The Huddle 2021 - 5G and Beyond: The Wireless World in 2030

About the Event

The 6G vision is starting to take shape, following a huge investment of time, research and money from numerous organisations all over the world.

The release of the ITU Recommendation Framework for IMT-2030 has provided a big step forward in helping to identify the key drivers, design principles and usage scenarios that are going to be fundamental in creating the 6G vision. What is emerging is a vision of near-instant and ubiquitous connectivity that not only transforms how the human, physical, and digital worlds interact, but also delivers positive environmental and social change.

As work now begins towards the implementations of this vision and framework, WWRF’s Huddle will once again provide a collaborative platform to bring together leading policymakers, connectivity and service providers, researchers and other key stakeholders from around the world to discuss the work that lies ahead.

Moving on from discussions that focus on the opportunities that 6G can provide in areas of security, sustainability, inclusivity and digital transformation, this year’s Huddle will look in more concrete terms about how objectives in these key areas can be delivered.

Delivering on the 6G vision is going to require a collaborative approach at each step. Join us for the WWRF Huddle and make sure that you are part of the debate and this journey.

Key Themes

Confirmed Speakers Include

Dr. Wilhelm Eschweiler

Dr. Wilhelm Eschweiler

Vice President
BNetzA

Uwe Photo 400x400

Uwe Löwenstein

Counsellor​, Study Group 5, Radiocommunication Bureau
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

Dimitra Simeonidou - 400x400

Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou

Co-Director of the Bristol Digital Futures Institute and Director of the Smart Internet Lab
University of Bristol

Thomas_Magedanz_Copyright_Valeria-Mitelman+Fraunhofer-FOKUS

Prof. Dr. Thomas Magedanz

Director, Business Unit NGNI
Fraunhofer Institute FOKUS

Bernard Barani

Bernard Barani

Senior Consultant
6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association

400x400 Takehiro Nakamura

Takehiro Nakamura

Director
NTT Docomo

Martha Suarez

Martha Suárez

President
Dynamic Spectrum Alliance (DSA)

Prof. Gerhard Fettweis

Prof. Gerhard Fettweis

Vodafone Chair Professor
TU Dresden

Thabisa Faye

Thabisa Faye

Councillor
Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (ICASA)

400x400 Tony Quek

Prof. Tony Quek

Cheng Tsang Man Chair Professor and Director of Future Communications R&D Programme
Singapore University of Technology & Design (SUTD)

Bernadette Lewis

Bernadette Lewis

Secretary-General
Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO)

Gary Clemo

Gary Clemo

Director, Emerging Technology
Ofcom

Angeliki Alexiou

Prof. Angeliki Alexiou

Professor, Department of Digital Systems
University of Piraeus

Harald Haas

Harald Haas

Professor of Mobile Communications
University of Strathclyde

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Bharat Bhatia

Vice Chairman and President
WWRF | ITU-APT Foundation of India (IAFI)

Tassos-Lyratzis-400

Tassos Lyratzis

Vice-Chair Working Group on 6G
Radio Spectrum Policy Group (RSPG)

Knud_Erik_Skouby

Prof. Knud Erik Skouby

Center for Communication, Media and Information Technologies
Aalborg University-Copenhagen ​

Tanja Tanayama

Tanja Tanayama

Head of Division, Digital Infrastructure
European Investment Bank (EIB)

Alexander Kuhn

Alexander Kuhn

Head of Section International Spectrum Affairs, Spectrum Planning and Innovative Spectrum Usage
BNetzA

Toon Norp

Toon Norp

Senior Business Consultant
TNO

Nigel Jefferies

Nigel Jefferies

Chair
WWRF

Abhimanyu Gosain

Abhimanyu Gosain

Senior Director
Institute for Wireless Internet of Things
College of Engineering
Northeastern University

Sabine Meyer

Sabine Meyer

Head of Section on Security in Telecommunications
BNetzA

Kentaro Ishizu

Dr. Kentaro Ishizu

Director, Beyond 5G Design Initiative, Beyond 5G R&D Promotion Unit
NICT

Jan Schallaböck

Jan Schallaböck

Partner, Data Protection and Compliance Practise
iRights​.Law

Hendrik-Berndt

Hendrik Berndt

Vice President for Europe, Middle East, Africa
WWRF

Nada Abdelhafez

Nada Abdelhafez

Head of Spectrum & Regulatory Affairs for Middle East and Africa
Shure

Rehan Usman

Dr. Rehan Usman

Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Engineering, Computing & the Environment
Kingston University London

