Road to 6G: 5G to 5G Advanced and 6G

When Chromebook was first launched in India in 2013, we were yet to get 4G. That time 3G from Indian operators was patchy, slow and too much costly! Airtel just launched 4G in 2012, which was not welcomed by the users. I could not take that cloud computing in India could be a future with such slow speed. 

Cut to post-COVID era, many are still working from home with the help of Cloud computing. India got 4G in 2012 but 4G went mainstream when Jio started offering free 4G data w.e.f. December 2015. Now 5G was launched in India in October 2022 by both Jio and Airtel - and both are offering free unlimited 5G data on the top of selected 4G plans. India's 5G adoption was very fast, and at par with global rollouts. 

In fact, GSMA data showed that 5G is the fastest growing network surpassing 4G/LTE roll out - after 2 years of first commercial LTE launch there were 25 million subscriptions across 60 networks vs 5G grabbed 340 million subscriptions across 155 networks within 2 years of first launch. 

Standardizing regulator, 3GPP released their Release 15 - which fixed the basis for 5G Non-Standalone (NSA) deployments, which is  still relied on 4G LTE infrastructure for the delivery of end-to-end services. Key improvements of 3GPP R15 were across three areas: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC). Release 15 has also enabled further advancements by leading to 5G Standalone (SA), in which the 5G New Radio system is complemented by Standalone 5G Core with optional cloud-based network functions.

3GPP's Release 16 noted the enhancements to existing features - from this release '5G evolution' began. It introduces enhanced beam handling and channel-state information (CSI) feedback, as well as support for transmission to a single UE from multiple transmission points (multi-TRP) and full-power transmission from multiple UE antennas in the uplink (UL). These enhancements increase throughput, reduce overhead, and/or provide additional robustness. Additional mobility enhancements enable reduced handover delays, in particular when applied to beam-management mechanisms used for deployments in millimeter (mm) wave bands. Other enhancements include dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS), dual connectivity (DC) and carrier aggregation (CA), and user equipment (UE) power saving. 

The most notable new verticals and deployment scenarios addressed in release 16 are in the areas of:

• Integrated access and backhaul (IAB)
• NR in unlicensed spectrum
• Features related to Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC)
• Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and vehicle-to-anything (V2X) communications
• Positioning.

3GPP R18 defines commercial 5G Advanced, while R16 to R17 added various new capabilities and enhancements to existing 5G networks. Release 18 is considered the “mid-point of 5G standardization” and is branded as 5G Advanced. 5G Advanced (5GA) may also be called as 5.5G - the link between 5G and 6G. 

Key enhancements in 5G Advanced/5.5G:

• XR (AR, VR, Gaming) - Guaranteed, Seamless, Low power consumption, Edge computing
• Enhanced coverage - PUSCH 2dB, RACH 5dB
• MIMO performance - Enhanced uplink, Multi-cell uplink, +20% for high speed mobiles. Multiuser MIMO is a technique that enables two or more user equipment (UE) to share the same time and frequency resources, so more UEs can be scheduled on these same resources. Signal quality is improved by enabling coordinated operation across distributed transmitters. This is an important step on the path towards fully distributed MIMO (D-MIMO) systems.
• Mobility - mobility is a central component of high-performing 5G networks. In 5G Advanced, 3GPP introduces a new handover procedure with shorter service interruption times, known as L1/L2-triggered mobility (LTM). LTM is applicable in all frequency bands and can even be applied for UEs configured to use carrier aggregation. In Release 18, LTM is supported between cells served by the same gNB.
• 5G to replace GSM-R (Railway) - enable GSM-R migration to 5G with <5MHz support for dedicated spectrum. 5G NR will deliver next-generation signaling and communications for railways by adapting 5G to their allocated spectrum bandwidth, connecting next-generation smart grids, and powering ultra-connected and responsive blue-light services. In Europe, it has been decided that the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS) which will replace GSM-R will use 5G NR.

