Since the commercialization of 5G in 2020, the vision of “ultra-high speed, low latency, and the Internet of Everything” has already shown initial results in the consumer Internet and vertical industries. However, facing future scenarios such as holographic communication, the metaverse, AI Everywhere, and space-air-ground integration, 5G’s capability ceiling is beginning to emerge. 6G (the sixth-generation mobile communication) is expected to build a new foundation of “digital twin + ubiquitous intelligence”. 2026 will become a crucial year for 6G to move from the laboratory to field tests and from vision to real experience—its connectivity methods will undergo disruptive changes in four dimensions: spectrum, architecture, terminals, and services. Combining the latest technological breakthroughs and industrial developments from 2025 to 2026, this article systematically sorts out these changes and their impacts on the economy and society.
Spectrum Revolution: From “Sub-6GHz + Millimeter Wave” to “Full-Band Adaptive”
Continuous Coverage from 0.5GHz to 115GHz
A joint team from Peking University and City University of Hong Kong released a photoelectric fusion chip that achieves seamless reconstruction from 0.5GHz to 115GHz using a thin-film lithium niobate platform, with a single-channel rate of 120Gbps, 40 times higher than that of 5G. Traditional base stations require multiple radio frequency chains to cover different frequency bands, while the new chip transforms the “multi-band tower” into a “single-chip full-frequency router”, which is expected to reduce base station hardware by 60%.
Dynamic Spectrum Sharing Enters the Microsecond Level
Through real-time electrical tuning and AI prediction, 6G compresses the spectrum sensing granularity to 10-microsecond switching, increasing utilization from 30% to 80% and solving sudden interference in industrial and military scenarios.
Terahertz and Visible Light Supplement Hotspots
A terahertz prototype demonstrated at CES Asia 2026 has a peak rate of 100Gbps and latency <1ms, used for 8K VR holography and chip-level Board-to-Board communication. Visible Light Communication (LiFi) and terahertz together form an “ultra-hotspot” layer, achieving a “fiber wireless” experience with T-level rate and μs-level latency.
Architecture Reconstruction: From “Core-Edge” to “Core-Edge-Terminal” Three-Level Intelligent Connection
Extreme Edge Network
A large number of sensors, robots, and AR glasses in factories, buildings, and homes self-organize into an “extreme edge network” through the 6G side link (Sidelink), enabling millisecond-level interaction without going through a base station. In 2026, cars, UAVs, and robots will integrate 6G Sidelink chips to realize V2X and swarm intelligence, reducing air interface handshaking latency by 50%.
EdgeNet
Adopting “Cell-Free” massive MIMO, distributed antennas are connected to edge computing nodes through optical fiber/photoelectric fronthaul, dynamically forming virtual cells centered on terminals. Tsinghua University’s transmissive RIS was verified at 28GHz, still providing 1121Mbps after penetrating marble slabs, saving 8dBm transmission power and achieving “dead-spot-free” deep coverage.
CoreNet
The 6G core network will be fully cloud-native and “AI-Native”—AI is no longer just an application but the control plane of the network. In 2026, 40% of 6G networks will integrate AI/ML for self-optimization. A “digital twin network” is used to mirror all physical resources of the network, predict traffic and faults in real time, and achieve μs-level closed loops.
Three Leaps in Connectivity Methods
From “Internet of Everything” to “Intelligent Connection of Everything”
The 5G era emphasized “human-machine-things” connectivity; 6G introduces the “soul (consciousness)” dimension, and the network has perception, reasoning, and decision-making capabilities, becoming a thinking “nervous system”. In 2026, remote surgery will be implemented: AI predicts organ displacement at the edge, the network side compensates in real time, and end-to-end latency is controlled at 0.1ms, meeting the ±0.05mm tool tip error requirement.