Martin Maier

Martin Maier

Professor, Scientific Head of the Optical Zeitgeist Laboratory
Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique

Sudhir Dixit

Dr. Sudhir Dixit

Vice Chair Americas
WWRF

Uwe Baeder

Uwe Baeder

Director Public Affairs, GF-PA
Rohde & Schwarz

Rauno Ruismäki

Rauno Ruismäki

Chairman of GSA CEPT Team
Nokia

17 - 18 April 2024

Day 1
2024-04-17
Day 2
2024-04-18
08:30 - 09:00
Registration
09:00 - 09:15
Setting the Scene – Bringing the 6G Vision into Reality
Setting the Scene – Bringing the 6G Vision into Reality image
Dr. Nigel Jefferies
Chair, WWRF
09:15 - 09:25
Opening Presentation – Towards an Open 6G Environment
Opening Presentation – Towards an Open 6G Environment image
Prof. Dr. Thomas Magedanz
Director, Business Unit NGNI, Fraunhofer Institute FOKUS
09:25 - 09:45
Keynote Presentation
Keynote Presentation image
Dr. Wilhelm Eschweiler
Vice President, BNetzA
09:45 - 12:10
Session 1: The developing vision for 6G
09:46 - 10:05
Presentation – The vision for IMT 2030
Presentation – The vision for IMT 2030 image
Uwe Löwenstein
Counsellor​, Study Group 5, Radiocommunication Bureau, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
10:05 - 10:20
Presentation – 6G R&I in the European SNS Initiative, Status and Outlook
Presentation – 6G R&I in the European SNS Initiative, Status and Outlook image
Bernard Barani
Senior Consultant, 6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association
10:20 - 10:35
Presentation – How are we taking the 6G journey forward?
Presentation – How are we taking the 6G journey forward? image
Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou
Co-Director of the Bristol Digital Futures Institute and Director of the Smart Internet Lab, University of Bristol
10:35 - 11:00
Refreshment Break
11:00 - 12:10
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G
  • What is the starting point for 6G development and what early work has been done to formulate the vision?
  • How does the vision put forward by ITU compare to some of the goals, expectations and roadmaps that have been set out by others?
  • How are early visions of 6G ensuring that they are being ambitious with goals and targets but at the same time are remaining realistic in what can be achieved? Is the right balance being found?
  • What has 5G done well and where can achievements be built on and enhanced? Are there areas that haven’t been so successful in which approaches need to be changed?
  • Should we be considering 6G as an opportunity to create an entirely new framework, or should this be considered more as an evolution of existing technologies and to fill some of the gaps of 5G?
  • What new and expanded usage scenarios is 6G expected to bring compared to those of 5G?
  • What new capabilities are expected?
  • What challenges still need addressing in order for 6G to reach 3GPP Standards and what is the likely time frame for this?
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Bharat Bhatia
Vice Chairman, WWRF and President, ITU-APT Foundation of India (IAFI)
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Takehiro Nakamura
Director, NTT Docomo
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Thabisa Faye
Councillor, Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA)
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Bernard Barani
Senior Consultant, 6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou
Co-Director of the Bristol Digital Futures Institute and Director of the Smart Internet Lab, University of Bristol
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Toon Norp
Senior Business Consultant, TNO
Panel Discussion: Balancing realism and ambition – Goals and targets for 6G image
Nada Abdelhafez
Head of Spectrum & Regulatory Affairs for Middle East and Africa, Shure
12:10 - 13:05
Lunch
13:05 - 13:15
Setting the Scene Presentation
13:15 - 14:35
Session 2: Achieving the goal of a ubiquitous 6G – the importance of a collaborative approach to ensure that nobody is left behind
  • How realistic is the aim for 6G connectivity to be fully omnipresent and how important is it?
  • What innovative new partnerships, alliances and collaborative business models involving collaboration between different technologies in order to achieve these key goals?
  • How different technology providers could be key in shaping a future 6G ecosystem and ensuring that its benefits are felt by all?
  • How are non-terrestrial networks, WiFi and other key technologies evolving, and what role are these set to play in delivering a future 6G ecosystem? Are there other emerging technologies that have the potential to also become part of the connectivity mix as ecosystems develop?
  • How can different technologies come together to deliver the synchronisation of physical and digital worlds that is promised by 6G?
  • What are likely to be the specific challenges of delivering 6G services to the most challenging unserved areas in the region? What innovative new initiatives, funding models and technology mixes are being seen to bring 5G to rural and other harder to reach areas?
  • How can it be ensured that 6G benefits developing countries and societies as well as those more developed regions, and that it helps to narrow not widen gaps between the digital haves and digital have-nots?
Session 2: Achieving the goal of a ubiquitous 6G – the importance of a collaborative approach to ensure that nobody is left behind image
Dr. Sudhir Dixit
Vice Chair Americas, WWRF
Session 2: Achieving the goal of a ubiquitous 6G – the importance of a collaborative approach to ensure that nobody is left behind image
Martha Suárez
President, Dynamic Spectrum Alliance (DSA)
Session 2: Achieving the goal of a ubiquitous 6G – the importance of a collaborative approach to ensure that nobody is left behind image
Gary Clemo
Director, Emerging Technology, Ofcom
Session 2: Achieving the goal of a ubiquitous 6G – the importance of a collaborative approach to ensure that nobody is left behind image
Tanja Tanayama
Head of Division, Digital Infrastructure, European Investment Bank (EIB)
14:35 - 15:40
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality?

