In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell’s famous words, “Mr. Watson, come here,” marked not just the dawn of telephony but the beginning of a relentless human pursuit to compress time and space through communication. From copper wires snaking under cities to mobile towers dotting rural skylines, connectivity has always followed a trajectory of reducing latency, expanding reach, and increasing speed.
The first generation of mobile networks, known as 1G, was introduced in the early 1980s. It enabled analog voice communication, primarily through systems like the Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) in the United States and Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT) in Europe. These networks operated in the 800 MHz frequency band and lacked data capabilities. Voice quality was poor, coverage was limited, and there was no encryption, making calls vulnerable to interception.
2G networks, launched in the early 1990s, marked the transition from analog to digital telecommunications. The most widely adopted standard, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), introduced encrypted voice calls, SMS (Short Message Service), and improved spectral efficiency. Operating between the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands, 2G enabled more reliable communication and significantly expanded mobile phone use globally. Variants like Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Time-Division Multiple Access (TDMA) also emerged during this period, each offering improved capacity and quality over 1G.
3G, introduced commercially in the early 2000s, brought mobile internet to the mainstream. Based on the IMT-2000 standard, it offered significantly higher data rates—up to 2 Mbps for stationary users and 384 kbps for mobile users. This allowed for mobile web browsing, video calls, and multimedia messaging. Technologies like WCDMA and CDMA2000 were central to 3G deployment, supporting simultaneous voice and data transmission. While 3G networks improved connectivity, they still faced limitations in latency and speed that would later be addressed by 4G technologies.
Just over a decade ago, 4G gave the world real-time video and app-powered economies, while 5G promised smart factories and autonomous cars.
Now, a new chapter beckons with 6G peeping through the technological window, and China is determined to see it through.
Though commercial rollout is unlikely before 2030, 6G is already more than a buzzword. The technology promises speeds up to 100 times faster than 5G, with latency reduced to a millisecond and the capacity to seamlessly interlink many devices. If successful, 6G will not simply power video calls or self-driving cars; it will animate entire smart cities, enable real-time holographic communication, and weave artificial intelligence into the very fabric of digital life.
A National Obsession
Since declaring 6G a national priority in 2023, China has mobilised state, academia, and enterprise into a singular drive to lead the next evolution of internet infrastructure. President Xi Jinping’s administration has folded the project into its broader “network great power” strategy, a vision that entwines economic resilience with technological sovereignty.
The timing of such a national drive is not accidental. In the aftermath of growing global distrust in Chinese tech firms and Western curbs on Huawei and ZTE, China is doubling its efforts to emerge as a leader. Rather than retreat, it seeks to move faster. The objective is to shape the next-generation architecture before rivals even agree on the blueprint.
The IMT-2030 (6G) Promotion Group, established in 2020, comprises ministries, leading universities, telecom giants, and AI researchers. Together, they are not only developing 6G technology but are also working proactively to shape global standards. The group’s 2021 white paper laid the conceptual groundwork. Since then, progress has been brisk and, in some cases, precedent-setting.
The Tools of Tomorrow
Unlike 5G, which merely improved bandwidth and latency, 6G aspires to restructure the network itself. At its core is the use of terahertz (THz) frequencies, ultra-high bands between 100 GHz and 10 THz, capable of transmitting unimaginable volumes of data at incredible speed. These bands, although promising, are notoriously fragile. They can easily be absorbed by buildings, trees, and even rainfall. Overcoming these limitations requires sophisticated antenna design, advanced semiconductor chips, and network densification strategies involving ground stations and space-based infrastructure. This is where China’s innovation machine kicks in.
In 2020, it launched the world’s first experimental 6G satellite, followed by a more advanced test satellite in February 2024 via China Mobile. Huawei, despite sanctions and reputational hits, is also leading the charge in Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) integration, essential for achieving global 6G coverage. Meanwhile, Tsinghua University and the China Academy of Telecommunications Technology (CATT) are pushing the frontier in device design and signal modulation. China Unicom has also pledged to complete core research and explore application scenarios by the end of 2025.
