6G Requires a New Vision of American Leadership

Only a few years ago American policymakers were focused on “winning the race to 5G.” While experts continue to debate whether 5G has delivered on its promise, discussions are quickly shifting to 5G's successor technology, 6G. 

There are already some positive signs that policymakers are taking 6G seriously. The recent passage of the Future Uses of Technology Upholding Reliable and Enhanced (FUTURE) Networks Act by the U.S. House of Representatives, which would direct the Federal Communications Commission to convene stakeholders to establish a 6G Task Force, is a positive, bipartisan development in giving 6G the much-needed attention the political moment calls for.

And the ongoing 6G study by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration is a good step towards the United States facilitating the advancement of 6G technology. 

The need to lead on connectivity

Regulators are beginning to understand that a heterogenous, interoperable, efficient network environment that takes advantage of technological advances in network architecture and management is critical to achieving American leadership in this space.

Whatever the outcome of the election, 6G will be a critical component of U.S. connectivity strategy. U.S. policymakers should prioritize 6G policies that promote American-led technologies and the American companies that operate, support, and use our networks. Multiple American companies, including Cisco, have established the United States as a world leader in cloud and networking technologies. American companies have also paved the way and dominated the market for innovation with private networks and specialized technologies. 

Shaping a clear policy strategy

While 6G’s final form is still taking shape, a clear policy strategy now will allow for a smoother transition from 5G and support U.S. leadership in this critical space. U.S. policymakers can support the advancement of 6G technology by prioritizing the following considerations:

First, 6G network architecture will use compute and cloud-based services to support a dynamic, application-driven environment. That means policymakers need to encourage the growth of virtualized networks and cloud-based services and avoid unduly limiting their growth through unreasonable regulations and fees. 

Second, 6G networks will be heterogenous, interoperable, and highly efficient. Wireless operators will expand existing efforts to share infrastructure and spectrum with competing companies and technologies to reduce costs and increase performance. The days of zero-sum policy fights amongst different technologies and stakeholders must end.

The technology is not as important as the ubiquity and quality of the connection, and fixed and mobile wireless networks, fiber, Wi-Fi, and satellite are converging to meet the moment. 6G must build on this ongoing convergence of networks to address the future needs of American businesses, consumers, and communities. Customers expect to be connected wherever they go. Policymakers should reduce red tape and encourage companies to work together to ensure everyone has access to high-quality, affordable, broadband. 

Third, 6G will be an artificial intelligence-native technology that uses its capabilities to achieve seamless connectivity and fuel innovative use cases. AI and machine learning will be innate to 6G networks, allowing for automatic updates and adjustments to increase performance, avoid outages, and reduce costs. AI-based cybersecurity tools will identify and act on threats to 6G networks without the need for human intervention.

At the same, bad actors will likely seek to use AI capabilities to attack those same networks. As with other AI/ML-impacted technologies, regulators will need to balance our desire for innovation with our need to reduce risk of harm. 

Finally, to facilitate a high degree of interworking and user experience compatibility across systems in 6G networks, standards bodies and industry consortia must collaborate to create standards specifications, technical architectures, and operational frameworks. American policymakers should support efforts toward globally harmonized, interoperable standards, while encouraging greater private-sector involvement and leadership in standards and international policymaking bodies like 3GPP and the ITU, among others.

The full promise of 5G may still be unfolding, but the United States cannot risk falling behind in putting the right policies in place for 6G. American companies are well-positioned to lead in this new technology, and U.S. policymakers need to adopt the right policies now, so our future growth is ensured.

Bill Davenport is the former Chief of Staff and Senior Legal Advisor to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, where he oversaw the office’s operations and advised the Commissioner on wireless, equipment, and international issues. He currently serves as the Senior Director for Technology and Networking Policy at Cisco. Bill spent over two decades in federal service, having worked in various positions within the FCC, including as the senior manager responsible for the Commission’s spectrum and equipment enforcement matters. This Expert Opinion is is exclusive to Broadband Breakfast.

Broadband Breakfast accepts commentary from informed observers of the broadband scene. Please send pieces to commentary@breakfast.media. The views expressed in Expert Opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of Broadband Breakfast and Breakfast Media LLC.