Deutsche Telekom, Intel and MobiledgeX to lead a new Telecom Infra Project (TIP) group focused on APIs that will enable developers to write apps able to run on edge computing resources.

October 16, 2018

2 Min Read
TIP Forms New Edge Computing Unit

LONDON -- TIP Summit 18 -- TIP, the Facebook-backed Telecom Infra Project, has formed a new group that will focus on developing open source APIs designed to help app developers create new products to run on edge computing assets, particularly those that are part of mobile network operator infrastructures.

The Edge Application Developer Project group, which is being headed up by Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE: DT) and Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC), will be a royalty-free project group that will develop open source software (APIs and software developer kits) and aim to build a global developer community to foster application development targeted at deployment on edge computing.

"Edge is seen as a great opportunity by developers and telecom operators … [which have] a deep integration of computing and the network," noted DT's Axel Clauberg, who is the current TIP Chairman. "But how can an application developer make use of that? We need a standard API that can access network information, so we are developing true open source software and will build a global developer community around it. This is critical activity."

And it's not a group that's starting from scratch, because MobiledgeX, an edge software startup funded by Deutsche Telekom, is part of the project and will contribute its existing software to the open source development. (See MobiledgeX Revs Up & Shifts Into Gear.)

"Open APIs and SDKs that provide access to edge infrastructure resources are what will empower developers to build the apps and devices of tomorrow, bringing pervasive and immersive experiences to end users," said Sunay Tripathi, CTO and EVP of Engineering at MobiledgeX, in a prepared statement.

MobiledgeX will use Apache 2.0 open source software licenses to enable developers to release a modified version of the licensed product.

But does the industry need another open source group? Only last week Clauberg was warning the industry about the proliferation of such initiatives. (See DT's Clauberg Sounds Warning on Profusion of Industry Groups.)

The TIP chairman says that his warning was focused on overlapping efforts and points out that this new group will be complementary to the work of the Akraino group within the Linux Foundation . (See AT&T Boosts Akraino With Code, Summit.)

Given the growing influence of TIP, though, the other edge-focused groups within the industry, such as European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) 's MEC initiative, might be wondering what role they will continue to play if the Edge Application Developer Project group gains support from the mobile operator and app developer communities.

— Ray Le Maistre, Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

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