16 Jan 2023

SME Member of the Week: Net AI

Net AI is the second of January's SME Member of the Week. This month, techUK are focused on digital trade and are showcasing SME member's who have tapped into overseas export opportunities and taken advantage of the UK’s trading partnerships worldwide to successfully export their product or service in international markets.


Net AI is a network intelligence company in the Telecom sector. Paul Patras, CEO and Co-founder of Net AI, discusses Net AI and his thoughts on digital trade. 

How did your company start?

Net AI is a spin out from the University of Edinburgh. We have dedicated years of research at the intersection of mobile networking and artificial intelligence to create AI-driven technologies that solve real-world networking problems, including traffic stream quantification, capacity-aware forecasting, and anomaly prediction.

How does your company contribute to this month's theme?

In 2023 we will begin exporting our products and services into international markets having laid the foundation for this throughout 2022. We established a partnership with VMware, which is a viable channel for selling to mobile operators they already serve. We participated in the European Open RAN PlugFest hosted by Deutsche Telekom with whom we now seek to establish a direct commercial relationship. And we took part in the UK Global Business Innovation Programme (GBIP) to Japan where we made connections with local Service Providers, including Rakuten Mobile, KDDI and NTT Docomo.

Who's behind your company?

Net AI’s team consists of pioneers in the application of artificial intelligence to mobile networking, benefiting from years of expertise in this field. The executive team is led by the CEO, Dr Paul Patras, Associate Professor at the University of Edinburgh, together with the CTO, Dr Marco Fiore, Research Professor at IMDEA Networks. They are supported by Chairman Mark Chapman, who has over 25 years business experience in the telecom sector and a vast network of key contacts relevant to Net AI; and Bill McDonald, former Managing Director of Accenture in Scotland where he led major technology and AI-driven transformation projects.

What’s your perspective on the present and the future of this month's theme?

The GBIP activity provided a head-start to Net AI in the Open RAN xApp software export journey. Rakuten have developed their own O-RAN marketplace and we now seek to obtain access to their SDK, in order to customise and launch our AI- driven traffic forecasting and resource allocation xApp on that platform, with a view to reaching stakeholders in Japan and further in East Asia. Net AI is also planning pilots with a European mobile operator and a Fortune 500 systems integrator, expecting the first to start in Q1/2023. These will pave the way to scaling up the business and our export activities.

Recent Success

We have secured two industry partnerships as explained above. Announcements will be made ahead of demonstrating our work with them at MWC in Barcelona at the end of February 2023.  

What does the future look like for your company?

Demonstrating market validation, establishing technological supremacy, revolutionising mobile network management via AI-driven analytics across the globe.

Asks for other members  

We would like to connect to other members in the telecoms sector to find out more about the current issues they are facing and which AI could solve.

More information

LinkedIn: Net AI
Website:  https://netai.tech/


SME Member of the Week: February, Digital apprenticeships

For February's SME Member of the Week, we’ll be focusing on digital apprenticeships. Digital apprenticeships offer one of the best pathways to a career in tech and can provide a company with a diverse range of talent. We'll be looking to showcase SMEs who have been successful in recruiting digital apprentices and illustrating the positive impact this has had on their business.