AWS Wavelength
AWS Wavelength is an AWS infrastructure offering that embeds AWS compute and storage services directly within telecommunications providers' 5G network edge, letting applications reach mobile end users with single-digit-millisecond latency…
Definition
AWS Wavelength is an AWS infrastructure offering that embeds AWS compute and storage services directly within telecommunications providers' 5G network edge, letting applications reach mobile end users with single-digit-millisecond latency by avoiding the trip to a distant AWS Region.
Overview
AWS Wavelength was built specifically for use cases that need ultra-low latency to mobile devices connected over 5G, where even the latency of reaching the nearest AWS Region over the public internet is too slow. AWS partners with telecom carriers (such as Verizon, Vodafone, KDDI, and SK Telecom) to install AWS compute and storage infrastructure — called a Wavelength Zone — inside the carrier's own data centers at the edge of the mobile network, so traffic from a 5G device never has to leave the carrier's network to reach the application. Developers provision resources in a Wavelength Zone using the same EC2, EBS, and VPC constructs they already use in AWS, extending an existing VPC into the Wavelength Zone rather than requiring a separate account or entirely new toolchain. This means an application built for standard AWS can be selectively extended to the network edge for its latency-sensitive components, while less latency-critical parts continue running in the parent AWS Region. Because Wavelength Zones are physically embedded within carrier networks, their availability is tied to specific carriers and specific metro areas, which is different from AWS Local Zones (available to any network path in a metro area) and AWS Outposts (installed at a customer's own facility). Wavelength specifically targets the "last mile" of mobile connectivity, making it most relevant for use cases where the end client is a 5G-connected mobile device or IoT sensor rather than a fixed data-center-to-data-center link. Typical adopters include augmented and virtual reality applications, real-time multiplayer gaming, autonomous vehicle and industrial IoT telemetry, and live video analytics — all workloads where round-trip latency directly affects the user experience or safety-critical decision timing.
Key Features
- Embeds AWS compute/storage inside telecom carriers' 5G network edge
- Delivers single-digit-millisecond latency to 5G-connected mobile devices
- Extends an existing AWS VPC into a Wavelength Zone using familiar EC2/EBS constructs
- Traffic stays within the carrier network rather than routing to a distant AWS Region
- Available through partnerships with specific telecom carriers per metro area
- Complements, rather than replaces, standard AWS Regions for non-latency-critical logic
- Distinct from Local Zones (metro-area) and Outposts (customer-premises hardware)
- Targets mobile-first, latency-sensitive application architectures