Future Wireless: 6G and Beyond May Require AI With Common Sense

According to a team of researchers from Virginia Tech, next-generation wireless systems will integrate advanced AI protocols to enhance performance. Their recent paper introduces a groundbreaking approach to advancing wireless technologies like 6G and beyond.

The research highlights how wireless systems and AI need to mature seamlessly to create “living, thinking, networks” capable of handling the massive data demands of the future.

Why Connectivity Matters More Than Ever

It's happened to everyone. You notice that your favorite content creator has made a new video, and you rush over to watch it. However, you’re met with a long delay and shabby quality because you're in an area with limited connectivity.

This scenario is common nowadays but could become even worse in the future. AI and high-performance protocols require top-notch connectivity to perform as promised. As such, there is a massive movement underway to enhance wireless communication capabilities globally.

The Path Toward 6G and Beyond

A lot of attention has been paid to the battle for control over 5G networks in the media. However, researchers have already moved on to the next level of wireless communication – 6G networks. These systems integrate AI architecture directly into the network. They are currently being tested in a metaverse setting, as the wireless communication networks of the future will need to seamlessly connect the digital and physical worlds.

Challenges with Early 6G Prototypes

While 6G is still in its testing stages, some issues have emerged that continue to limit its development. For one, the network's real-world performance is limited to the performance of its communication technologies.

Items like antennas need to be upgraded to support the added data capabilities of 6G networks. Additionally, even if the hardware was improved, analysts predict that these upgrades still won't be enough to satisfy the growing data transmission needs.

Aside from physical hardware constraints, the current set of AI native wireless systems utilizes models designed to operate on conventional systems. These off-the-shelf neural networks lack the performance of a native built option.

Future AI protocols will need to bridge across multiple dimensions, including the digital, physical, and metaverse, in a seamless way that allows users to maximize their experience without disconnecting.

Source – rfwireless

Rethinking Wireless AI Models for the Future

In the study “Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)-Native Wireless Systems: A Journey Beyond  6G,”¹ researchers at Virginia Tech look at the goal of future wireless systems and the type of protocol they will need to sustain.

They propose a new type of wireless network called an integrated artificial intelligence (AI) system. This upgraded AI will leverage enhanced technologies and a new architecture that allows the system to make decisions and plan more like humans.

The Role of Common Sense in Wireless AI

Researchers at Virginia Tech have proposed a groundbreaking approach to advancing wireless technologies beyond 6G by integrating AI with common sense. Common sense is a trait that you may overlook, but it's one of the key reasons why you can make on-the-go decisions in split seconds throughout your day.

Your common sense was built up over the years of experience. It allows you to face uncertainty and use reason to attempt to fill in the blanks based on your knowledge and past experiences. Notably, the four pillars of common sense are the ability to adapt to unexpected scenarios via horizontal generalizability, reasoning,  capturing intuitive physics, and filling in the blanks with your knowledge.

Why Common Sense Is Difficult to Engineer

While common sense seems natural to you, it's very hard to duplicate in an AI system. The main reason for the difficulty is that AI systems operate on data. An AI model is trained on provided data that allows it to locate patterns and find correlated info that would be very difficult for a human to accomplish. The problem is that this setup is not great when dealing with unexpected and never-before-seen scenarios.

Introducing Hyper AI for Multidimensional Intelligence

The team proposed the creation of a Hyper AI protocol that can monitor, duplicate, and coordinate the physical, virtual, and digital dimensions. The AI system would operate across both the physical and digital realms, with AR as a melding point for its operations. In order to accomplish this task, the engineers suggest the complete duplication of the real world in a virtual metaverse.

The Metaverse as a Testing Ground for 6G AI

The metaverse is a phrase you hear a lot today, but you still haven't seen it in real life that much. Over the last few years, there have been recent breakthroughs that have opened the door for 6G networks. For example, digital twins and other protocols make it easier than ever to create digital representations of physical items.

The engineers believe that features like this will allow for next-generation wireless and AI systems to grow together seamlessly. They propose a digital model of the real world that allows the AI to give wireless networks of the future perception, planning abilities, and analogical reasoning.

Creating a Digitally Cognizant Wireless Infrastructure

This digital copy of the real world is what the researchers believe is the missing link between wireless systems and AI protocols of the future. They conclude that it's crucial that engineers create wireless networks with intrinsic abilities to understand the properties and interactions of real-world items alongside the mathematical mechanics supporting advanced AI models.

The proposed AGI-native wireless system combines a perception module, a world model, and an action-planning component to create a more responsive and high-performance AI-native communications network. This network is designed to handle high data volume by using different cognitive abilities, such as reasoning and analogy.

Benefits of AGI-Native Wireless Systems

There are several benefits that the proposed 6G and beyond study brings to the market. For one, it sets out a roadmap to creating a more sustainable and trustworthy AI system. The network utilizes common-sense decision-making structures, which makes it much easier to determine how an AI came up with a certain solution. These future AI systems will offer both performance and explainability.

