What is 6G? Overview of 6G networks & technology

What are the advantages of 6G vs. 5G?

Like 5G, 6G is expected to use multiple frequency bands for wireless communications. Mainly, though, 6G networks will operate by using signals at the higher end of the radio spectrum. As of 2025, it is still too early to approximate 6G data rates.

In 2021, LG demonstrated its ability to transmit and receive 6G data over 100 meters outdoors; during the same trial, LG also successfully demonstrated adaptive beamforming. In 2022, researcher Mahyar Shirvanimoghaddam, associate professor at The University of Sydney, suggested that a theoretical peak data rate of 1 terabit per second (Tbps) might be possible for wireless data transfers on 6G. That estimate applies to data transmitted in short bursts across limited distances.

In September 2025, scientists in the U.S. and China developed a small, full-spectrum 6G chip capable of transferring data at 100 gigabits per second (Gbps). Considering that the top-performing 5G networks in the U.S. offered 5G download speeds of around 300 megabits per second (Mbps), the possibility of 6G reaching 100 Gbps would make it around 10,000 times faster than 5G.

One way to understand these differences is with a real-world example.

Consider a high-definition movie file that is 3 GB. If downloading the movie over a 3G network takes two hours, it will take about 20 minutes over a 4G network. A 5G network further speeds up downloads, with only two minutes needed to download the entire movie. Even so, 5G speeds are still a lot less than what might be possible with 6G. If a speed of 1 Tbps is achieved, downloading the movie could take a fraction of a second over a 6G network.

The ultra-high levels of capacity and ultra-low latency offered by 6G will help to advance the technologies introduced in 5G and extend the performance of 5G applications. It will also expand the scope of capabilities to support new and innovative applications in wireless connectivity, cognition, sensing, imaging, digital twinning, autonomous vehicles and mixed reality. With 6G, access points will be able to serve multiple clients simultaneously using orthogonal frequency-division multiple access.

6G's higher frequencies will enable much faster sampling rates than with 5G. They will also provide significantly better throughput and higher data rates. The use of sub-millimeter waves -- wavelengths less than 1 millimeter -- and frequency selectivity to determine relative electromagnetic absorption rates is expected to advance the development of wireless sensing technology.

Mobile edge computing will be built into all 6G networks, whereas it must be added to existing 5G networks. Edge and core computing will be more integrated as part of a combined communications and computation infrastructure framework by the time 6G networks are deployed. This approach will provide many potential advantages as 6G technology becomes operational. These benefits include improved access to AI capabilities, support for sophisticated mobile devices and systems, and additional value creation in many industries due to increased service differentiation and support for more enterprise applications and use cases. Additionally, 6G and edge computing will facilitate more seamless connections between people, devices and the internet, redefining the meaning and application of wireless communications in the future.

When will 6G internet be available?

6G internet is expected to launch commercially around 2030. In March 2024, the 3GPP published a timeline for 6G development and deployment. According to this timeline, 6G technical performance requirements are expected to be defined by 2026. The actual specifications will be included in Release 21 by 2028. Each release reflects the 3GPP's ongoing development work for 5G and 6G. Work on Release 20, which contains dual-track frameworks for 5G-Advanced and early 6G, began in early 2025.

While some early discussions have taken place to define the technology, 6G research and development (R&D) activities started in earnest in 2020. A year earlier, in 2019, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) opened the frequency spectrum between 95 GHz and 3,000 GHz. This has contributed to the accelerated development of new wireless communication technologies, including 6G, for wide use in the U.S.

Furthermore, new use cases for 5G New Radio systems operating at bands beyond 52.6 GHz are emerging. This is likely to result in future wireless systems using the terahertz (THz) band, which has a lot of available bandwidth. The THz band could provide the means for achieving the Tbps-level data rates of 6G.

How will 6G work?

The exact working of 6G technology is not yet known. However, it is expected to make greater use of the distributed radio access network (RAN) and the THz spectrum to increase capacity, lower latency and improve spectrum sharing. It will selectively use different frequencies and adjust wavelengths to deliver high data transfer speeds and support a wide range of applications.

