Archive · 14 Sep 2026
TRAI Chairman Urges Safeguards As AI Transforms Telecom Networks
Anil Kumar Lahoti said artificial intelligence can make telecom networks work better.
It can help companies predict demand, use resources wisely and find network problems quickly.
But AI can also make mistakes or stop working.
Those mistakes could disrupt services or wrongly label innocent people as threats.
Lahoti said people must continue checking important AI decisions.
Companies should test AI, assess its risks and keep records of how it makes decisions.
AI can help find online fraud, but criminals may also misuse it to make scams more advanced.
He said businesses and government agencies should work together to protect consumers.
Rules should focus on safety and results without blocking useful innovation.
TRAI Chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti called for responsible AI deployment, human oversight and intervention capabilities in telecom networks.
He urged operators and technology companies to conduct risk assessments, log decisions and test AI models before deployment.
AI can improve forecasting, resource use, network issue detection and responses to changing demand.
Lahoti warned that AI failures could disrupt services, wrongly classify legitimate users and create new points of failure.
He called for coordination among telecom operators, digital platforms, enterprises, financial institutions, government and law-enforcement agencies to combat increasingly complex scams.
- Who
- TRAI Chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti, along with telecom operators, technology companies and other digital-sector stakeholders.
- What
- Lahoti urged responsible AI deployment in telecom networks, with safeguards, human oversight, testing, accountability and coordinated fraud prevention.
- When
- Monday, during the inaugural session of the event 'Powering India's Intelligent Connectivity Future.'
- Where
- At an event organized by the industry body COAI.
- Why
- To capture AI's benefits while reducing risks such as system failures, service disruption, sophisticated fraud, wrongful classifications and weak consumer redressal.
AI Benefits And Innovation
AI Risks And Safeguards
Use of AI in telecom
AI Benefits And Innovation
AI can improve forecasting, optimise resources, detect network problems quickly and support more autonomous networks.
AI Risks And Safeguards
Greater dependence on AI can cause service disruption, system failures and new single points of failure if automated functions become unavailable.
AI and online fraud
AI Benefits And Innovation
AI can identify anomalies, suspicious patterns and threats, strengthening trust and helping combat scams.
AI Risks And Safeguards
If misused, AI can make harmful activities more sophisticated and can wrongly classify legitimate consumers, businesses or communications.
AI regulation
AI Benefits And Innovation
Innovation and emerging technologies should not be constrained by rules that prescribe one architecture or implementation model.
AI Risks And Safeguards
AI systems require accountability, security, reviewable decisions, safeguards, human oversight and grievance-redress mechanisms.
- Speaker
- Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
- Technology
- Artificial intelligence in telecom networks
- Recommended safeguards
- Risk assessments, decision logging, pre-deployment testing and human oversight
- Telecom benefits
- Improved forecasting, resource optimisation and faster identification of network issues
- Consumer protections
- Reliability, transparency, security, fair treatment and effective redressal
- Fraud risk
- AI can detect suspicious patterns but may also make scams and harmful activity more sophisticated
- Regulatory approach
- Focus on outcomes and risks, while preserving technology neutrality and encouraging common standards