Page 5 - First special issue on The impact of Artificial Intelligence on communication networks and services

ITU JOURNAL: ICT Discoveries, Vol. 1(1), March 2018

Foreword

The International Telecommunication Union is proud to
have launched the new, scholarly and professional ITU
Journal: ICT Discoveries, and published its first special
issue.
This Journal was established to encourage the
participation of universities and research institutions
from different fields in the work of ITU. It identifies
emerging technical developments, including their
policy, regulatory, economic, social and legal
dimensions, in information and communication
technologies (ICTs).
The ITU Journal builds bridges between disciplines,
connects theory with application, and promotes the
critical role that ICTs will play in the pursuit of United
Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
The interdisciplinary scope of the ITU Journal reflects
the inclusive character of ITU.

ITU is the United Nations specialized agency for ICTs. We are a public-private partnership, given life by a
membership of 193 Member States, over 800 members from industry, international and regional organizations
and academia. Researchers participate alongside industry-leading engineers and policymakers in ITU expert
groups responsible for radiocommunication, standardization and development.
The long-term vision of academia helps ITU to prepare for the future. The ITU Journal matches research on
technical innovation in ICT with analysis of associated transformations in business and society and the related
complexities of governance in the digital era. It will help industry players and policymakers to prepare for the
impacts of major breakthroughs in research.
The ITU Journal is a peer-reviewed, open access, freely available digital publication.
This first special issue of the ITU Journal forecasts how Artificial Intelligence (AI) will improve user
experience by enhancing the performance and efficiency of communication networks. It will assist ITU
members in their preparations for AI’s expected influence on their work, providing the context for this
influence from the perspectives of technology as well as law, ethics, society and regulation.
I express my gratitude to all contributors to the ITU Journal and I would especially like to thank the ITU
Journal’s Editor-in-Chief, Professor Jian Song of Tsinghua University, for the great dedication with which he
has led the curation of this first special issue.

Houlin Zhao
Secretary-General
International Telecommunication Union

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