Yang Xuqing of Softcom Wisdom: Leveraging the advantages of AI and working with Huawei Ascend to promote industry development

As one of Huawei Ascend's important ecological partners, what plans and layouts does iSoftStone have for artificial intelligence? And how does it work closely with Ascend as a partner to develop the artificial intelligence ecosystem? In this regard, Yang Xuqing, Chief Technology Officer of iSoftStone and General Manager of the Cloud and Computing Business Unit, gave a detailed explanation to 51CTO.

[[411189]]

Yang Xuqing, Chief Technology Officer of iSoftStone and General Manager of Cloud and Computing Business Unit

51CTO: Artificial intelligence is developing rapidly. What industry changes will the increasingly popular AI technology bring?

Yang Xuqing: As the cost of AI applications gradually decreases, the scope of AI applications and scenarios is also expanding. The industry, the science and technology community, and even the social environment we face will be affected by AI. Especially in the huge chain of the industry, the intervention of AI will greatly change the industrial form, such as reducing investment costs, increasing implementation speed, optimizing iteration efficiency, and opening up development opportunities.

51CTO: After years of competing in artificial intelligence, what has Softcom done in the field of AI?

Yang Xuqing: Softcom Wisdom is a technology-based company. We hope to change the industry by becoming an AI enabler for the industry and continuously exploring the application and technical aspects of AI.

On the technical level, iSoftStone Wisdom has made efforts in three aspects, including the terminal layer, platform layer and application capabilities. At the terminal layer, various cameras, sensors and other equipment produced by iSoftStone Electronics, a subsidiary of iSoftStone Wisdom, enable AI algorithms to run on terminal devices, realizing edge computing and edge intelligence. At the platform layer, iSoftStone Wisdom started researching AI training and reasoning platforms very early, and has formed AI-driven patents and intellectual property rights. Application capabilities are mainly oriented towards AI capabilities, with the center of excellence as the model, to form AI capabilities and empower the company's various business lines.

At the scenario level, the Zhizi Laboratory established by Softcom Intelligence is positioned as a "smart city innovation scenario practitioner". It is committed to breaking through and combining multi-dimensional sensing equipment, combining artificial intelligence technology, creating scenario chips and quickly responding to various urban governance scenario applications, in order to achieve the goal of reducing costs and increasing efficiency through the combination of AI and other technologies.

We believe that urban governance is an important direction for AI applications, including vehicle violations, municipal management, public security management and many other scenarios. Each scenario requires the development of a set of algorithms, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. With the in-depth application of AI, the many scenarios faced by urban governance will gradually be classified into a set of urban governance system management to cope with more scenario governance and improve the benefits and effects of urban governance.

51CTO: Softcom Intelligence is a technology company that focuses on providing data intelligence services. So is big data + AI the advantage of Softcom Intelligence in developing AI?

Yang Xuqing: The application of AI will involve changes in the entire management system. To make data intelligent and achieve the effect of predicting and warning urban governance, companies must not only be good at AI technology, but also understand the scenarios of AI application. The advantage of Softcom Wisdom is that we have accumulated a lot of scenario practice experience in the construction of data centers in multiple cities. Therefore, we not only have a better understanding of the data form of the city, but are also good at applying AI to scenarios to provide data intelligence services for the city.

For example, we use AI technology to assist in the management of super-large communities such as Guiyang Nanming District, solving the existing social security and management problems, greatly reducing personnel costs, and improving management efficiency, becoming a smart model for community governance. This is not only a representative achievement of Softcom Intelligence, but also a representative case of AI implementation.

In addition, Softcom Wisdom cooperates with the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the National Development and Reform Commission, the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, etc. to explore and research standards and algorithm models in the fields of digital twins and urban simulation, in which we are good at, to improve the effectiveness of urban data management.

51CTO: Softcom and Huawei are strategic partners in the same boat. The cooperation between the two sides has been in-depth and comprehensive for a long time. So how do you feel about cooperating with Huawei Ascend?

Yang Xuqing: I have three feelings: First, Huawei pays more and more attention to the root technology in AI, which is the deepest feeling in the cooperation process between Softcom Wisdom and Huawei. Like Ascend chips, MindSpore, ModelArts, Pangu big model, etc., Huawei's root technology products are not only released quickly, but also sinking more and more; second, Huawei has a strong sense of driving industrial development, and can actively develop industry partners with a driving role to complete the industrial ecology; third, Huawei is constantly lowering the threshold for the use of AI. Through SDK, the capabilities of AI can be applied to scenarios, making AI universal. In addition, Huawei is also driving more high-level services for partners, which will not only enhance the ecological cohesion of Huawei and its partners, but also promote the improvement of the innovation capabilities of the entire information industry.

51CTO: What is the role of Softcom in the partnership with Huawei Ascend?

Yang Xuqing: In the process of cooperation with Huawei Ascend, Softcom Wisdom mainly plays the role of construction and operation. The construction role is to help Huawei build a computing center in the early stage, and in the later stage, it will promote the industrial ecology and empower AI capabilities to various partners in the industrial chain. When the industrial scale is formed, Softcom Wisdom will play the role of operation.

In this process, we work with Huawei to promote the development of the industry and the change of business models: drive the aggregation and formation of industries through empowerment models, and promote industrial development; change the business model through changes in the artificial intelligence system; and influence the transformation of urban governance towards an operational direction through structural changes brought about by urban intelligent bodies, which has a positive effect on building smart cities.

51CTO: What are your expectations or goals for future cooperation?

Yang Xuqing: As a practitioner of implementing AI technology in scenario-based scenarios, our cooperation with Huawei not only provides a strong driving force for our business innovation, but also provides great stimulation for business development.

Against the backdrop of the rapid development of artificial intelligence, building infrastructure with AI capabilities as the core will become a trend in the development of new cities. As an important ecological partner of Huawei Ascend, iSoftStone, as Huawei's "artificial intelligence computing center operation partner", works with Huawei Ascend to drive AI scenario innovation, accelerate the process of industrial development, give full play to the advantages and capabilities of both parties, and serve customers, the industry, and the ecosystem.