ESWATINI has the knack for creating stars that later bloom, often once they enter environments that offer bigger opportunities. Samkelo Msibi is such a star in the making. At only 23, he is world travelled and internationally recognized as a critical technology thinker and solutions provider.
Already under his cape, is a number of accolades for his research and innovation solutions in a range of applications from agriculture to telecommunications. He recently developed an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that will be used to detect diseases in maize cultivation. This tool is currently in prototype.
Earlier this year Samkelo research work shone at an international conference on Deep Learning in Senegal where it was among the poster presentations. The Deep Learning indaba is one of the leading global AI conferences in the world that pulls research scientists and industry experts including from Google, Meta and Open AI CISSPA amongst others. My work in the AI precision agriculture project under the supervision of Mr Enock Dube from UNESWA won an award that included sponsorship to a Nvidia course.
His best work however is a collaboration with fellow IT students in the Silk society at the UNESWA; Phephile Sigudla and Thembinkosi Mkhonta. The trio has developed a solution – CANOT (Centralized Automated Network Operations Tool).
CANOT, Samkelo explains, is a comprehensive AI powered system that proactively manages network availability. An AI powered fault prediction and self healing automation system, CANOT minimizes network downtime and reduces the need for human intervention by consolidating multiple functions into one easy-to-use platform.
Earlier this year, Samkeliso pitched CANOT as a research and innovation project and was invited to present the solution at the Southern Africa Telecommunication Networks and Applications Conference (SATNAC). This is a platform for sharing solutions to critical telecommunications industry challenges. SATNAC conferences attract over 400 scholars and delegates from academia, industry and telco operators to a forum for peer reviewed research papers and solutions. The platform also fosters networking is recognized by higher education institutions for its contributions to scholarly research publications.
One of the features of the 2024 SATNAC conference was the Telkom Challenge – a call for solutions for resolving network availability. As convergence continues to draw all aspects of work to internet based applications, Network Availability is a critical performance indicator for all businesses reliant on connectivity. Managing this dimension of connectivity is a complex task requiring multiple systems and manual interventions for monitoring, fault tracking and alarm correlation. For institutions tied to Service Level Agreements (SLA) and Operational Level Agreements (OLA), Network Availability is a critical dimension for monitoring and measuring compliance. Current approaches tend to be fragmented, making it difficult to manage network availability, resulting in frequent downtime, service disruption, and inefficient operations.
Significant opportunity
“We saw this challenge as a significant opportunity. I’ve personally experienced the frustration and chaos of managing multiple systems simultaneously, as well as the repercussions of network outages. These outages can lead to business losses, interrupted services, and even impact on life-threatening scenarios in critical industries like healthcare. Thembinkosi, Phephile, and I agreed to build a solution that reduces network failures and minimize downtime, ensuring efficient repair times and full compliance with SLAs and OLAs. The result is CANOT.
“CANOT’s real power is its predictive capabilities. AI enables it to detect potential issues before they escalate into major network failures. That way CANOT allows teams to resolve faults proactively. The tool also tracks performance metrics to provide a detailed, secure audit trail through blockchain technology, ensuring complete transparency and reliability for managing service level agreements.”
The Silk team delivered a virtual presentation to a panel of experts on 27 September 2024 along with scholars pitching different solutions from across the SADC region. Each team presented solutions to different network and operational challenges. “Our presentation won an award. We have been invited to present our solution in person at the SATNAC conference next week, when we will also be presented with our award.
“For me, winning this challenge is incredibly meaningful. It validates my experience as an IT professional who has faced these network issues firsthand, and it shows that innovative solutions like CANOT can make a real impact. For the field, this win represents a shift towards proactive network management. By using AI and automation, CANOT sets the stage for more seamless, uninterrupted services in an increasingly connected world. This could become a new industry standard for network availability,” Samkelo says.
Impactful initiative
The Silk team’s work is important because network downtime affects everything from businesses to hospitals, schools, and smart cities. When networks go down, ecommerce transactions fail, patients lose access to lifesaving technology, and entire operations can grind to a halt. CANOT has potential of preventing problems by predicting and fixing network faults before they cause disruptions. It ensures smooth operations, reduces financial and operational risks, and keeps the world connected.
Winning the Telkom Challenge will bring the Silk team incredible benefits such as invaluable support through coaching, participating in ideation masterclasses and pitching sessions as well as experience in real world insights into industry problems. Networking opportunities with top industry and academic professionals as well as invaluable exposure for future growth opportunities.
As Phephile adds: “The exposure and opportunity to network with industry leaders is something we wouldn’t easily get. Being able to interact with high level professionals will broaden our thinking and understanding of how the technology industry works.”
As the future beckons for young innovators, Thembinkosi says they are still discussing next steps, including further enriching CANOT. “We plan to refine its AI models, improve energy efficiency, and expand its scalability so that CANOT can be applied across a broader spectrum of applications and network sizes. Our goal is to make it adaptable and valuable to other industries beyond the telecom sector.”
Jm/today/6.10.2024
