiple benefits not just in terms of speed, low latency and high reliability, but also collecting and analyzing data in near-real-time to offer enhanced customer experience.

5G provides the fuel for edge computing -- i.e., with the benefits offered by 5G, organizations will be able to collect and process vast amounts of data right at the 'edge' location (imagine a manufacturing plant, big warehouse, retail store), which is commonly known as edge computing.

The realization of 5G at scale and the emergence of the intelligent edge will open opportunities like never before. We will have more and more content being pushed into untethered devices that will require even higher performance, more graphics rendering, and lower power memory and storage in a compact space. We will see unique form factors in memory, like what we see in the mobile space today – and they’ll continue to need more storage capability, more bandwidth, and more memory.

With 5G connectivity and expansion of the intelligent edge, we see new applications demand miniaturization and new capability from the process node advancement innovations of memory and storage.

DQ: How has the realization of 5G at scale, and the emergence of the intelligent edge, open up new opportunities?

Anand Ramamoorthy: The memory and storage market has benefited from the growth of the internet and the rapid proliferation of electronic devices across an increasingly diverse set of end markets and applications.

The expansion of the data economy — fueled by the broad proliferation of AI, global deployment of 5G networks and expansion of the intelligent edge — promises even more opportunity for memory and storage as computing becomes more data-centric.

There has never been a time in computing history when memory and storage innovation was more critical than today. DRAM and NAND used to comprise 10% to 15% of the semiconductor market. They now represent 25% to 35%, and have grown faster than the rest of the semiconductor industry has in the last decade.

Separately, 5G and AI, each have their own disruptive innovation vector. Together, they become a potent combination to accelerate innovative solutions across virtually all technology applications along the edge-to-cloud continuum.

DQ: How are Micron’s mobile memory and storage products designed to fuel the next generation of 5G- and AI-enabled smartphones?

Anand Ramamoorthy: We are entering the next era of consumer experiences delivered through the broad proliferation of 5G connectivity and development of AI-infused applications. Consumers are hungry for richer media, more immersive experiences and more creative control at their fingertips. The power of technology is transforming our day-to-day lives. This new era places new requirements on memory and storage for delivering richer experiences across clients, mobile devices, gaming consoles and smart home devices.

Micron has invested in expanding our portfolio of memory and storage solutions and innovative multichip packaging solutions to address platform requirements and provide the rich experiences user's demand. Mobile devices connect our lives and Micron’s deep relationships with smartphone makers and chipset providers enable them to give customers immersive mobile experience by using our low-power, high-performance memory, extensive technical expertise and dedication to collaboration.

Our mobile memory and storage products are specifically designed to fuel the next generation of 5G- and AI-enabled smartphones — balancing demands for storage capacity and computational power with size constraints, cost effectiveness and battery power. Our unique approach to multichip packaging has enabled the mobile segment to become the fastest-growing market for Micron’s business.

DQ: On the same note, what are the trends for 2022 with 5G and AI infusion?

Anand Ramamoorthy: Micron encourages leading-edge thinking to accelerate technology innovation across the data-centric cloud, intelligent edge and device experiences to enrich businesses and lives beyond what we can imagine. Micron's technology is powering a new generation of faster and more intelligent global infrastructures that make technology transitions like 5G and AI mainstream.

Industry 4.0 is an opportunity that has been talked about in length over the past few years. With the rollout of 5G in 2022, the need for enhancing manufacturing will fuel the need for Industry 4.0 because many enterprises are just beginning to realize the importance and the value it holds for the business.

Continued advancements in connectivity, Wi-Fi6 and 5G, along with advanced AI chips and software, will drive a growth in smart gateways, 5G private networks, edge data centers and smarter devices with enhanced management and coordination capabilities to enhance user experience.

This year, we expect to see drastic growth in contextual awareness and human-centered AI as interconnected objects right from smartphones, computers, laptops, tablets and other smart devices will be infused with AI automatic software and build to better sense the surrounding and your patterns with its many sensors and detectors to provide quality user interface and experience.

DQ: What are the predictions and chatter around 6G in the industry?

Anand Ramamoorthy: While we are still gearing up and seeing a lot of traction around the rollout of 5G and what it holds for India at large, the industry has already started looking at the next “G” - 6G and predictions on the subject is visible as one of the next steps that will bring about some drastic change in the telecom and technology industry.

We are already looking at a wireless and digital India and with 6G we will see an increased focus on memory-centric, AI-based, digital algorithms, machine learning, intelligent edge which will drive the growth of the memory and storage footprint for these new wireless technologies.

With this clear foreseeable change that can be seen in the next couple of years, we can plan and make sure that the memory and storage technologies are ready to deliver the output, capacity and low latency these networks, devices and customer experiences will demand because we are a part of the industry collaboration scoping requirements and capabilities/scope for 6G networks now that we are already inching towards bringing 5G in India.