Bharti Airtel unveiled its AI-powered spam detection solution to combat the rising nuisance of spam calls in India. According to the company, this innovative system can detect over 100 million potential spam calls daily. Developed over the past year, the solution analyzes calls and, within 2 milliseconds, alerts the receiver about potential spam. This swift identification allows users to decide whether to block the call.
The system employs a specialized algorithm that not only classifies communications as “Suspected SPAM” but also scans SMS messages for malicious links using a centralized database. Airtel CEO Gopal Vittal shared, “In 2 milliseconds, our solution processes 1.5 billion messages and 2.5 billion calls every day, identifying 100 million potential spam calls and 3 million spam SMSes daily.”
This AI-powered system will be available to all 387 million Airtel customers in India for free. Addressing the growing problem, Vittal stated, “Spam has become a menace for customers. We have spent the last 12 months to solve this comprehensively. Today marks a milestone as we launch the country’s first AI-powered spam-free network.”
However, calls and messages through apps like WhatsApp remain unaffected, which Vittal acknowledges as a challenge in the ongoing battle against spam. The scale of the spam call issue in India is significant. Reports indicate that over 60% of Indians receive three or more spam calls daily.
Historically, the government established the National Do Not Call Registry (NDNC) in 2011 to fight spam. While it reduced the frequency of spam calls, a LocalCircles survey reveals that 95% of registered users still receive unwanted communications. This highlights the limitations of such registries and the need for more sophisticated solutions like Airtel’s AI system.
Interestingly, while AI technology can fight spam, it also enables spammers. The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently announced they would study AI’s impact on robocalling and telefraud. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel remarked, “While we are aware of the challenges AI can present, there is also significant potential to use this technology to benefit communications networks and their customers—including in the fight against junk robocalls and robotexts.”
