This was stated at the international forum of digital technologies in the field of transport and logistics "Digital Transportation-2024" by Rustam Rustamov, Deputy General Director of RED SOFT.
Speaking at the plenary session "Digital Russian Constructor. We will build for you," he noted that RED SOFT fully follows Russia's plans for the development of technological sovereignty and independence. And he compared the tasks of the company's software and OS developers with the tasks of builders who need to change the foundation of the building while keeping the building itself in order.
In addition to developing new software and putting it into operation, we have to deal with the fact that customers still use foreign software and foreign operating systems, and solve the issue of technological partnership of this software with each other.
The same technological partnership is created if customers, in addition to RED SOFT solutions, use solutions from other domestic companies.
But the main task of the IT company is not only this.
We need to replace Microsoft. They have worked here for many years with their product niche, and here we need to unite to give a worthy response to such a large player. Another unique task for us is to ensure the transition plan by 2030 [to domestic solutions]. To switch gradually: solutions are not available immediately in all segments. The task is to ensure that the infrastructure works and works without additional load. Including working together with it and foreign software, which needs to be seen off. In this sense, we have a unique competence: foreign colleagues are already interested in combining different solutions into one infrastructure.
Rustamov noted the close work with Russian Railways and other enterprises in the transport industry, which are actively switching to domestic solutions.
For example, to organize air traffic control, 12,000 workplaces are being transferred to the RED OS operating system - Russian software. There is also an architectural component and virtualization - in short, a large, colossal, complex project. But it is these projects that help to avoid the situations that were discussed yesterday at the plenary session, when Windows freezes at airports - and these are the projects that will prevent such freezes. But RED SOFT is not only the development of infrastructure software. We also have excellent achievements in digital transformation. In the same State Corporation for Air Traffic Management, we modernized the accounting of unmanned aerial vehicles. More than 20,000 drones are now registered in the Air Traffic Management, including with the use of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence determines what kind of drone it is. We have been working with Rostransnadzor for almost 10 years, all licensing, control and supervision activities, and accounting are carried out in our systems. This includes permitting activities, certificates, and even the exam is taken with the help of artificial intelligence. The person taking the exam is identified by their face. In Rosaviation, the accounting of ships is also carried out in our system.
Also, in 2023 alone, RED SOFT brought more than 20 public services to the unified portal.
RED SOFT positions itself in this regard as a reliable Russian partner, both in digital transformation and in achieving technological sovereignty in our transport sector.
During the discussion at the plenary session, the question arose - are there not too many players in the digital solutions market in Russia who duplicate each other? Maybe we still need some kind of state plan for digital systems?
Rustamov, answering it, noted that the client should still have a choice, and the developers should have competition. But competition with strong rivals.
The question is, indeed, complex. I believe in the invisible hand of the economy, where customers can decide which solution is better. Thus, the players who are stronger, who have their own know-how, will remain on the market, and the rest of the colleagues will not. I believe that in each class of software it is very important to have competitors. There should probably not be ten of them, there should be enough to count on the fingers of one hand in order for them to pull you along. A good solution, how to limit, cut off [weaker, duplicate developments - editor's note] - is indeed a problem. We don't have that many people, we don't have that much money, and the tasks are very ambitious. But I believe that wise customers, united in the Association of Software Consumers, will make a good, wise decision taking into account experience.