6G will also use sophisticated methods to improve spectral efficiency and facilitate seamless duplex communications. Additionally, 6G networks are likely to be based on a mesh networking paradigm, which will help extend network coverage.

6G will have significant implications for many government and industry approaches to public safety and critical asset protection, such as the following areas:

• Threat detection.
• Health monitoring.
• Feature and facial recognition.
• Decision-making in areas like law enforcement and social credit systems.
• Air-quality measurements.
• Gas and toxicity sensing.
• Sensory interfaces.

Improvements in these areas will also benefit smartphone and other mobile network technology, as well as emerging technologies, such as smart cities, autonomous vehicles, virtual reality (VR) and truly immersive augmented reality (AR).

Do we even need 6G?

There are several reasons 6G technology is needed:

• Technology convergence. The sixth generation of cellular networks will integrate previously disparate technologies, such as deep learning and big data analytics. The introduction of 5G has paved the way for much of this convergence, which 6G will further support and simplify.
• Edge computing. The need to deploy edge computing to ensure overall throughput and low latency for ultra-reliable, low-latency communications solutions is a key driver of 6G.
• Internet of things. Another driving force is the need to support machine-to-machine (M2M) communication in IoT.
• High-performance computing. There is a strong relationship between 6G and HPC. While edge computing resources will handle some of the IoT and mobile technology data, much of it will require more centralized HPC resources for processing.

Who is working on 6G technology?

Many countries and industry players are competing in the race to deploy 6G. Within the industry, test and measurement vendor Keysight Technologies has committed to its development, while major telecom infrastructure companies -- including Huawei, Nokia and Samsung -- have signaled that they are investing substantial resources into 6G R&D.

The major 6G projects underway worldwide include the following:

• The University of Oulu in Finland launched the 6Genesis research project to develop a 6G vision for 2030. The university has also signed a collaboration agreement with Japan's Beyond 5G Promotion Consortium to coordinate the work of the Finnish 6G Flagship research on 6G technologies.
• South Korea's Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute is conducting research on the THz frequency band for 6G. It envisions data speeds 100 times faster than 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks and five times faster than 5G networks. Additionally, in 2023, the country's Science Ministry unveiled its $324.5 million R&D plan for developing 6G technologies and standards.
• China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is investing in and monitoring 6G R&D in the country.
• The U.S. FCC in 2020 opened up 6G frequency for spectrum testing for frequencies over 95 GHz to 3 THz.
• Major U.S. cellular service providers such as AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, along with tech giants such as Apple, Google, HP Enterprise and Intel have created the Next G Alliance, a private-sector initiative to develop and commercialize 6G technology in North America and advance North American leadership in 6G innovation and realization.
• Hexa-X is a European consortium of academic and industry leaders working to lay the technical foundation for the 6G era. It aims to promote openness and collaboration among researchers, standardization bodies and policymakers, and works on developing an open, modular and flexible framework to mitigate known 6G research challenges.
• Hexa-X-II is the 6G flagship project of the European Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking. Where Hexa-X laid the foundation for 6G by clarifying 6G vision, defining basic concepts and describing key technology enablers, Hexa-X-II focuses on research into end-to-end system design that will be needed to deliver novel services on 6G networks. Hexa-X-II also aims to design a system blueprint for an inclusive and trustworthy 6G platform, addressing implementation aspects by defining various use cases, services and requirements.
• Osaka University in Japan and Australia's Adelaide University researchers have developed a silicon-based microchip with a special multiplex to divide data and enable more efficient management of terahertz waves. During testing, researchers claimed the device transmitted data at 11 Gbps compared to 5G's theoretical limit of 10 Gbps of 5G.

Recent developments in 6G

In December 2023, the International Telecommunications Union published its 6G framework, IMT-2030. This framework highlights the new capabilities that will be enabled by 6G, new usage scenarios based on current and future technology trends, and the potential impact of 6G on various industries.

