From the first generation of analog phones in the early 1980s to the remote operations made possible by 5G today, we’ve come a long way. Cell phones, which were once limited to scratchy voice calls, can now be used to join a meeting thousands of miles away with the push of a button.
This is why, as the industry sets out to invent the next generation of mobile connectivity, we must not only address new needs that current technology cannot meet, but also design entirely new opportunities, services and industries.
But we can’t do this alone
That’s why Intel has become part of the EU 6G flagship research project Hexa-X, a large collaborative initiative to frame the 6G research agenda. This flagship European 6G project, funded by the European Commission, will lay the groundwork for technology to be developed in the coming years to make 6G a reality by 2030.
With 6G, we can expect to see the convergence of communications, computing and artificial intelligence. Computing and artificial intelligence will be integrated locally into the 6G system instead of just running as an application on top of the network infrastructure. Users will have access to virtually endless computing power and AI/machine learning resources through Computing as a Service (CaaS) and Artificial Intelligence as a Service (AIaaS) interfaces.
14-core i5 is coming from Intel! as well as mobile
Intel impressed with the performance test results of the i5-13600HX processor with 14 cores and 20 threads.
Analyze events and take timely action, as well as simulate future actions to perform vertical industry operation-specific tasks, as sensors embedded in the physical world send data to update digital representations of real environments in near real-time, and real-world actuators execute commands from smart agents in the digital world , it will become possible to predict and program them.
As we chart our innovation roadmap towards the 6G era, we are powered by this unprecedented opportunity to connect the human, physical and digital worlds. We have set three key goals to guide our research on the road ahead and help us realize this hybrid world.
1: A healthier world
The healthcare industry has been at the top of the global agenda in recent years, witnessing a massive pace of digitization and showing no signs of slowing down. With an aging population, increased risk of injury from extreme weather, and the likelihood of further pandemics, remote and accessible healthcare will be more vital than ever. And 6G will be at the heart of this development.
Today’s medicine typically takes a one-size-fits-all approach to disease treatment and prevention strategies. However, individual variability in the genes, environment and lifestyle of each person should be taken into account in sensitive health services.
But to understand this requires 24/7 monitoring of the vital parameters of both healthy and sick people via wearable devices. In a hybrid world, 6G could enable in-body devices to communicate with external wearables, which in turn could transmit data securely to the internet.
Wearable, remote-controlled technology can also help visually impaired people navigate the world. Wearable devices equipped with sensors can be used to sense and identify objects, street furniture and other potential hazards. Thus, users are informed in advance and proactive measures are taken.
Here, the convergence of communication, computing and artificial intelligence also has the potential to support image processing. For example, when a patient’s skin is imaged, an AI service that monitors the AIaaS concept can process the image and instantly identify if there is a suspicious appearance related to skin cancer.
2: A more collaborative world
With the potential to reach speeds 1,000 times faster than 5G networks, this new and near-instant wireless technology has the potential to open the door to a world of increased digital collaboration.
With the mixed reality and holographic video conferencing capabilities provided by 6G, silos can be broken up and deployed to remote office locations, teleconsultations and e-learning environments for educational purposes. Tomorrow’s interactions may even include tactile connections—a communication including sight and sound as well as touch.
Such videoconferences will require computing and artificial intelligence power, as well as enormous data bandwidth to record, transmit and reconstruct relevant holographic images of colleagues.
There is also an opportunity to go beyond “cooperating robots” beyond the mere command and control of individual robots. Designed to work with people rather than without them, these machines can perform complex tasks more efficiently, making our lives easier and enabling us to devote their precious time to more meaningful activities.
Through the design and use of digital twins, 6G can also unlock the unprecedented levels of collaboration needed to truly bring smart cities to life. A digital twin is a virtual representation of an object or system in the physical world that is updated using real-time data and uses simulation, machine learning and reasoning to aid decision making. The digital twin approach can intuitively facilitate data sharing across a city’s ecosystem, enabling collaboration between city planners, construction workers, energy suppliers and citizens themselves.
Here, together with real-time feedback from the physical world and related assets, the digital twin city model can be a powerful tool for future evolution and planning, as well as advanced and efficient operations of future smart cities.
We hope these digital replicas powered by 6G will allow us to perfectly optimize traffic flow, build homes that withstand predicted extreme weather events, and run smooth public transport operations.
3: A more sustainable world
Finally, 6G has the potential to move us towards a more sustainable world. From energy efficiency to sustainable transformation, 6G can provide resource-efficient networks that impact society and reduce environmental footprint through effective digitalisation.
6G can enable us to deploy bio-friendly energy harvesting sensors anywhere with cost-effective connectivity, providing near real-time and invaluable monitoring of system-critical environmental elements such as weather, climate change or biodiversity.
In addition, a global telemetry system can be used to further improve weather/climate models, monitor and monitor environmental conditions, and enable early warning systems for natural disasters such as floods or landslides, or protect ecosystems and endangered species from threats such as illegal logging and poaching. It can also be used for better protection.
In all areas, 6G will also empower fully integrated autonomous supply chains, with local and centralized AI agents continually optimizing the process at reasonable cost and complexity.
With the application of digital twins to more sustainable food production, the health, needs and ailments of crops and livestock can be monitored in real time, nutrients/food can be applied autonomously, and any threats can be addressed to increase yields and reduce waste.
In terms of the sustainable nature of the network itself, it is extremely difficult to parameterize and optimally operate complex networks such as 6G as the environment, needs and conditions are constantly changing. To optimize sustainability goals, locally integrated artificial intelligence technology will constantly monitor network connectivity and adapt the parameterization of the 6G network to increase user performance with the highest levels of sustainability (e.g. energy consumption).