From “Ground Coverage” to “Space-Air-Ground-Sea Integration”
6G mobile phones connect directly to low-orbit satellites, eliminating the need for ground base station relays. Single-satellite capacity is increased by dozens of times, enabling Mbps-level seamless access in oceans, deserts, and high altitudes. In 2026, low-orbit constellations (Starlink Gen3, GW-2) will be equipped with 6G payloads, supporting ultra-long coverage of 36,000 kilometers and terminal power consumption <500mW.
From “Best Effort” to “Deterministic Guarantee”
6G introduces “service-level network slicing + photonic switching” technology, which can provide 99.9999% reliability and <0.1ms jitter for industrial control, replacing traditional fieldbuses. In 2026, smart factories will deploy 6G TSN (Time-Sensitive Networking) slicing to achieve 128-axis servo synchronization with an error <1μs, 10 times higher than industrial Ethernet.
Terminal Form and User Experience Innovation
6G Holographic Phones
A prototype demonstrated at CES Asia 2026 supports the terahertz band with a peak rate of 100Gbps, enabling real-time transmission of 8K holographic images and making naked-eye 3D calls a reality.
6G IoT Terminals
Introducing “backscatter + ambient energy harvesting” technology, terminals can maintain 1Mbps backhaul without batteries. In 2026, the connection density can reach 10 million/km².
6G Vehicle/Airborne Terminals
In 2026, L4 autonomous vehicles will integrate 6G modules to exchange high-definition point clouds in real time with roadside RIS and low-altitude UAVs, realizing “vehicle-road-air” collaborative perception. The perception range will be expanded to 2km, and the accident rate will be reduced by 60%.
Industrial Impact and Business Models
Operators: From “Traffic” to “Experience as a Service (EaaS)”
Charging based on reliability, latency, and perception accuracy.
Equipment Manufacturers
Full-band adaptive chips, RIS surfaces, and photonic switching equipment will become new high-value-added markets, with a scale expected to reach 12 billion US dollars in 2026.
Vertical Industries
Industrial Internet: 6G TSN slicing replaces fieldbuses, reducing production line reconstruction costs by 30%. Specifically, automatic spring equipment, a key component in manufacturing sectors such as automotive and aerospace, will leverage 6G’s deterministic control to achieve micron-level precision in spring coiling and forming, while reducing production cycle times by 25% through real-time data synchronization with upstream and downstream production links.
Smart Healthcare: Holographic remote clinics and AI-assisted surgery will reach county-level hospitals.
Digital Culture and Tourism: Holographic concerts and metaverse cultural tourism parks will become standard configurations. In 2026, the scale of China’s holographic content market is expected to exceed 55 billion yuan.
Challenges and Risks
Energy Consumption
6G’s ultra-high data rate and dense antenna arrays double base station power consumption. It is necessary to rely on “photonic fronthaul + GaN power devices + AI energy efficiency scheduling” to improve energy efficiency (Bit/J) by 10 times.
Security
AI-Native networks extend the attack surface from “data” to “control”, requiring “post-quantum cryptography + trusted computing” to ensure control plane security.
Regulation
Countries have different spectrum allocation rhythms, and “regional frequency band islands” may appear in 2026. It is necessary to promote global unification through the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
Talent
6G requires interdisciplinary talents in radio frequency, photonics, AI, networks, and industries. The global gap is expected to reach 850,000 by 2026.
Conclusion
In 2026, 6G will for the first time deliver four major capabilities—full-band adaptive, space-air-ground-sea integration, AI-Native, and deterministic networking—to society. Connectivity will no longer be simply “signal coverage” but a “service-level network” generated on demand and adapted to scenarios. From consumer-level holographic calls to industrial-level 0.1ms deterministic control, and then to ubiquitous access in space, air, ground, and sea, 6G is reshaping the interaction logic between people, between people and machines, and between machines. Seizing the 2026 field test window is equivalent to obtaining a ticket to the digital economy in the next decade.
Automated assembly mechanical connection equipment
Artificial intelligence automated assembly mechanical connection robot