In December 2024, the 3GPP, following recommendations from certain companies in the telecom industry, decided that a channel bandwidth of 200 MHz should be considered for 6G. It also recommended a carrier frequency of 7 GHz for the use of 200 MHz channel bandwidths for 6G. Of course, the availability of this bandwidth remains a challenge, as higher bandwidths are typically used for non-commercial purposes, such as defense, raising the issue of how to make it available to enable the democratization of 6G.

Private companies are particularly keen on developing and commercializing 6G as soon as possible. One example is South Korea-headquartered Samsung. In July 2020, Samsung released a white paper titled 6G: The Next Hyper-Connected Experience for All outlining the company’s vision for 6G and its initial expectation of the 6G timeline. Samsung expects the earliest commercialization of 6G to occur as soon as 2028, followed by massive commercialization around 2030. The white paper also describes other important issues in 6G development:

• Megatrends like connected machines and openness of mobile communications.
• The chief requirements to realize the expected 6G services, including high data rates, air latency less than 100 microseconds, higher network coverage and higher device connection density.
• The technologies that will be essential to satisfy these requirements, including multiple input, multiple output (MIMO), metamaterial antennae, split computing and more flexible network topologies.

In 2024, China launched a 6G test satellite equipped with a THz system into low Earth orbit. This was the world's first 6G satellite, and it uses high-frequency THz waves. The satellite, which will orbit at an altitude of around 310 miles, offers much higher data transfer rates and lower latency than higher-orbit satellites -- creating the possibility of delivering high-speed internet to remote areas. According to a 2023 white paper from the International Telecommunication Union, China aims to commercialize 6G technologies by 2030.

The U.S is also scaling up R&D into 6G development and deployment. In February 2024, the White House issued a joint statement with nine other governments to help guide international research into 6G. The statement envisions that 6G will be secure, open and resilient by design. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) supports the development of 6G for U.S. consumers and innovators. It also works with other federal agencies -- including the FCC and the Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee -- to advance the country's 2023 National Spectrum Strategy and ensure U.S. leadership in the development of global 6G standards. The NTIA also promotes openness, interoperability, security and reliability of future 6G deployments.

Future scope of 6G networks

In the early 2010s, the phrase Beyond 4G (B4G) was coined to refer to the need to advance the evolution of 4G beyond the LTE standard. It was unclear what 5G might entail, and only pre-standard, R&D-level prototypes were in development at the time. The term B4G referred to what could be possible beyond 4G. Ironically, the LTE standard is still evolving, and 5G will use some aspects of it.

Like B4G, Beyond 5G is seen as a path to 6G technologies that will replace fifth-generation capabilities and applications. 5G's many private wireless communications implementations involving LTE, 5G and edge computing for enterprise and industrial customers have helped lay the groundwork for 6G.

Next-generation 6G wireless networks will take this one step further. They will create a web of communications providers -- many of them self-providers -- much in the way that photovoltaic solar power has brought about cogeneration within the smart grid. 6G could advance mesh networks from concept to deployment, helping to extend coverage beyond the range of older cell towers.

Data centers are already facing significant changes driven by 5G. These include virtualization, programmable networks, edge computing and issues surrounding simultaneous support of public and private networks. For example, some business customers may want to combine on-premises RAN with hybrid on-premises and hosted computing -- for edge and core computing, respectively – and with data center-hosted core network elements for private business networks or alternative service providers.

6G networks will provide the communication and data gathering necessary to accumulate information. A systems approach is required for the 6G technology market that makes use of data analytics, AI and next-generation computation capabilities with HPC and quantum computing.

In addition to profound changes within RAN technology, 6G will bring changes to the core communications network fabric as many new technologies converge. Notably, AI will take center stage with 6G.

