Networking and Wireless

Arizona State and Sprint Join Forces on 5G and IoT

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 11/01/19

An initiative between Arizona State University and telecommunications company Sprint will focus on 5G and the Internet of Things. The multiyear program will build on 5G connectivity in place on campus, produce new IoT curriculum and launch a spate of joint research projects.

Underlying the work will be technology from Sprint, including True Mobile 5G, which the company has delivered as a wireless mobile service to nine cities around the country, including Phoenix, Arizona State's stomping grounds; and Curiosity IoT, a "5G-ready" IoT network and operating system. 5G's benefits focus not necessarily on faster communications speeds but on reduced latency, an important aspect of IoT.

5G service is already available to parts of the Arizona State campus. Now the institution is also planning to launch "Curiosity University," to offer courses and academic programs for developing an IoT workforce.

The arrangement also includes creation of a Sprint 5G incubator at the university's Novus Innovation Corridor, one of six innovation zones run by the school that bring researchers and industry together for collaborative activities.

Under the agreement, Arizona State and Sprint will also work with the state of Arizona to deliver high-speed connectivity to rural areas.

"Our collaboration with Sprint exemplifies the broad benefits of a university-corporate relationship," said Sethuraman Panchanathan, the university's chief research and innovation officer, in a statement. "The entire university community and those throughout the greater Phoenix metropolitan area will benefit directly from this collaboration by having access to Sprint's network and through the educational and research aspects that will usher in new innovations in technology."