Technologies

AT&T Is Using an Advanced Video Game Feature to Improve Your Phone Coverage

“Whatever Nvidia is doing for games, whatever Disney is doing … we are doing at a much bigger scale,” said AT&T’s Velin Kounev about using ray tracing to improve its network.

When you think of cellular networks, you probably envision radio towers and invisible data streams. But AT&T, by necessity, needs to see everything in between: buildings, trees and the multitude of obstacles that can interfere with wireless signals getting to your phone.

The cellular provider is turning to a key technology from gaming and computer graphics to get an accurate picture. AT&T Wireless Geo Modeler is a new system that uses ray tracing and AI to generate detailed representations of the areas covered by its network and improve connectivity. In doing so, AT&T says it can react to service interruptions quickly and also better predict how its network can be configured in response to large social events or during natural disasters.

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How ray tracing works in a cellular context

In computer graphics, ray tracing is a technique for rendering three-dimensional scenes. Software simulates light beams emanating from a virtual camera and calculates how the light affects objects and materials in the scene. Ray tracing is notable for rendering shadows and reflections, leading to more realistic-looking environments.

In the past, ray tracing was computationally challenging. Early examples, such as the original Toy Story movie, required rooms full of processing hardware and up to 24 hours to render a single frame of footage. The graphics processor in high-end smartphones can now render photorealistic, ray-traced scenes in games in real time.

According to Velin Kounev, lead inventive scientist at AT&T Labs, the technology’s cellular application works the same way. “Whatever Nvidia is doing for games, whatever Disney is doing… we are doing at a much bigger scale,” he said.

In the context of AT&T’s Geo Modeler, Kounev explained, radio propagation from cellular towers is high-frequency light that our eyes cannot see. The towers measure how the rays react to the surrounding environment, such as colliding with structures or reflecting off surfaces. That collected data is processed and analyzed by several internal AT&T systems and machine learning models to determine if changes or optimizations need to be made, in what AT&T calls “near scale time.”

Those changes can include everyday adjustments to the angle of nearby antennas or compensating for a tower that has gone offline during a natural disaster. Modifications can be deployed automatically in seconds or minutes, ideally in a way that doesn’t impact customers.

“We don’t want [customers] to notice,” said Jennifer Yates, assistant vice president of inventive science, network and service automation at AT&T Labs. “The network is self-healing [and] autonomous behind the scenes so they don’t have to think about it.”

The benefit can also be a technical challenge that you would never notice as an AT&T subscriber. “When you hit Lincoln Tunnel traffic at 5 o’clock in the afternoon and you can get your website loaded, that’s when we come in,” said Kounev. “We’re optimizing the network traffic … in rush hour, where you’re able to get your connection.”

Predicting where to deploy resources

Although day-to-day network optimization is one advantage of using the Geo Modeler, it’s also a tool for determining how and where the company should deploy resources during situations such as weather events. For instance, if a prominent tree is blown over during a storm, ray tracing can quickly build a new representation of how towers should compensate.

For large events like music festivals, where tens of thousands of phones are accessing the network or impending natural disasters, the technology can be used to predict upcoming changes that are needed; Kounev mentioned Geo Modeler was applied in April at the Coachella festival.

Kounev also explained that if a hurricane is coming, for example, knowing its estimated size and timing, “we can go in and within two minutes remove [within the model] the towers that we think are going to be affected, and then see what the network coverage is going to look like.” Knowing where to expect holes in the network allows AT&T to position resources, such as generators or mobile cellular towers, in place before the hurricane strikes.

Most predictive tools, said Kounev, rely on existing measurement data. “Because we use ray tracing, we can predict in places where there’s no measurement data.”

AT&T has been building the Geo Modeler for a year and has accumulated enough data from different use cases over that time to be confident about deploying it more broadly. Yates said that AT&T has performed extensive validation of data, comparing the modeler’s results with measurements in the field.

“Over the last year,” said Kounev, “we had to convince people that this thing can actually work in real time with the many tower stations they have.”

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”