• Evolution beyond smartphone - RedCap (70% lower cost, lower power consumption), Industry 4.0 devices, Unmanned Aerial vehicles (UAV)/drones. Not only drones but also autonomous vehicles, robots, and Automated Ground Vehicles (AGVs) will thrive with 5G-Advanced networks tailored to ensure reliable communications with base stations.
• Accurate Positioning - <10cm indoor positioning using carrier phase, complement to GNSS outdoors
• Resilient timing - no GPS required, Timing service over 5G network
• Network operation efficiency - More flexible TDD spectrum use, AI/ML automation, Energy efficiency
• Enhanced Sidelink - Sidelink meeting public safety needs, Sidelink to XR display etc.
• Enhanced Mobility - Reliability to 99%, break from 50 to 0 ms (FR2), Improved FR2 Scell setup. 
• 5G-NTN - In Release 17, NR was adapted to support satellite communication in non-terrestrial networks (NTN). Release 18 includes NR NTN uplink coverage enhancements needed to facilitate robust voice and messaging connectivity. NR NTN evolution will continue in Release 19, including to increase the downlink coverage provided by a satellite. 3GPP will also investigate if any changes of the 5G architecture is needed to be able to have a full gNB onboard the satellite.

While Release 18 introduces 5G Advanced, Release 19, which is due by the end of 2025, will primarily focus on improving performance & addressing critical needs of commercial 5G deployments. 

Standing in the month of June, 2025, 6G tech specs are yet to be standardized. However 3GPP, the associated industry & technology body started its comprehensive research on 6G radio and system architecture in the technical specification group (TSG) meeting in Prague in early June of 2025. 

Both Nokia and Ericsson predicts about 6G. Nokia on its blog post shared that Release20 will address 5G studies, which may come in end of 2026 or early 2027. Next release, R21 will standardize 6G specification, may be due in end of 2028 or early 2029. Commercial 6G may come with 3GPP Release 22, that could be in 2030. 

Ericsson's prediction of 6G - it might come early in 2027-28.

Features of 6G which can be expected in future:

• Utilization of terahertz (THz) frequencies (100 GHz to 10 THz): With these carriers, 6G will not only be ultra fast, but also provide access to wider bandwidths and enable applications like holographic communication and digital twinning. 

• Spectrum sharing: 6G will need large amount of spectrum while spectrum is a precious commodity that's short in supply. Therefore 5G to 6G multi-radio access technology (RAT) spectrum sharing (or MRSS) is expected to be one of interesting feature of early 6G rollouts. Dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) already exist in the 4G/5G world, but 5G-6G MRSS is expected to be much more efficient in terms of performance. 

• Channel modeling for Integrated Communication and Sensing (ISAC) - a technique wherein the communication network can support both communication and sensing of the surroundings.

• Open RAN: Open RAN did not fly with 4G or 5G, and industry experts think Open RAN has immense possibilities with 6G. Ericsson believes, 6G RAN will include a set of open interfaces to support a competitive commercial ecosystem. 

• Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning: Both Nokia and Ericsson admits AI/ML will be an integral part of 6G.

In June 2025 Nokia announced its Autonomous Networks Fabric, the industry’s first suite of telco-trained AI models, integrated security, and AI apps to accelerate network automation and enable operators to easily roll out new services. Autonomous Network Fabric is a unifying intelligence layer that weaves together observability, analytics, security, and automation across every network domain; allowing a network to behave as one adaptive system, regardless of vendor, architecture, or deployment model. 

Additionally, Nokia is announcing an expanded collaboration with Google Cloud to enable customers to deploy Nokia’s Autonomous Network Fabric as a SaaS application running on Google Cloud, on-premises with Google Distributed Cloud, and in hybrid cloud environments. Fabric will leverage Google Cloud’s generative AI, including Google Cloud’s Vertex AI and BigQuery, to deliver agentic-driven workflows for network operations. This includes real-time monitoring and visibility into network traffic patterns, improving subscriber experience, anomaly detection, zero-touch remediation of performance issues, and support for elastic scale-out and disaster recovery to the cloud.

