China is investing heavily on 6G technology, yet its strategy confronts obstacles stemming from a fragmented global standards environment.

The global telecommunications sector is poised for a new era with the imminent arrival of sixth-generation (6G) cellular networks.

Promising capabilities vastly exceeding 5G, including terabit-per-second speeds, sub-millisecond latencies, and a seamless fusion of intelligence and sensing, 6G is poised to reshape connectivity and drive innovation across industries.

Against this backdrop of ambitious technological aspiration and the promise of a deeply interconnected, intelligent world, a central narrative is emerging: China’s determined push to secure leadership in this critical future technology.

The AI wireless revolution

While the target launch is around 2030, the contours of 6G, officially designated “IMT-2030” by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), are already being defined. Not merely as an incremental speed boost over 5G but rather as a paradigm shift.

The performance targets are exceptionally ambitious. They aim for peak data rates up to a terabit per second, air-interface latencies as low as 100 microseconds, and support for up to 10 million devices per square kilometer.

Crucially, 6G networks will natively integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI), sensing, and Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) from the outset, marking a significant architectural departure from 5G, where such features appeared in later releases.

Key enabling technologies identified as fundamental to achieving these goals include the utilization of Terahertz (THz) and Sub-THz frequencies for massive bandwidth, AI-native networks for dynamic optimization, Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) capabilities, advanced Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) and antenna technologies, and Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS) to manage radio wave propagation.

The sheer diversity and extreme nature of these targets mean 6G is being designed as a highly flexible platform, tailored for a broad spectrum of specialized applications, from enhanced mobile broadband and ultra-reliable low-latency communications to massive machine-type communication, alongside entirely new scenarios like pervasive intelligence and integrated sensing.

Road to global 6G standard

The formal journey toward 6G standardization is a multi-year global effort coordinated primarily by the ITU and executed through detailed technical specifications developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).

The ITU-R defines the overall framework and performance requirements for IMT-2030. The call for candidate technologies was issued in October 2024, with submissions expected between 2027 and early 2029, leading to the final IMT-2030 designation anticipated by 2030.

3GPP officially committed to 6G specifications in late 2023. Release 19, currently underway, includes preliminary studies for 6G. The upcoming Release 20 is the main study phase, with Release 21 intended to contain the first implementable 6G specifications, expected by the end of 2028.

This phased approach allows for the continued evolution of 5G-Advanced while laying the groundwork for 6G, though it presents challenges in resource allocation and avoiding early path dependency. A notable shift from 5G is the push to link 6G capabilities directly to clear business cases and monetization strategies from the design phase.

Key architectural principles guiding 6G include the need for a single, global standard, support for wide spectrum ranges, efficient multi-RAT spectrum sharing (MRSS), a smoother transition from 5G (likely evolving the 5G Core), exclusive Stand-Alone (SA) operation, open interfaces where valuable, native observability for AI/ML, and a continued focus on energy efficiency.

China’s political ambition and strategy

The idea of evolving the 5G Core for 6G is not universally accepted. Some in the Chinese telecom ecosystem advocate for a completely new 6G core network, a significant point of potential contention.

China has unequivocally declared 6G a national strategic priority. It aims for commercialization by approximately 2030 and standard-setting around 2025.

The strategy derives from a state-led approach that efficiently directs national resources, influences domestic market development, and strategically seeks to shape global standards.

Initiatives like the “China Standards 2035” project underscore a long-term pivot towards defining the rules and frameworks for emerging technologies like 6G, moving from primarily a producer to a global standard-setter.

The IMT-2030 (6G) Promotion Group is China’s central coordinating body. It fosters collaboration across academia, industry, and government, actively contributing to international standardization efforts.

China’s commitment is also visible in proactive measures, such as launching the world’s first experimental 6G satellite in November 2020 to test THz signal transmission and, notably, allocating a significant portion of the 6 GHz band (6425-7125 MHz) specifically for 5G and future 6G services.

Beijing views this 6 GHz spectrum as the “only high-quality resource with large bandwidth in the mid-band,” and its early allocation to stabilize domestic industry expectations and potentially influence global spectrum harmonization decisions.

From national champions to global leaders

China’s telecommunications giants are leading the move. Huawei, despite geopolitical pressures, remains a formidable cellular infrastructure provider. The company began 6G research as early as 2017 and continues to invest substantially, focusing on AI integration, ultra-low latency, massive IoT, and integrated sensing.

