6G explained: why work has already begun

2G brought mobile calling. 3G made mobile internet usable. 4G made streaming and apps a given. 5G brought higher capacity, lower latency, and support for far more connected devices. And now work on 6G is already underway, even though many users have not yet fully experienced the benefits of 5G.

That raises an obvious question: 5G is still in full use, so why is work on 6G already starting? The answer has to do with the long lead time involved in this kind of technology. A new generation of mobile communication does not emerge in just a few years. It requires research, agreements, and infrastructure that span a decade or more.

The central question, therefore, is not how much faster 6G will be, but what 6G needs to add that 5G cannot yet deliver. This article outlines what is currently known, what remains undecided, and why this development matters to anyone involved with buildings and workplaces.

What exactly is 6G?

6G is the next generation of mobile communication technology after 5G. It is important to stress that 6G is still under development. Many technical specifications are not yet finalized and may still change considerably before actual networks exist.

Organizations such as the ITU, 3GPP, the GSMA, the European Commission, and European research programs like Hexa-X are working alongside universities and research institutions to establish the first frameworks. This is done carefully, because the choices made now will determine what global networks look like roughly a decade from now.

Anyone reading about 6G will quickly come across futuristic claims. It is wise to distinguish between well-founded research directions and claims that are mainly intended as vision statements. This article sticks to directions that are being seriously researched.

When will 6G arrive?

Currently, the focus is mainly on research and standardization. Broad commercial availability is not expected to become relevant until around the next decade. Until then, 5G and its ongoing development will remain the workhorse of mobile communication.

Before consumers and businesses actually use 6G, a series of steps is required. These largely follow one another and together take a great deal of time.

1. Research into technology and applications.
2. Decisions on spectrum use.
3. Establishing international standards.
4. Pilots and field trials.
5. Development of equipment and chipsets.
6. Network rollout.

This sequence explains why the work is starting now. Without today's groundwork, tomorrow's networks simply will not be ready in time.

Not just faster

A common assumption is that 6G is mainly about higher download speeds. It is more likely to be about something broader. The expected characteristics relate to capacity, reliability, and how the network behaves.

• Extremely high capacity.
• Very low latency.
• More reliable connections.
• Large numbers of simultaneously connected devices.
• Highly accurate positioning.
• Integrated sensing of the environment.
• AI-driven networks.
• A closer combination of communication and computing.

This direction fits within a broader shift in real estate and technology, in which we increasingly look at what a building can handle digitally rather than just at its floor area. In an earlier article, we discussed this shift from square meters to data capacity.

The network of the future will not only be faster, it will also be more intelligent and increasingly able to adapt to what is happening around it.

AI as part of the network

Artificial intelligence is expected to play a dual role. AI will not only be used over 6G, but may also be built into the network itself. The network would then manage itself more intelligently than it does today.

Conceivable tasks for such an intelligent network include automatically distributing capacity, predicting network congestion, detecting faults, optimizing energy use, and dynamically adjusting connections. Devices might also communicate with one another more intelligently.

The relationship between AI and real estate shows that this development is not separate from the buildings in which people work. The more intelligent networks become, the more important the underlying infrastructure that must support them.

Communication and sensing

One of the most discussed research directions is integrated sensing and communication. A future network might not only transmit signals, but also use those same radio signals to sense information about the physical environment.

Think of data on position, movement, distance, and presence. The network would then partly function as a sensor. This is still very much a subject of research, and no finished technology exists yet.

A network that not only communicates with its surroundings, but can also sense them.

Highly accurate positioning

Linked to this is the possibility of much more accurate location determination. This could enable applications in logistics, industry, healthcare, autonomous vehicles, robots, augmented reality, and indoor navigation.

As positioning, sensor technology, and communication converge, the boundary between these functions becomes less distinct. The network then becomes more than just a means of transporting data.

New frequencies and more devices

Future 6G networks may use higher frequency ranges than current mobile networks. Higher frequencies can carry enormous amounts of data, but often come with drawbacks: shorter range, weaker penetration through walls, greater infrastructure requirements, and potentially more antenna points needed.

It is a misconception that all of 6G would operate on extremely high frequencies. Multiple frequency bands will likely be combined, keeping capacity and range in balance. This matters for buildings, because the quality of indoor coverage depends heavily on the construction. This is already relevant for WiFi coverage in buildings.

Moreover, 6G is likely to be about far more than just phones. More and more devices are becoming connected: smartphones, cars, robots, drones, machines, sensors, medical applications, smart cities, buildings, and industrial automation.

The smartphone may not even be the most important device on a 6G network.

Digital twins, edge computing, and energy

6G could contribute to digital twins: real-time digital representations of factories, cities, buildings, vehicles, and infrastructure. This requires large amounts of data, low latency, and continuous connectivity.

Not all information needs to travel to central data centers for this. More and more processing can take place closer to the user or machine, a concept known as edge computing. The faster a system needs to respond, the less sense it makes to send all data hundreds of kilometers back and forth first.

This immediately raises a counter question: if we send increasingly more data, does that not require far more energy? Researchers are therefore paying close attention to energy efficiency. The challenge is not only to process more data, but to do so more efficiently per unit of data sent.

Security and the everyday user

More connected devices and smarter networks also expand the digital attack surface. Questions around authentication, privacy, network security, AI security, critical infrastructure, quantum-safe encryption, and supply chain security are becoming increasingly prominent. Security therefore needs to be considered from the design stage onward, as is also the case with cybersecurity in real estate.

What will the everyday user ultimately notice? Possibilities include more stable connections, less delay, better AR and VR, real-time translation, advanced AI assistants, precise navigation, smarter devices, and more reliable communication. Much of this remains a future scenario.

Is 6G really necessary?

A critical perspective is warranted here. Do consumers genuinely need even higher speeds? Might the greatest gains actually lie in industry and infrastructure? Will 5G networks remain sufficient for years to come? 6G will likely be mainly about capacity, intelligence, and new applications, and less about download speed.

6G is likely to be less about how quickly you can download a film and more about how many devices, machines, AI systems, and digital environments can communicate in real time simultaneously.

What this means for your building

New generations of connectivity mainly show how quickly digital technology continues to evolve. The technology within a building or workplace should therefore not only suit today's needs, but also leave room for future developments.

From 4G to 5G to 6G: technology changes faster than real estate does. This is precisely why digital future-readiness is becoming increasingly important. The IT-Label is not a certification with legal status, but an independent classification methodology that makes the digital quality of a building visible. If you want to know how this classification works, take a look at the IT-Label classification from PREMIUM to SHELL or have your property assessed through an IT-Label pre-inspection.

We do not yet know the exact form 6G will take. But one thing is certain: our need for reliable, fast, and intelligent digital infrastructure will keep growing. Together, we make visible what is still invisible today.