At the similar timeframe Ericsson also unveiled Gen-AI Lab & Agentic AI Studio for telecom OSS/BSS innovation with Amazon Cloud (AWS). The Gen-AI Lab is a groundbreaking global program designed to fast-track AI innovation in OSS/BSS for communication service providers (CSPs). Through a structured, outcome-driven approach, the Lab uses Ericsson's expertise and OSS/BSS portfolio, and the AI platform capabilities of AWS (such as Amazon Bedrock) and cloud services, to empower CSPs to solve OSS/BSS challenges with Generative AI, turning ideas into reality at unprecedented speed. While Agentic AI Studio, a pioneering platform is aimed at automating and accelerating Gen-AI application development. It should be noted that Ericsson Telco IT AI App Suite offers more than 20 cloud-native AI and Gen-AI applications that enhances Ericsson OSS/BSS products across core commerce, service orchestration, monetization, data and analytics, and managed services IT.

Huawei, though had a setback due to American ban on Chinese OEM, is one of the biggest 6G patent holder. In MWC 2024, Huawei unveiled ten AI-oriented innovations, including KooVerse, Distributed QingTian architecture, AI compute, AI-Native storage, E2E security, GaussDB, Data-AI convergence, Media infrastructure, Landing Zone, and Flexible deployment. Huawei has also built a software platform known as compute architecture for neural networks (CANN). Many experts believe that Huawei can be frontrunner to offer 6G platforms beating Intel, AMD, nVidia or Qualcomm. 

6G - how fast?

6G is projected to offer speeds up to 1 terabit per second (Tbps), which is 50 times faster than the theoretical peak speed of 5G (20 Gbps). With this speed you can download 142 hours of Netflix's top quality video in every seconds. 

On a trial, University College London showed how fast 6G could be - they sent wireless data at 938Gbps in October 2024!

Road to 5.5G and 6G - Indian Perspective: 

While 5G did not become a good user case in India or globally, the monetization from 5G-NR networks is still in a very nascent stage. Indian operators generating revenue from 5G by FWA and recently Jio started offering cloud gaming. Jio already working on 5.5G - you can get a glimpse over here: https://www.jio.com/platforms/technology/cloud-native/

However Magnus Ewerbring, CTO (Asia Pacific), Ericsson believes that 5G Advanced or 5.5G will bring capabilities like network slicing, edge computing and ultra-reliable low-latency communications aiming to unlock new revenue opportunities for the operators. Ericsson is working with Airtel, Vi and Jio on their 5G networks. The APAC 5G market is projected to exceed $130 billion in revenue by 2030, while global 5G-related revenues are expected to surpass $400 billion by 2030. 

Govt of India's 6G Initiative

Indian government has released 'Bharat 6G Vision' Document in March 2023 with the objectives to design, develop and deploy 6G network technologies that provide ubiquitous intelligent and secure connectivity for high quality living experience for the world to position India as a global leader in 6G technology by 2030. Govt. of India initiated ‘Bharat 6G Alliance’ - which brings multiple domestic industries, academic institutes, national research institutions and standards organizations under one roof to develop action plan according to the Bharat 6G Vision. It has signed MoU with leading global 6G alliances to enhance global collaborations for the development of 6G wireless technologies. It has also hosted the inaugural International 6G Symposium coinciding with WTSA 2024 and the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2024. India is now one of 6 nations with most 6G patents. 

In a recent interview with ETTelecom, GSMA Director General Vivek Badrinath has applauded India for "playing an increasingly active and strategic role in early 6G discussions - particularly through initiatives like the Bharat 6G Alliance and its engagement with international standard-setting bodies. These contributions are vital to ensuring that the next generation of mobile technology reflects global diversity and supports broader development goals."