Huawei has a significant portfolio of 6G-related patents, leveraging its extensive networking, software, and mobile communications IP. Its vision for 6G is ambitious, defining it as a “distributed neural network” that fuses physical, biological, and cyber worlds, built on pillars like Native AI, Networked Sensing, and Integrated NTN.

Huawei’s efforts, including developing its own AI chips, demonstrate a clear strategy toward technological self-reliance.

ZTE is another major Chinese vendor engaged in 6G R&D and standardization. ZTE’s strategy heavily emphasizes AI-driven end-to-end network solutions, including its “AIR DNA” concept and detailed architectural proposals, such as research into the Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF) for 6G.

Alongside these Chinese champions, European vendors like Ericsson and Nokia are key players in the global 6G landscape. Ericsson is deeply involved in 6G research, contributing to architectural principles and collaborating on technologies like sub-THz communication with Intel. Ericsson also has aspirations for patent leadership in the 6G era.

Nokia is another leading vendor working on system architecture, sub-THz research, network automation, and sensing, participating in initiatives like the European Hexa-X projects.

3GPP and potential friction for different standards

The 3GPP remains crucial for defining the detailed technical specifications that will underpin 6G. Chinese companies are major contributors, actively participating in technical working groups.

Their goal is to influence the direction of standards and ensure their patented technologies become essential components. However, fundamental disagreements exist within the 3GPP.

For example, at the March 2025 6G workshop, “many in the Chinese telecom ecosystem” advocated for a completely new 6G core network, contrasting with others who preferred an evolution of the 5G Core. Such architectural debates could become “critical fault lines” if consensus proves elusive.

The “Joint Statement Endorsing Principles for 6G: Secure, Open, and Resilient by Design ” adds another layer of complexity. It was signed by ten nations, including the US, key EU members, Japan, and South Korea.

This statement, emphasizing security and openness, is an effort by like-minded nations to collectively influence standards and create a counterweight to regions with potentially differing priorities for 6G governance.

Are we going to a fractured 6G?

The critical question is whether China’s leadership pursuit will significantly diverge from global 6G standards. While a “strong impetus for a unified global 6G standard exists, driven by economic benefits and the need for interoperability”, significant geopolitical tensions and differing national priorities create a tangible risk of divergence.

Arguments for a unified standard include the substantial economic benefits of economies of scale and the need for global interoperability and roaming. China’s active participation in ITU and 3GPP also suggests a preference to shape the standard from within.

However, powerful drivers push towards an independent path. The primary impetus is the pursuit of technological sovereignty and self-reliance, mainly as a reactive measure to perceived Western efforts to constrain China’s technological rise.

Furthermore, national security concerns drive the desire to control critical infrastructure with trusted domestic technology. There’s also the potential to embed national values and governance models into a distinct standard.

A complete decoupling into two entirely separate standards appears less probable than a scenario where China champions a 6G variant with distinct features aligned with its national interests.

This could potentially lead to a “fractured” rather than a cleanly bifurcated global 6G ecosystem. The divergence could manifest through regional variations, proprietary extensions, or mandated profiles within a broader IMT-2030 framework.

Unity or division?

Should significant divergence occur, the consequences would be profound. Economically, fragmented markets would reduce economies of scale, leading to higher costs for industry and consumers. R&D and deployment expenses would increase as companies support multiple versions of technology.

Geopolitically, it would solidify techno-economic blocs and intensify competition for influence, particularly over developing nations. Technologically, it would severely hamper global interoperability and slow the overall pace of innovation.

China’s calculated path

China could become a dominant force in 6G. Its strategy is multifaceted: it actively participates in and seeks to shape global standards through bodies like the ITU and 3GPP while simultaneously building indigenous capabilities for significant self-reliance.

While a unified global standard is preferred for economic reasons, China is proactively preparing for a scenario where it might need to rely more heavily on its own technology and champion a 6G ecosystem with distinctly Chinese characteristics.

The degree of divergence will ultimately form by the evolving geopolitical landscape and dynamics within the global standards bodies.

Stakeholders worldwide must prepare for a future 6G landscape that may be less monolithic, requiring greater adaptability and strategic foresight.

By: DocMemory
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