Even as 5G still has years to go before it’s fully implemented, Washington is turning its attention to 6G. Top Biden officials headlined an event Friday hosted by the National Science Foundation to begin government planning for the coming sixth generation of mobile wireless communication.
The gathering comes as experts predict that changes from the emerging technology could occur as early as this decade amid a host of national security concerns, including China’s aggressive moves to put its stamp on the still-developing standards.
“It may seem strange to be talking about 6G at a time when so many Americans and people around the world are still just learning about 5G and the promises it holds,” noted Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson in his remarks Friday. “But we know from past experience that we need to be planning ahead.”
He warned that the technology has huge potential, but also “raises questions about how authoritarian governments could deploy this technology for further surveillance — and control — of their citizens.”
This week’s gathering featured lawmakers, business leaders, academics, and other stakeholders in the space.
While it remains to be seen how 6G technology develops, experts are already making grandiose predictions about a coming era of ubiquitous connectivity, which could spur new technologies that can constantly monitor users and their surroundings.
Nokia has described 6G as nothing less than a technology that will allow a world where “the digital, physical, and human world will seamlessly fuse.” The company’s goal is to have it commercially available by 2030.
“6G is not just 5G-plus,” former Federal Communication Commission (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler told Yahoo Finance. “6G will facilitate much more than just better use of your smartphone, and we need to consider it in that kind of a context.”
Chinese efforts ‘that we ought to be resisting’
One question is who will set the technical standards for how the network is built: U.S. companies or Chinese ones like Huawei.
China has been aggressive in the area, even reportedly testing its own 6G standards. For instance, there are concerns that how China is building the technology could create privacy issues by making it easier to individually identify users.
“That’s something that we ought to be resisting,” Wheeler said. “We need to be careful about the security of the code that is running the network.”
The private sector’s efforts to develop the standards in the US are being coordinated by a group called the Next-G alliance, which was formed to research 6G technology and includes major telecoms like Verizon (VZ), AT&T (T), T-Mobile (TMUS), and others.
Qualcomm (QCOM) CFO Akash Palkhiwala — a member of the alliance — appeared on Yahoo Finance Live last year and predicted 6G could be deployed in the second half of this decade.
Getting ahead in what will be an ‘essential technology’
The issue has also gotten attention on Capitol Hill with a recent hearing on wireless leadership. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) helped to kick it off by noting that “simply because our nation led the world in providing consumers with access to 4G wireless technology and Wi-Fi does not mean we will achieve the same result in 5G, 6G, or Wi-Fi 7.”
The possibilities of 6G have other far-reaching consequences, including allowing the ubiquitous use of artificial intelligence in people’s daily lives as well as increasing internet access to underserved areas by transmitting data faster and across greater distances.
I was honored to join @DavidsonNTIA, @DorisMatsui, and leading experts to talk about the development of 6G wireless.
My message has always been to increase federal support and keep the fire lit for R&D, while ensuring that new essential technology is available in every zip code. pic.twitter.com/ssBk4iqxHC
— Senator Ben Ray Luján (@SenatorLujan) April 21, 2023
In attendance Friday were Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), among others. Luján tweeted out that his focus was on “ensuring that new essential technology is available in every zip code.”
Wheeler, who was chairman of the FCC during the Obama administration and is now a visiting fellow at The Brookings Institution, criticized the Trump administration’s approach to 5G, saying it ceded too much to China.
The earlier the Biden administration can show concrete action in this area the better, he said, adding “hooray for the Biden administration for getting out in front of this.”