KHOIRUL ANWAR, MAN BEHIND RAN MERDEKA INDONESIA

His love for telecommunication has brought Khoirul Anwar to get his Master and Professor education in Japan with Panasonic Scholarship. Dr. Eng. Khoirul Anwar, S.T., M. Eng. is currently the Director of the University Center of Excellent for Advanced Intelligent Communications (AICOMS), which has a national scale and is located at Telkom University. Check out our interview to learn more about Khoirul Anwar and his proud contribution to Indonesia.

Looking at your remarkable career journey contributing to the development of domestic telecommunications, what sparked you to start this journey, until now finally in charge as Director of The University Center of Excellence for Advanced Intelligent Communications (AICOMS), Telkom University?

Having dreamt of becoming a scientist since childhood, Khoirul was inspired by the world's great figures, such as Michael Faraday, Thomas Alfa Edison, and Albert Einstein Loving to read and being consistent with his dreams were the keys for Khoirul to explore and pursue knowledge Eventually, this led him to receive the Panasonic Scholarship to study at the Nara Institute of Science and Technology (NAIST) in Japan and become a

Can you share your work as Director of The University Center of Excellence for Advanced Intelligent Communications (AICOMS), Telkom University?

Is there a particular area of technology or telecommunications that you are particularly interested in? Why is it your focus? What exciting things do you see in it?

"Telecommunications is one of the applications of science called information theory It is the underlying science of telecommunications as it is developed today It caught my attention because it is the root of many sciences. Not only telecommunications but also the origins of statistics, math, economics, and many other things Coding theory is also something I'm passionate about Coding theory is a theory or technique for correcting errors Telecommunications needs both of these things First, information theory must know how much information can be sent in a transmission, whether large or small. Second, coding theory is needed because every transmission is not guaranteed success It could be an error in the process, so it has to be corrected So if someone sends information without being protected by error correction, then they are doing something futile Those are the two things that interest me. 2G to 5G and beyond have the foundation of those two theories. So if telecommunication changes to 6G in 2030 or if there will be new things in the future, for me, it is possible if we master information theory and coding theory, besides we also master the science of electrical circuits and so on Mastering these things will make it easier for us to develop and contribute to the world in these fields.

Regarding open RAN, I welcome its presence because this is one of the technologies that can revive local industries With the existence of open RAN, Indonesian scientists, and industry players, including my aspirations to make something useful for humans, can be increasingly realized with the presence of open RAN because this is not vendor lock-in So, open RAN is a mechanism we must welcome and support Alhamdulillah, the government also supports open RAN I proposed a name change to RAN Merdeka for open RAN in Indonesia, and the Ministry has approved this. I have also presented this idea at an international forum (MWC Barcelona 2023) and received appreciation from GSME that this is an example of a good idea born from an Asian country, which should be supported internationally

Regarding AI, it did not exist in telecommunications before and has only recently started to emerge Complex calculations can be simplified with AI. But of course, AI must be trained well, which is the challenge. AI in telecommunications will begin to be used in 5G advance, a prologue to 6G So, 6G will use AI and Quantum We have prepared for that and already have a proposed 5G advance and 6G technology We are patenting the process, which is supported by international funding Hopefully, we will be more enthusiastic and dare to contribute to the international community "

RAN Merdeka is an exciting thing that was mentioned earlier. Can you elaborate further on what RAN Meredeka is, how it works, and what kind of implementation of the benefits of RAN Merdeka can impact the local industry?

"Here is the definition that I proposed to the government There are two reasons why I suggested the name RAN Merdeka First, I want Indonesia to avoid getting caught up in the international rivalry of blocs supporting and rejecting the Open RAN. I don't want my country to get into that vortex. The second reason is that I wish for the industry in Indonesia to start progressing, and one of the doors to that progress is by creating RAN Merdeka

The Radio Access Network (RAN) is divided into two, traditional RAN and open RAN Traditional RAN is controlled by one vendor, meaning the vendor makes all the components alone Open RAN can be called 'group work,' meaning that various parties make various components. I divide open RAN into two, namely Open RAN, which is made in other countries Open RAN products that enter Indonesia, but all components are from other countries; I call them open RAN, aka no local content Meanwhile, Open RAN products that have parts produced domestically, I call them RAN Merdeka At MWC Barcelona 2023, I introduced RAN Merdeka and the word Merdeka, which means freedom I want our RAN to be accessible to the Indonesian industry and academia."

How is the development process of the RAN Merdeka in Indonesia? Have you encountered any challenges along the way?

