- 6G standardization is in the study phase, with feasibility work running through mid‑2027 before specifications begin
- AI‑native networks are a core 6G goal, but rapid AI evolution makes flexibility important
- The biggest risk to 6G may not be delays, but rushing standards before lessons from 5G are learned
At Mobile World Congress 2026, 6G made an appearance — on booth walls, in press releases and across slide decks — even though the technology remains years from commercial reality. That disconnect between visibility and maturity was a recurring theme in a recent Fierce Network fireside chat with Eric Hardouin, who leads network research at Orange Group and serves on the board of the NGMN Alliance.
From a standards perspective, 6G is no longer theoretical, but it is still early. “Right now we are about one year after the start of the discussions in 3GPP,” Hardouin said during the chat, which was part of Fierce Network's AI-driven wireless: From 5G to 6G virtual research summit.
The industry is currently in the study phase, focused on feasibility rather than detailed specifications. Those studies began last year and are expected to conclude by mid‑2027, when 3GPP will decide which features make it into the first 6G release, he noted.
Only then does the process move into full specification. “According to the current 3GPP agreement, this phase will conclude at the earliest in March 2029,” Hardouin said. With typical development cycles, that puts early commercial services around 2030.
The AI uncertainty
That timeline is broadly accepted — but not guaranteed. From a technical standpoint, Hardouin pointed to AI as the biggest uncertainty.
“If we are making a design [that is] optimized for what we know of AI today, then there will be a risk that we need to revisit,” he said. Indeed, AI is evolving faster than any previous technology that has influenced a wireless generation, making flexibility a core requirement. “Flexibility should be a core 6G design principle, exactly because it’s evolving so fast," he added.
He also cautioned that the greater risk may not be delay, but haste. “The biggest risk is not really that we delay this timeline,” he said. “It would be that we want to rush too much the specification phase in order to meet this deadline, at the expense of the quality of the standards.”
As the industry is well aware, there are also lessons still emerging from 5G. “It’s very important that we leave sufficient time to learn the lessons about the 5G deployment, particularly the core network,” Hardouin said, noting that many operators are only now deploying standalone cores.
Noise vs. progress
Despite the noise, progress is underway. The ITU has agreed on requirements, 3GPP has completed early service requirement studies and vendors are already testing candidate technologies in labs, said Hardouin. “What was surprising to me is that they are already working with each other to make sure that even at the prototype level, their prototypes are interoperable.”
If the industry can resist the urge to oversell and avoid locking 6G into today’s assumptions — with AI, anything could happen — the 2030 timeline could be achievable.
The harder task will be building a standard robust enough for a market and technology landscape that is still very much in motion, Hardouin warned.
Watch Fierce Network's AI-driven wireless: From 5G to 6G virtual research summit on replay! Click here to check it out.