Often referred to as AI-native, many of the pillars of 6G are expected to incorporate this technology.
Unfortunately, the discussion is quickly being relegated to 5G, even though 6G is still in the research and development phase and won’t be available until after 2030 (though 5G has not yet delivered as expected and may therefore be a bit more controversial). It is generally proposed that 6G systems should be interoperable with 5G systems, highly software-based, and more sustainable than previous systems. However, below we will explore some other emerging priorities as operators and their partners prepare for the sixth generation of cellular technology. Spoiler alert: AI will be present in all three.
6G needs to evolve gradually
“U.S. Cellular is committed to providing the best possible service to our customers,” said Narotham Saxena, vice president of technology strategy and architecture, U.S. Cellular. RCR Wireless 6G must be a “gradual evolution” from 5G, he said. Previously, he said, the telecom industry’s move to a new G triggered “inherent hardware refreshes.” “This time around, it is our opinion that 6G should not inherently trigger a 5G RAN refresh,” he continued. “The decision to refresh 5G RAN hardware for operational reasons, such as end of life or new features, should be operator-driven and independent of support for 6G.”
5G-Advanced (5G-A) is considered as a bridge between 5G and 6G. 5G-A adds capabilities such as sensing, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), energy saving, and network slicing. New use cases such as extended reality (XR) and reduced capability (RedCap) are supported in 5G-A and will further expand in the 6G era. “5G Advanced builds on the existing 5G infrastructure to enhance network capacity, performance, and efficiency,” Saxena said, adding that this creates a solid foundation to address the more stringent requirements of 6G.
5G-A also marks the beginning of the integration of AI into the network lifecycle, a key step on the journey to 6G that will lay the foundation for the AI-native environment expected in the next G.
6G will require network simplification
The universal goal of 6G is a simplistic equation: network simplification equals reduced operational costs and scalable, flexible deployment models, Saxena explained. When the NGMN Alliance Committee published its “6G Position Statement: An Operator’s Perspective” in 2023, Arash Ashliha, chairman of the group and vice president of group technology at Deutsche Telekom, said, “NGMN is committed to ensuring that 6G brings tangible benefits to end users, delivering compelling new experiences while simplifying network operations and ensuring sustainability.” The publication cited network simplification as one of the requirements for a successful evolution to 6G.
Generative AI (Gen AI) is likely to be a powerful simplification tool in 6G, as it helps operators integrate data across the network lifecycle, especially from OSS and BSS systems. Fawad Qureshi, CTO at Snowflake, said, “By integrating data from multiple complex telecom OSS and BSS sources into genAI models, we can now solve problems in minutes instead of days or hours.” Those minutes translate into cost savings for operators.
But what about the other side of the equation: a scalable and flexible model? Here again, network simplification helps. The introduction of automation through API orchestration to automate much of the network configuration allows for faster deployment of new services and products. And software-defined networking (SDN), another pillar of 6G networks, further simplifies the network architecture, making it easier for operators to scale their operations.
6G must be safe from space to the deep sea
6G is expected to enable new advanced capabilities such as fine-grained network slicing and support the integration of terrestrial, space, and undersea networks. As a result, the current 3GPP security architecture may require significant security upgrades. According to 6G World, the top security concerns for 6G include data privacy and integrity, network vulnerabilities, identity theft and fraud, and advanced persistent threats (APTs), which are stealthy threat actors that compromise networks without detection for long periods of time.
6G requires new authentication and encryption systems that can authenticate identities across programmable, decentralized, and sliced networks. These systems must be quantum-safe, incorporating technologies such as quantum encryption, which IBM describes as “a range of cybersecurity techniques that encrypt and transmit secure data based on the naturally occurring, immutable laws of quantum mechanics.” According to IBM, quantum security has the potential to “protect information in ways never before thought possible,” and is already being used in some instances to secure communications between government and financial institutions.
Network slicing was introduced in 5G and is expected to take hold in 6G as the network can be sliced down to the individual user level. This high level of personalization in an end-to-end service-based architecture will require modern security measures such as biometric authentication and other methods that prioritize flexibility without sacrificing high levels of security.
With 6G, AI will detect threats and initiate responses in real time, reducing the overall impact of cyber attacks: threats will be detected sooner and networks will become more resilient as they continuously learn and adapt.
