This Year’s Buzzword at CES? 5G
This year, 5G was one of the most talked-about topics at January’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES). During the three-day show attended by thousands, technology and wireless companies highlighted their plans for 5G implementation and development, and Verizon was a key participant.
Verizon’s CEO Hans Vestberg gave a keynote discussing some of the upcoming breakthroughs in connectivity, shaping the direction of 5G. He also launched Verizon’s “Built on 5G Challenge,” calling on innovators to create new solutions that leverage 5G connectivity to transform the way people live, work and play, further integrating with Verizon Ventures’ strategy to invest in companies poised to propel the 5G world.
Building on Hans’ keynote, I participated on a panel entitled “Ready for the 5G Wireless Revolution” to teach, discuss and learn how the industry is approaching 5G. Additionally, a number of panels were held around the future of 5G and how it will impact industries across the board. I’ve outlined a few of them below:
Smart Cities
5G has the potential to deliver speeds many times faster than today’s 4G, helping usher in a new era of smart cities. Implementing the 5G network will help enable innovations and more applications of Information of Things (IoT) technology. With the necessary infrastructure in place to carry much higher data volumes than 4G, 5G helps to enable a smarter and more connected world. See more on “Connecting the World through 5G Technology” in a past Verizon Ventures’ blog post.
Entertainment
5G will help propel the adoption of computer-generated imagery (CGI), computer resolution and multiplayer AR / VR gaming though its faster speeds and lower latency than 4G. The entertainment industry is only beginning to tap the potential for integrative technology, but 5G will help enable significant advancements. Just look at Verizon Ventures portfolio company The VOID, which is already combining technology and entertainment to create immersive, virtual worlds for users.
6G
Although 5G is still in its innovation phase, companies are already buzzing about the potential for the next phase: 6G. Panelists discussed the potential for quantum computing systems and the likelihood it will be available within the next ten years to help launch 6G.
Why was 5G such a hot topic at CES this winter? 5G technologies offer the promise of making everyday processes more efficient across industries, which means that practitioners will have more time and better tools to continue to find solutions to today’s biggest challenges. The 5G buzz is not going away in 2019.
Read more from Verizon Ventures:
2019 Predictions from Our Portfolio
