3GPP Network Architecture Enhancement for Ambient IoT Service

Ambient internet of things (A-IoT) paradigm is under study in 3GPP with the intention to provide a sustainable solution for the IoT market without any need to replace the batteries and operate in harsh environments where it is difficult to replenish batteries. This article provides insight on 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) discussions in Release 18 and 19 with the focus on network architecture aspects. 3GPP has recently decided to start normative work in its Radio Access Network (RAN) Working Group (WG) and discussions are ongoing to start a work item in other WGs with more focus on architecture aspects. We explore and analyze various aspects of system design related to architecture requirements to support A-IoT service, different architecture options to consider, security and authentication mechanisms for A-IoT devices as well as key challenges for standardization of A-IoT service.