Applications of 6G and Beyond

There are many applications for 6G AI-integrated wireless networks. These systems allow engineers to design highly intelligent, self-learning wireless networks with real-time decision-making capabilities.

As such, this system will help to power the smart cities of the future and ensure that everything from your ride to your dinner is on time. Here are some potential applications for this tech.

Smart Cities and Infrastructure Integration

The smart cities of the future will meld massive wireless networks that span the entire community with advanced AI protocols and more. These networks need to be able to handle the growing data demands of an AI-powered society. As such, you can expect to see 6G and beyond tech used to keep these systems operational.

Commercial Communications

Communication networks are the obvious application for this technology. The amount of wireless data usage continues to rise yearly, and over the last decade, there has been a shift from personal computers to handheld smartphones and other devices. Next generation 6G and beyond wireless systems will be designed to operate on these networks rather than be applied to them.

Smarter AI Agents in Everyday Interactions

Everything from customer service to sales will now get more human-like AI agents. AI agents are capable of answering questions, providing access to features, and much more. These smart protocols can help companies maximize their efforts and provide a new level of convenience to clients.

Advancements in Computer Modeling and Simulation

There is a strong demand for computer modeling currently. This technology will make it easier for people to take accurate digital models as they will be autonomously connected as part of the mixed-reality environments. These systems will meld advanced mathematical principles, category theory, and neuroscience to create immersive and interactive models of the physical world.

Gaming

You can expect to see this technology used to boost avatars' actions as well. These AI protocols can create cognitive avatars that possess common-sense abilities. These avatars could play a major role in the metaverse experiences of the future as they could help guide new users, provide interactions and companionship, and help to keep the community safer.

AI-Driven Innovation in Autonomous Vehicles

This technology will help to make autonomous transportation safer as well. AI systems that can make common-sense choices on the fly when confronted with new situations are exactly what the autonomous driving sector requires. Consequently, you can expect to see this technology applied to fields like autonomous transportation moving forward.

Projected Timeline for 6G Adoption

According to researchers, this technology is still 10-15 years away. However, the scientists note that there are several components and steps that can be done now to help initiate the upgrade smoothly. They state that their paper should be regarded as a roadmap to help ensure that these upgrades occur in a uniform and responsible manner that is conducive to 6G success.

6G and Beyond Researchers

This study was led by engineers from Virginia Tech. The lead author for the study is a Professor in the College of Engineering and the Next-G Wireless Lead, Walid Saad. He had support from fellow researchers, including Omar Hashash, Christo Kurisummoottil Thomas, Christina Chaccour, Mérouane Debbah, and Narayan Mandayam. Now, the team seeks to further their study and seek out commercial partnerships to expand the development of future 6G infrastructure.

Investing in a Wireless Communication Leader

The wireless communications market is a competitive sector that includes some of the biggest names in tech. These firms have put forth billions developing future wireless communication systems that can handle the growing demand of the population. Here's one company that has carved out a niche and proven itself to be a reputable competitor.

Qualcomm Inc.

Qualcomm Inc (QCOM -0.36%) entered the market in 1985 as a wireless communications infrastructure provider. The company was incorporated in Delaware but has its headquarters in San Diego, CA.

Qualcomm was founded by Irwin Jacobs, Andrew Viterbi, Franklin Antonio, Adelia Coffman, Andrew Cohen, Klein Gilhousen, and Harvey White with the goal of pushing wireless communication technology to the next level.

Qualcomm succeeded in this task to upend the market on several occasions. For Example, in 1988, it secured $3.5M in funding to launch communication satellites into orbit. These satellites were designed to help trucking logistics. In 1990, Qualcomm introduced the CDMA cellular band. Within a few years, it had become a global standard that is still in use today.

Those seeking a proven and established telecommunications stock should do more research into QCOM. The company currently has 49k employees and is considered one of the premier wireless communication systems providers globally. As such, it's seen as a vital component in the race to create a reliable 6G wireless system.

Latest on Qualcomm Inc.

6G and Beyond – Say Goodbye to Download Times

Proposed 6G networks will provide orders of magnitude more data transference capabilities compared to 5G options. These systems will accomplish this task through a combination of new hardware alongside advanced purpose-built AI systems that will leverage the info shared in this study to help drive performance. As such, this team of engineers deserves a round of applause for their efforts that could one day make it so that you never have to wait to stream or download anything again.

Learn about other cool AI projects now.

Studies Referenced:

^{1. Saad, W., Hashash, O., Thomas, C. K., Chaccour, C., Debbah, M., & Mandayam, N. (2024). Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)-Native Wireless Systems: A Journey Beyond 6G. IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/JPROC.2024.3346238}