A series of presentations showcasing some of the new connectivity technologies that may become part of the 6G ecosystem. After the presentations there will be a short Q&A, and then the audience will vote on whether they consider each technology as ‘science fiction or 6G reality’?

 

14:35 – 14:45 Visible Light Communication
14:45 – 14:55 Terahertz connectivity technologies
14:55 – 15:05 Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS)
15:05 – 15:15 HAPs, LAPs and Non-Terrestrial Networks
15:15 – 15:25 6G Intelligentization: AI and More-than-Human Natural Intelligence for Exiting the Anthropocene
15:25-15:40 Q&A and Audience Vote
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality? image
Angeliki Alexiou
Professor, Department of Digital Systems, University of Piraeus
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality? image
Harald Haas
Professor of Mobile Communications, University of Strathclyde
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality? image
Uwe Baeder
Director Public Affairs, GF-PA, Rohde & Schwarz
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality? image
Bharat Bhatia
Vice Chairman, WWRF and President, ITU-APT Foundation of India (IAFI)
Session 3: Showcase Session: Emerging Technologies – Science Fiction or 6G Reality? image
Martin Maier
Professor, Scientific Head of the Optical Zeitgeist Laboratory, Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique
15:40 - 16:05
Refreshment Break
16:05 - 17:25
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G
  • There is a lot of talk about ensuring that sustainability remains central to 6G. What does this actually mean in concrete terms across environmental, social, and economic sustainability domains
  • In what areas can this happen, and what should be the targets in order to make sure that 6G delivers on its potential to drive forward sustainability? 
  • How will the way in which 6G networks are built have to differ from previous generations in order to minimise their environmental footprint whilst also optimising performance?
  • How are technology advancements, energy-saving solutions and intelligent management already being applied to reduce energy consumption of networks and how can the emergence of 6G further continue this welcome trend? What role can AI help to play in this?
  • What impact can 6G have on driving sustainability in key industries such as transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, energy and more?
  • How can it be ensured that sustainability, users and society more broadly are kept at the heart of 6G development throughout its development journey?
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G image
Dr. Sudhir Dixit
Vice Chair Americas, WWRF
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G image
Bernadette Lewis
Secretary-General, Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO)
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G image
Prof. Tony Quek
Cheng Tsang Man Chair Professor and Director of Future Communications R&D Programme, Singapore University of Technology & Design (SUTD)
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G image
Abhimanyu Gosain
Senior Director, Institute for Wireless Internet of Things, College of Engineering, Northeastern University
Session 4: Driving Sustainability through 6G image
Dr Kentaro Ishizu
Director, Beyond 5G Design Initiative, Beyond 5G R&D Promotion Unit, NICT
17:25 - 19:30
Cocktail Reception hosted by BNetzA
09:00 - 10:20
Session 5: Security & Privacy Requirements and Challenges of 6G
  • What limitations in security architectures have been observed as 5G has become more mature and deployments more widespread, and what lessons can be taken from this as we move towards 6G?
  • What new security and privacy risks could emerge based on prospective technologies that are set to be part of 6G in the physical, connectivity and service layers? 
  • With 6G expected to continue moves towards cloud and edge native infrastructures, how is this likely to influence network security architecture planning? 
  • How can privacy preservation be ensured at both the operator level and user level?
  • Machine learning and AI can be used to make safer systems, but it also enables increasingly dangerous attacks. How can the potential benefits be maximised and the risks and challenges be overcome?
Session 5: Security & Privacy Requirements and Challenges of 6G image
Prof. Knud Erik Skouby
Professor and Director of Center for Communication, Media and Information Technologies, Aalborg University Copenhagen
Session 5: Security & Privacy Requirements and Challenges of 6G image
Sabine Meyer
Head of Section on Security in Telecommunications, BNetzA
Session 5: Security & Privacy Requirements and Challenges of 6G image
Jan Schallaböck
Partner, Data Protection and Compliance Practise, iRights.Law
10:20 - 10:50
Thinking Point: The evolution of the device – how will the shift towards 6G impact the device ecosystem?
Thinking Point: The evolution of the device – how will the shift towards 6G impact the device ecosystem? image
Prof. Gerhard Fettweis
Vodafone Chair Professor, TU Dresden
Thinking Point: The evolution of the device – how will the shift towards 6G impact the device ecosystem? image
Dr. Nigel Jefferies
Chair, WWRF
10:50 - 11:15
Refreshment Break
11:15 - 12:30
Session 6: Breakout Huddles – A discussion around the overarching design principles of 6G

