10th October 2026: SNS Telecom & IT's latest research report indicates that annual spending on AI-RAN automation and optimization is projected to reach $1.1 billion by 2030 as mobile operators scale SMO and Non-RT RIC deployments for network-level automation through AI/ML-enabled rApps, while increasingly pursuing real-time dApps and embedded AI-for-RAN software upgrades to improve performance, energy efficiency and operational autonomy.

Automation of the RAN (Radio Access Network) – the most expensive, technically complex and power-intensive part of cellular infrastructure – is a key aspect of mobile operators' AN (Autonomous Network) journeys towards L4 (Highly Autonomous) and eventually L5 (Fully Autonomous) operations. In conjunction with AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning), RAN automation has the potential to significantly transform mobile network economics by reducing the OpEx (Operating Expenditure)-to-revenue ratio, minimizing energy consumption, lowering CO2 emissions, deferring avoidable CapEx (Capital Expenditure), optimizing performance, improving user experience and enabling new services.

Rakuten Mobile, China Mobile, STC (Saudi Telecom Company), TDC NET and several other operators have already achieved a limited level of L4 autonomy for specific use cases in their live RAN operations. The proven, quantifiable benefits of this level of intent-driven, closed-loop RAN automation range from 20% energy savings without compromising customer experience to a reduction of up to 60% in cell outages during major events such as the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Beyond terrestrial public mobile networks, RAN automation is also gaining traction in other segments of the cellular industry, supporting applications ranging from NTN (Non-Terrestrial Network) resource orchestration and terrestrial-satellite interworking to agentic AI-enabled private 5G network management, adaptive power control in offshore cellular deployments, ISAC (Integrated Sensing & Communications) for counter-drone operations and emission control for tactical 5G networks.

The RAN automation market is undergoing a transition from traditional SON (Self-Organizing Network) technology towards more open, application-based architectures built around RIC (RAN Intelligent Controller) and SMO (Service Management & Orchestration) platforms. In particular, centrally coordinated rApps hosted on the Non-RT (Real-Time) RIC layer are emerging as the preferred approach to multi-vendor, network-wide automation, with adoption accelerating among brownfield operators such as AT&T, Verizon, Telus, Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, Swisscom and Telstra. 

While reluctance among DU/CU vendors has held back adoption of xApps and the Near-RT RIC, there is growing interest in the recently proposed E3 interface, which provides a standardized mechanism for dApps to directly interface with Open RAN baseband nodes for closed-loop control beyond the 10-millisecond latency limits of xApps, including lower-layer performance optimization, geolocation, integrated sensing, spectrum sharing and interference cancellation in 5G and future 6G deployments. An alternative to dApps being pursued by some vendors is to offer proprietary AI-enabled, real-time optimization capabilities as software upgrades to existing RAN platforms through subscription-based licensing models.

Commonly referred to as AI-for-RAN, the deeper integration of AI, ML and their derivatives for RAN automation and optimization is the most commercially mature facet of the broader AI-RAN movement, which also encompasses AI-and-RAN – the co-hosting of RAN and external AI workloads on shared, GPU-accelerated infrastructure; and AI-on-RAN – the enablement of edge AI services for mobile subscribers. The launch of the first 6G networks – which are being standardized as AI-native systems from the outset – around 2030 is expected to significantly increase the scope for hardware-agnostic, software-led innovation and take the industry closer to fully autonomous network operations. RAN digital twins are also expected to play an increasingly important role, allowing operators to validate AI-enabled air interface features and train optimization algorithms in high-fidelity virtual environments before introducing them into live 6G networks.

Largely driven by growing investments in both centrally coordinated SMO/RIC-enabled automation at the network level and AI-for-RAN software upgrades for embedded real-time intelligence and the replacement of static rule-based algorithms in RAN nodes, annual spending on AI-RAN automation and optimization software and services is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9% over the next four years, eventually reaching $1.1 billion by the end of 2030. Total spending on the wider RAN automation market – which includes traditional SON/proprietary network-level automation, AI-for-RAN upgrades, Open RAN SMO/RIC and d/x/rApps, RF planning tools and automated test/measurement solutions – is expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 4% during the same period.

These findings are part of SNS Telecom & IT's “RAN Automation, SON, RIC, SMO, rApps, xApps & dApps in the AI-RAN Era: 2026 – 2040 – Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts” report, which provides an in-depth assessment of the RAN automation market, including the value chain, market drivers, barriers to uptake, enabling technologies, functional areas, use cases, key trends, future roadmap, standardization, case studies, ecosystem player profiles and strategies, as well as global and regional market size forecasts for RAN and end-to-end mobile network automation from 2026 to 2040. The forecasts cover three network domains, nine functional areas, three access technology generations, 12 use case categories, three network types, two supplier categories and five regional markets. For more information, please visit: https://www.snstelecom.com/son.

About SNS Telecom & IT

SNS Telecom & IT is a global market intelligence and consulting firm with a primary focus on the telecommunications and information technology industries. Developed by in-house subject matter experts, our market intelligence and research reports provide unique insights on both established and emerging technologies. Our areas of coverage include but are not limited to 6G, 5G, Open RAN, vRAN, Cloud RAN, AI-RAN, small cells, mobile core, xHaul transport, network automation, mobile operator services, FWA, neutral host systems, private 4G/5G cellular networks, CBRS, shared spectrum, public safety broadband, critical communications, MCX, IIoT, V2X communications and vertical applications.