In July 2024, China unveiled the world’s first full-scale 6G field test network, demonstrating a ten-fold increase in performance metrics — capacity, coverage, and energy efficiency — compared to early 5G rollouts. These early victories indicate that China is not just theorizing about 6G but actively shaping its contours.
Global Ripples
The race for 6G is not just a technological one; it is geopolitical. China now holds 40.3% of global 6G patent applications, outpacing the United States (35.2%) and all of Europe combined. Standards, long a backroom domain of engineers, have become instruments of soft power. Whoever sets the protocols, how devices speak, which frequencies are reserved, and how networks interoperate will wield outsized influence over the digital economy of the 2030s.
In 2024, China advanced three proposals to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as part of global standard-setting. It has also courted traditional competitors with unusual diplomacy, signing cooperation agreements with South Korea and India. Ericsson and Nokia, both once cautious about Chinese partnerships, have also joined trials.
The West, however, remains sceptical. In February 2024, the US and its allies published a declaration of “secure 6G principles,” widely interpreted as a bid to contain Chinese technological sway. Washington continues to warn about potential espionage and sabotage risks posed by Beijing-backed infrastructure. James Lewis, a tech expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), has called some of China’s 6G rhetoric “domestically exaggerated,” but even admits that the engineering progress is real.
Real Future but Fragmented
This geopolitical dissonance threatens to splinter 6G’s global architecture. Already, technical standards risk diverging. Western democracies, wary of adopting Chinese-led protocols, may establish parallel development tracks. The result could be a bifurcated network ecosystem, not unlike the split between VHS and Betamax or, more recently, Android and Huawei’s HarmonyOS.
Such fragmentation is no small matter. The promise of 6G lies in ubiquity, its ability to support autonomous cars crossing borders, drones conducting international logistics, and edge AI systems collaborating in real time. Divergent standards would add friction, cost, and inefficiency.
At the same time, there is a growing recognition, especially in Europe and parts of Asia, that cutting off China entirely may be unrealistic. Beijing’s lead in patents, its expansive domestic market, and its scale of R&D investment make it a player too significant to ignore. Some nations may thus adopt a dual-track diplomacy. Thus, engaging with China technologically while aligning with the West politically.
Practical Promises and Pitfalls
Beyond politics and patents lies the question of utility. What will 6G actually deliver?
If the hype is to be believed, the technology will bring science fiction to life. Holographic meetings across continents, cities managed by digital twins, autonomous cars navigating via V2X (vehicle-to-everything) communication, and farms monitored in real time by drones and AI. The infrastructure required to support these dreams is immense. Distributed edge computing must become the norm, not the exception. Devices must operate in harmony, powered by AI, and able to interpret not just signals but intent.
The commercial viability of such applications is still uncertain. Much of it depends on the cost curve of terahertz components and satellite bandwidth. Some dreams may remain stuck in white papers if the technology proves too expensive or difficult to scale.
Then there is the ethical dimension. An era of immersive connectivity raises profound concerns about surveillance, algorithmic manipulation, and digital inequality. China’s vision of “an era of intelligence” may be appealing to some, but troubling to others, particularly in societies where individual rights are prioritized over state oversight.
Already, China is notorious for its surveillance apparatus. It has millions of CCTV cameras, facial recognition systems, and a social credit scheme that links public behavior to individual scores. These tools exemplify the potential risks of 6G in authoritarian contexts, where enhanced connectivity could deepen state control, rather than empower citizens, raising alarm over the global governance of next-generation networks.
The Coming Decade
As the world hurtles toward 2030, the nature of 6G will become clearer. China, with its centralized planning, unified industrial policy, and swelling base of technologists, is well-positioned to lead. But leadership is not hegemony. The future of 6G will likely be shaped by innovation, negotiation over standards, security, and trust.
Whether China’s 6G dream becomes the world’s reality depends not just on engineering but on diplomacy and transparency. If the past century of telecommunications taught anything, it is that no technology is ever neutral. Each signal carries with it not just data, but power.