Nokia Takes Lead on German 6G Lighthouse Project

Nokia Takes Lead on German 6G Lighthouse Project
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Nokia will lead 6G-ANNA, a German national-funded 6G lighthouse project. The company will collaborate with the 29 partners in 6G-ANNA to lead and drive 6G research and standardization.

Funding for 6G-ANNA will come from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, BMBF), to strengthen and push German and European 6G agendas and drive global pre-standardization activities from a German and European perspective. 6G-ANNA is part of the larger “6G Platform German“ national initiative and has a total volume of €38.4 million with a duration of three years. The selected consortium includes partners from the industry, subject matter experts, start-ups, research institutes, and distinguished universities in Germany.

Nokia will play an instrumental role in both 6G-ANNA and Germany’s wider 6G ecosystem. Within 6G-ANNA, Nokia will focus on designing an end-to-end 6G architecture and work with other project partners on three key technology areas: 6G access, a network of networks, and automation and simplification. Selected topics such as sub-networks, XR, and real-time digital twinning will be implemented and presented as proof of concepts. In addition, it will interact with the German ecosystem, including four academic “6G Hubs“ with more than 60 university chairs. Beyond Germany, 6G-ANNA aims to interact with other major 6G flagship projects in Europe and the U.S. to shape global 6G standards.

“We are honored to lead 6G-ANNA, the most important government-funded 6G lighthouse project in Germany. While the first 6G networks are not expected to be commercially available before 2030, we are already laying the technical foundation with 5G-Advanced, as well as long-term innovation that will drive 6G developments,“ said Peter Merz, Head of Nokia Standards.

Nokia believes the 6G will not only build on existing technologies and systems but also expand and transform what a network can do. It will fuse the human, physical and digital worlds to liberate our innate human potential. Beyond 6G-ANNA, Nokia is engaging with major industry peers, customers, academia, and research institutions globally, spanning the U.S., Europe, and APAC to form a common view and direction for 6G.