Ericsson and Google Cloud have deepened their collaboration by offering Ericsson’s Cloud RAN (radio access network) solution on Google’s Distributed Cloud, delivering operators improved AI and automation options alongside edge deployment capabilities.
Google Distributed Cloud (GDC) extends Google Cloud’s infrastructure and services to the edge. The fully managed Google Distributed Cloud Edge (GDC Edge) allows communications service providers (CSPs) to run 5G core and RAN functions at edge locations while maintaining strong operational control.
In this deployment, on-premises GDC Edge is managed through a dedicated secure connection between edge hardware and Google Cloud. That approach creates a clear path for CSPs to implement a hybrid cloud model for RAN. Operators running Ericsson Cloud RAN on GDC Edge can leverage Google Cloud services such as Vertex AI, BigQuery, and other analytics and machine learning tools to process and derive value from the large datasets generated by Cloud RAN applications.
Ericsson and Google Cloud have already demonstrated the full implementation of Ericsson’s virtual distributed unit (vDU) and virtualized central unit (vCU) on GDC Edge. The solution is operational in the Ericsson Open Lab in Ottawa, reflecting the partners’ joint ambition to advance market deployment.
For operators, migrating to cloud-based, cloud-native architectures is a critical step toward enhanced security, scalability, and broader digital transformation goals. The growing adoption of open source software in networking has accelerated innovation in the RAN domain, and the emergence of cloud-native open RAN — which permits operators to combine equipment from multiple vendors — is expanding opportunities across the stack, from 5G to edge computing.
However, movement to public cloud environments for 5G workloads has not progressed as rapidly as some expected. Recent analyst forecasts have tempered earlier predictions about hyperscalers capturing large shares of 5G standalone workloads, underlining that many operators will prefer hybrid or on-premises approaches for critical network elements.
Solutions like Ericsson Cloud RAN on Google Distributed Cloud aim to strike a balance: offering the agility, automation and analytics of cloud-native architectures while preserving operator control over their data centers and sensitive operations.
Ericsson’s Cloud RAN is not marketed as open RAN in the strictest sense. The company participates actively in the O-RAN Alliance, and industry debate continues over whether open RAN represents a major disruption to established network vendors. Ericsson leadership has acknowledged the complexity and significance of open RAN as the industry evolves.
Nonetheless, Ericsson positions Cloud RAN as infrastructure-agnostic: its RAN applications are designed to be deployable on a variety of infrastructures chosen by CSPs. Ericsson says it is continuously working with ecosystem partners to adapt Cloud RAN applications to different cloud environments and deployment configurations, supporting operators’ desire for flexibility and choice.
“This partnership enables us to deepen and expand our valuable collaboration with Google Cloud, and it opens new opportunities for operators to utilise the benefits of cloud-native solutions and automation,” said Mårten Lerner, head of product line Cloud RAN at Ericsson.
“Ericsson remains committed to ensuring the adaptability of its Cloud RAN applications on diverse cloud infrastructures, offering operators enhanced flexibility and choice in deploying Cloud RAN as well as supporting the evolving hybrid cloud architectures together with Google Cloud,” he added.
Update September 26: Ericsson has further signalled its commitment to open RAN by publishing an additional statement emphasising its role in the industrialisation of open RAN and the adoption of cloud-based open network architectures. Ericsson stated that future networks must become more resilient, open, sustainable, and intelligent, and that open RAN contributes to this vision. The company highlighted its focus on three pillars of open RAN industrialisation: cloudification, open fronthaul, and open management to enable greater network programmability.
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