6G is likely to bring several other changes:

• Nano-core. A so-called nano-core is expected to emerge as a common computing core that encompasses elements of HPC and AI. The nano-core does not need to be a physical network element. Instead, it could encompass a logical collection of computational resources shared by many networks and systems.
• Edge and core coordination. 6G networks will create substantially more data than 5G networks, and computing will evolve to include coordination between edge and core platforms. In response to those changes, data centers will have to evolve.
• Data management. 6G capabilities in sensing, imaging and location determination will generate vast amounts of data that must be managed on behalf of the network owners, service providers and data owners.
• Greater energy efficiency. 6G developers will focus on ensuring that the underlying hardware can function in an energy-efficient manner in the expanded frequency ranges where 6G will operate.
• Enhanced Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication. The URLLC service, made possible by 5G for applications requiring very high reliability and near-real-time responsiveness, will be further enhanced with the introduction of 6G. 6G will offer higher speeds, greater network penetration and more stable performance that will further support URLLC applications like autonomous vehicles and remote surgery.

With these enhancements, 6G is expected to support use cases that are either not possible today or only to a limited extent with existing wireless technologies. These could include the following use cases:

• Immersive VR and AR.
• Data-intensive and real-time AI workloads.
• Distributed edge computing.
• Holographic communication.
• Digital twinning.
• Smart cities.
• Smart industrial automation.
• Collaborative robots.
• Synchronized distributed massive MIMO and extreme MIMO.
• Non-terrestrial networks.
• M2M communications.

Challenges to the full realization of 6G

6G will require the development of highly advanced mobile communications technologies, such as cognitive and highly secure data networks. It will also require the expansion of spectral bandwidth that is orders of magnitude faster than 5G. Samsung has described the need for communications and computing convergence -- the idea that the communication network should be designed to best use the computation power made available by the entities on that network.

Additionally, trustworthiness will be an important consideration for 6G. Networks should be designed using a secure-by-design approach to reduce the size of the attack surface. Additionally, a hardware-based secure environment and strong data protection mechanisms will be essential to safeguard data and ensure user privacy.

Many of the problems associated with deploying millimeter-wave radio for 5G must be resolved in time for network designers to address the challenges of 6G. These 5G challenges include coverage limitations, such as the need for a line-of-sight path between transmitters and receivers, high path loss, complexities associated with small cell deployment, spectrum sharing for seamless and interference-free mobile communications, and cost-prohibitive infrastructure investments.

What is a 7G network and why is it needed?

6G networks are attempting to extend fast Gigabit Ethernet connectivity to commercial and consumer devices. 6G is expected to provide substantially higher throughput and data flow. As envisioned, 6G will enable the following:

• A theoretical data rate of about 11 Gbps simultaneously across multiple gigahertz (GHz) channels.
• Up to three 160 MHz bandwidth channels.
• Multiplex up to eight spatial streams.

In 2020, the FCC was the first regulatory body to greenlight the 6 GHz spectrum to help foster innovation of 6G devices.

Although 6G networks are not expected to be operational until at least 2032, research has already begun on the 6G successor: seventh-generation (7G) wireless technologies. The IEEE, through its Extremely High Throughput working group, is developing the 802.11be specification for 7G and an industry certification in conjunction with the Wi-Fi Alliance. The project’s goal is to enable wireless communications with extremely high throughput while reducing worst-case latency. The standard also aims to ensure that 7G will be backward compatible with legacy devices operating in the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz bands.

Compared to 6G, 7G is designed to do the following:

• Deliver data up to 46 Gbps -- more than four times the rate of 6G projection.
• Double the size of the channel to 320 MHz.
• Afford 16 spatial streams, compared to eight in 6G.

7G technology will represent a quantum leap in bandwidth to support ultra-dense workloads. For example, 7G has the potential to enable continuous global wireless connectivity via integration in satellite networks for Earth imaging, telecom and navigation. Enterprises could implement 7G to automate manufacturing processes and support applications that require high availability, predictable latency or guaranteed quality of service.

6GE -- the "E" stands for extension -- is an interim step between 6G and 7G that will use a newly licensed 6 GHz channel that extends the available frequencies used to transmit 6G signals.

Learn about the state of wireless networking today with our guide to 5G technology and planning and predictions related to 5G adoption.