SARATOGA, CALIFORNIA — Aira Technologies, a leader in applying AI to cellular network infrastructure, has raised $14.5 million in Series B to expand and accelerate its AI/ML-based solutions to drive improvements in operating, energy, and spectral efficiency. With the new funding, Aira will accelerate the advancement of its GenAI product roadmap.

Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are experiencing exponential data traffic growth and are under pressure to improve profitability by pushing down the Total Cost of Ownership while generating new streams of revenue. Aira’s vision is to use a data-driven, ML-powered approach to radically re-imagine wireless design, deployment, and control to improve efficiency and performance. Aira’s innovations allow MNOs to vastly improve their radio access network (RAN) architecture and performance. This new round of funding will support Aira’s visionary approach to enabling the RAN of the future—a fully autonomous, self-learning RAN.

“The U.S. has a significant lead in GenAI/AI/ML, and it is vital for the U.S. to maintain this lead. The application of AI/ML to communications—a crucial part of the national infrastructure—is both novel and necessary. Aira’s work spans both of these important segments, positioning them as a strategic investment opportunity,” said Jon Chait, General Partner at IQT. 

“Our investment in Aira supports the ability to deliver more responsive and adaptive networks,” said Vikram Taneja, Head of AT&T Ventures. “We’re excited to be part of this effort to help drive the advancement of intelligent network innovation for the future of wireless communications.”

Aira’s pace of innovation has been swift. This year the company’s AI-based channel estimation and prediction xApp, a world first, was awarded the Telecom Infrastructure Project “Silver Badge.” Aira also demonstrated, in collaboration with Intel, an AI-based high-fidelity MIMO channel estimation and prediction to dramatically improve 5G MU-MIMO efficiency and throughput. 

Most recently, Aira launched Naavik, a GenAI platform that revolutionizes network operations via advanced automation and natural language processing. Enabling intuitive, conversational interactions with network data and reducing task times from months to days, Naavik enhances visibility, control and automation across the RAN to empower fully autonomous networks.

“We are excited about Aira’s approach to AI/ML and its potential for optimizing RAN performance and energy efficiency,” said Cristina Rodriguez, vice president and general manager, Comms Solutions Group at Intel. “Aira’s advanced technology, combined with Intel Xeon processors and Intel FlexRAN reference software, greatly simplifies AI/ML integration so operators can more quickly realize these performance and cost-of-ownership benefits.

Aira’s Series B investment round was a strategic investment round, and the company is thrilled to have AT&T Ventures, Intel Capital, IQT, Juniper, and JTM LLC joined by existing investors NeoTribe and Acrew. 

“Aira is laser focused on enabling the telecommunication networks of the future. A fully autonomous, self-learning RAN is the next frontier, and we are hard at work to make this a reality for our customers,” said Aira Co-Founder and CEO Anand Chandrasekher. “We are delighted to see our partners and customers believe in our vision and invest resources to support our momentum.”