We might only just be seeing the arrival of 5G devices and the slow rollout of its networks, but some companies are already hard at work on the successor: 6G. One of these is Huawei, which has started research on this sixth-generation of mobile networks.

As reported by The Logic, Huawei’s initial work on 6G is taking place at its research center in the Kanata suburb of Ottawa, Canada. The Chinese tech giant is reportedly working with over 13 universities and research institutes on the project.

“5G is already pretty new, and 6G is part of the so-called 5G evolution,” said Song Zhang, Huawei’s vice president of research strategy and partnership in Canada.

With 5G in its infancy, it will be a long time before 6G rolls out. Huawei estimates it’ll take ten or more years, by which time 5G should have become mainstream.

Despite developing 6G in Canada, the country is one of several still to decide if it will allow Huawei to use its technology in the nation’s 5G networks, but the decision will be made following the Canadian federal government election this fall.

Back in June, Samsung announced the launch of a new research center dedicated to initial work on 6G. It followed the formation of the Advanced Communications Research Center under Samsung Research.

LG is also working on 6G. The Korean firm, in collaboration with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), has opened a research center dedicated to the standard. China, meanwhile, aims to build a test 6G network for 2020.

Source: TechSpot