AgentRAN: An Agentic AI Architecture for Autonomous Control of Open 6G Networks
Abstract
Despite the programmable architecture of Open Radio Access Network (RAN), today's deployments still rely heavily on static control and manual operations. To move beyond this limitation, we introduce AgentRAN, an AI-native, Open RAN-aligned agentic framework that generates and orchestrates a fabric of distributed Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents based on Natural Language (NL) intents. Unlike traditional approaches that require explicit programming, AgentRAN's Large Language Model (LLM)-powered agents interpret natural language intents, negotiate strategies through structured conversations, and orchestrate control loops across the network. AgentRAN instantiates a self-organizing hierarchy of agents that decompose complex intents across time scales (from sub-millisecond to minutes), spatial domains (cell to network-wide), and protocol layers (PHY/MAC to RRC). A central innovation is the AI-RAN Factory, which continuously generates improved agents and algorithms from operational data, transforming the network into a system that evolves its own intelligence. We validate Agent- RAN through live 5G experiments, demonstrating dynamic adaptation to changing operator intents across power control and scheduling. Key benefits include transparent decision-making (all agent reasoning is auditable), bootstrapped intelligence (no initial training data required), and continuous self-improvement via the AI-RAN Factory.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Advanced MIMO Systems Optimization
Software-Defined Networks and 5G
Mobile Ad Hoc Networks
Publication details
- Journal / source
- IEEE Communications Magazine
- Publisher
- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
- Pages
- 1–7
- Publication date
- 1 January 2026