Understanding 6G: how will it change the world around us?

Whether you're navigating a journey, making a video call, or streaming on the go, mobile networks continue to evolve to help people and businesses stay connected. Each new generation of mobile technology has brought improved speed, capacity and reliability, enabling us to do more in a connected world. While 5G continues to be expanded across the UK and beyond, research is already underway into the next generation of connectivity – 6G.

Although it's still in development, 6G could support new technologies and services that require even faster, more responsive and more intelligent networks. As one of the UK's leading telecommunications providers, we are helping to explore how future network technologies could meet the connectivity needs of people, businesses and society in the decades ahead.

More than just an evolution of 5G, 6G is the next generation of mobile network technology. It isn’t just here to deliver faster internet speeds, but create seamless, intelligent and highly reliable connectivity, that feels almost invisible in everyday life. A 6G network has the potential to enable near-instant communication, support immersive experiences such as virtual reality, and allow billions of connected devices to work together in real time. For our everyday lives, this could mean more responsive digital services, smarter homes and cities, improved remote healthcare, enhanced accessibility tools, and richer digital collaboration experiences. 6G technology is also expected to use artificial intelligence (AI) throughout the network, to automatically optimise performance, reduce congestion, and adapt to individual user needs. While 6G is still being researched and standards are yet to be finalised, its goal is simple: to make connectivity more reliable, secure and accessible wherever people need it.

While 5G is centred on delivering faster mobile broadband and supporting large numbers of connected devices, 6G technology is expected to go much further than just improving internet speeds.

The key differences:

• Capacity: 6G is expected to deliver higher data rates than 5G, enabling more immersive digital experiences and supporting emerging technologies that require vast amounts of data.
  
  
• Coverage: 6G is expected to provide more seamless connectivity by integrating terrestrial networks with satellites, helping to extend coverage to remote areas.
  
  
• New capabilities: unlike 5G, 6G is being designed to support integrated sensing and communication, meaning networks could help detect and understand their environment while simultaneously providing connectivity. This could enable advanced applications such as digital twins, smart infrastructure, and enhanced automation.

To summarise, 5G's ability to connect people more efficiently and faster than previous network generations, 6G aims to create an intelligent, digital environment that can understand, predict, and adapt to people’s needs. For people and businesses, this could mean virtual meetings that feel almost identical to face-to-face interactions and seamless connectivity regardless of location.

Despite being estimated to launch around 2030, the UK is already investing in research, infrastructure and standards required to support its rollout. In 2023, the UK Government announced an initial £100 million investment in future telecoms research, including the support and development of 6G. This new generation technology is expected to combine terrestrial mobile networks with satellite services, which will help keep devices connected almost anywhere.

6G also offers the potential to greatly improve connectivity in rural areas, remote coastlines and on transport routes where mobile coverage has previously been more challenging. Its impact is expected to extend beyond homes and businesses, with its ability to support smart cities and Internet of Things (IoT) devices on a much larger scale. Millions of connected devices, such as traffic sensors, smart streetlights, environmental monitors and waste management systems, could communicate with each other in real time. This could help improve traffic flow, reduce energy consumption, monitor air quality and enable faster responses to incidents.

Also, it will come as no surprise with the emergence of AI that 6G networks are expected to use artificial intelligence to manage network traffic more efficiently, improving reliability and reducing delays. As part of its preparations, the UK is working with industry and international partners to help shape global 6G standards and ensure that future networks are secure, resilient, and sustainable.

Beyond improving connectivity, 6G has potential to transform several UK industries. Healthcare providers could use it to expand remote healthcare services, manufacturers could operate more efficient smart factories, and transport operators could use real-time data to improve the safety and reliability of road and rail networks. Farmers may also benefit from connected sensors that monitor crops and livestock. While the UK's technology and creative industries could develop new virtual reality and digital twin applications that rely on ultra-fast, low-latency networks.

Although 6G remains in the early stages of development, it could reshape how people, businesses and public services connect and interact. Alongside government, academic and industry partners, we are exploring future network technologies and contributing to wider discussions about the evolution of connectivity in the UK. As research progresses, 6G could help unlock new digital experiences, drive innovation across industries and support a more connected society.

While no official launch date has been confirmed, 6G is expected to begin emerging around 2030. During the development of its launch; governments, network providers and technology companies are working together to develop standards, test new technologies and establish the infrastructure needed to support future 6G networks.