"First of all, Alhamdulillah, I was appointed by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology to be the Vice Chairman of the Indonesian Open RAN Task Force Our job is to create a 6G roadmap up to 2030, so up to the application of open RAN in 6G We have finished making the roadmap, and one of the featured products in the roadmap is Patriot Net, made at AICOMS, which has the highest TKDN in all of Indonesia, and this is what makes Indonesia superior because it shows that Indonesia can start its own production Until now, AICOMS has been actively researching and manufacturing products, and the government is aware of this If the government approves the roadmap, I would like to provide training to several campuses and industries so that more people can make their own RAN Merdeka There are two critical things in the roadmap First is the plan for 6G So in RAN Merdeka, in following 5G Advance, I propose adding AI made by Indonesian, then adding Quantum to finally become 6G So 6G combines intelligence (with AI) and security (with Quantum Cryptography) If approved, it will continue to the second point, which is related to operators' use of domestic products But this is still under discussion with the government But I am confident that this product will live in Indonesia and support the sustainability of industry, researchers, and science as long as it is approved To get there, AICOMS is being assessed by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology regarding the Domestic Component Level (TKDN) "

If RAN Merdeka is ready to be implemented in Indonesia, what are the biggest challenges related to the implementation?

"The challenges can be divided into two things, considering that the government has supported the implementation of RAN Merdeka The first challenge is the need for more resources (academics) who understand 5G Advance and 6G However, this can be overcome with training and workshops The second challenge is the need for more industry Inviting the industry is not easy because the industry prefers profit However, this can be overcome with government regulations, of course with training for the industry If these two challenges can be overcome, new challenges such as components may arise However, there will be ways to overcome this, such as cooperation with outside parties Even though we are cooperating with external parties, with the RAN Merdeka regulation, we hope this new challenge can be resolved Then if various challenges can be overcome, continuity is the key to the sustainability of the implementation of the RAN Merdeka To maintain this continuity, I want to instill the idea that the first result can be imperfect in experimenting With a sense of unyielding spirit, the results will constantly evolve to be good and eventually able to become excellent "

Considering Indonesia has various resources and potential, what is the most compelling use case for implementing RAN Merdeka later?

"I see two interesting use cases. First is the development in 3T or rural areas. The difficulty of support from operators for RAN Merdeka is that they are not sure of the performance. The most appropriate use case is to put it in rural areas. So the first benefit is that there are still a few users if the performance decreases. The second benefit is that people in rural areas can experience the use of the Internet, and the third is related to affordable prices

The second use case possible for developing RAN Merdeka, which can be done massively in Indonesia, is in universities (campuses) When later approved by the government, the first implementation will be on campus The benefits that can be felt are to revive RAN Merdeka research on each campus and attract the public to enter the campus This second benefit is a culture that is still rare in Indonesia In my experience in Japan, either in Nara or Ishikawa, there were always two Open Campus agendas, where the general public was allowed to enter the campus, enter the lab while watching presentations, and receive souvenirs The benefit for the campus is the prospect of new students The benefit for the public is the opening of public knowledge regarding the latest developments If you look at the implementation of open RAN abroad, it differs from Indonesia

Yesterday I had a meeting with the Japanese government (developed country) They implement open RAN not for the local industry but for refreshment and better performance innovation "

Can RAN Merdeka be a gamechanger for the ICT world in Indonesia and benefit various lines?

"It will be a hero. I also reflect on my experience in telecommunications in Indonesia, RAN Merdeka could be a hero. This can revive academics and industry, also will open up healthy competition. Because the manufacture of RAN Merdeka products can compete, the public will benefit. So RAN Merdeka with local content will be a hero for the digital transformation process in Indonesia."

What are your expectations for the ICT sector in Indonesia, especially in implementing RAN Merdeka in Indonesia?

"I have three expectations. First, the RAN Merdeka roadmap is approved by the government and becomes the government's roadmap for telecommunications development in Indonesia. Second, the Indonesian industry and academy are ready. If it is approved, then we have to expand it throughout Indonesia massively. If RAN Merdeka is needed in Sumatra, Sumatra's industry and academics will compile it. If it is necessary for Sulawesi, the Sulawesi industry and academics will collect it, and so on, for Indonesia to move forward together The third hope, by the predictions of several experts from abroad, is that future technological advances will come from Indonesia So Indonesia will be the electronics producer in the future because we have a demographic bonus Indonesians have begun to dare to step up their existence internationally for the advancement of several fields That way, I hope that the golden Indonesia of 2045 will not be a utopia but can become a reality "