The breakout huddles this year will be based around the 4 overarching aspects that have been identified in the ITU’s 6G Vision as essential design principles that are applicable to all areas of 6G development and future usage scenarios. 

Delegates will have the opportunity to choose one of four interactive discussions to participate in:

  • Sustainability
  • Intelligence in the network
  • Security/privacy/resilience
  • Ubiquitous communications to connect the unconnected

 

Session 6: Breakout Huddles – A discussion around the overarching design principles of 6G image
Bharat Bhatia
Vice Chairman, WWRF and President, ITU-APT Foundation of India (IAFI)
Session 6: Breakout Huddles – A discussion around the overarching design principles of 6G image
Harald Haas
Professor of Mobile Communications, University of Strathclyde
12:30 - 13:30
Lunch
13:30 - 14:15
Outcomes from breakout huddles
14:15 - 15:35
Session 7: Delivering the required connectivity for 6G – key bands and connectivity models
  • What are expected to be the connectivity requirements for the numerous use cases that are set to be enabled by 6G? How may these differ from those which are seen for 5G, and what are regulators and connectivity providers going to need to do in order to deliver these?
  • How crucial is WRC-27 set to be in deciding the key bands for initial rollout of 6G networks?
  • What decisions were taken at the WRC 2023in Dubai in terms of setting the key agenda items and bands to be studied ahead of WRC-2027?
  • What work is taking place at a regional level to develop roadmaps for 6G connectivity? 
  • In Europe, what were the key findings and recommendations from the RSPG opinion, and what now need to be the next steps in order to ensure Europe has the building blocks in place to deliver on its 6G ambitions?
  • How much focus is there set to be on the 7-15GHz range when it comes to finding the required bandwidth for initial 6G rollout? Are there specific candidate bands in this range that offer the most potential? 
  • What role can sub-terahertz spectrum play in the long-term 6G connectivity ecosystem and what technical and regulatory challenges need to be overcome in order to free up spectrum in these ranges?
  • How can regulators balance the need to find spectrum for 6G with the need to also consider growing needs of other future technologies?
Session 7: Delivering the required connectivity for 6G – key bands and connectivity models image
Dr Rehan Usman
Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Engineering, Computing & the Environment, Kingston University London
Session 7: Delivering the required connectivity for 6G – key bands and connectivity models image
Tassos Lyratzis
Vice-Chair Working Group on 6G, Radio Spectrum Policy Group (RSPG)
Session 7: Delivering the required connectivity for 6G – key bands and connectivity models image
Alexander Kuhn
Head of Section International Spectrum Affairs, Spectrum Planning and Innovative Spectrum Usage, BNetzA
Session 7: Delivering the required connectivity for 6G – key bands and connectivity models image
Rauno Ruismäki
Chairman of GSA CEPT Team, Nokia
15:35 - 15:45
Closing Remarks
Closing Remarks image
Dr. Nigel Jefferies
Chair, WWRF
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Venue

The Fraunhofer Institute FOKUS

Address: Kaiserin-Augusta-Allee 31, 10589 Berlin, Germany

Suggested Accommodation

Note: Accommodation has not been booked for you. Hotels are subject to availability and best available rate at the time of booking.

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Walking distance from conference venue : 10 min
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Previous Editions

The Huddle is hosted annually by the Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF). Since its inception in 2014, it has brought key 5G & 6G stakeholders together in various locations across the globe including the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, South Africa, Japan, India and, most recently, Singapore with each edition addressing the next step of the 5G & 6G ‘journeys’. 

Contact Us

For more information on any aspect of this event, please contact us using any of the details below.

Lorena Rodriguez
Senior Event Manager
Forum Europe
wwrfhuddle@forum-europe.com

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