What to look out for at 5G IN at MWC Shanghai 2023

GSMA’s Head of Greater China, Sihan Bo Chen talks about 5G IN at MWC Shanghai 2023, and what to look out for as the event celebrates its 10^th year.

What is 5G IN?  

5G IN stands for ‘5G Innovation and Investment Group’. It is one of our GSMA Foundry projects, which brings together mobile operators, industry and ecosystem partners and investors to stimulate 5G innovation and increase collaboration across sectors. Created by the GSMA, 5G IN has 12 co-founding members: China Mobile Capital, China Telecom Investment, China Unicom Capital, China Mobile State Investment, China Broadband Capital, Chenshan Capital, Huawei, ZTE, Orient Securities Capital, CSDN, Shenzhen Valley Ventures and Deloitte China.

We launched 5G IN in 2019 – the year commercial 5G was launched in China. We always knew the region would be one of the key leaders in the development of 5G technology and, as the global industry association, wanted to play our role in making the roll-out a success. 

Since then, China has indeed become the single largest 5G market – both in terms of penetration and user base – and is set to be the first country in the world with more than one billion 5G connections; a milestone we expect to reach by 2025.

Throughout the rapid growth of 5G across China, 5G IN has been working hard to spotlight, accelerate and provide resources for technology related innovations across vertical industries, such as AI, IoT, edge computing and AR/VR.

For me, the best thing about being part of 5G IN is when we get to witness incredible start-ups getting the investments they deserve and seeing their businesses taking off. And we’re thrilled to be sharing some of those success stories at the 5G IN Zone at MWC Shanghai 2023.

Why should I visit 5G IN at MWC Shanghai? 

This year’s event marks the 10-year anniversary of MWC Shanghai and we are grateful to be back in person since the pandemic. So that means that the 5G IN zone is back, and better than ever!

Quite simply, the 5G IN Membership Zone at MWC Shanghai 2023 will be the one-stop go-to area for anyone who wants to see the amazing work start-ups and innovative companies are doing to harness 5G capabilities.  

It will be a chance to see how 5G technology is being used to empower the hottest new innovations. We’ll be showing how 5G unleashed has the potential to completely revolutionise industries, showcasing everything from its use in the metaverse through to how it is helping drones fly.

What can I see at 5G IN this year?

We have a wealth of experiences and things to see at 5G IN this year. It’s always so hard to choose some highlights, but here’s what I’m really looking forward to:

• At its stand on the main exhibition floor, MWCapital will be showcasing the great work of twelve technology companies from across marketing, telecommunications, commerce, and agriculture. Now in its seventh year at MWC Shanghai, MWCapital has, together with the Ministry of Economy and Business (through Red.es), the Generalitat de Catalunya (with ACCIÓ) and Barcelona City Council (with Barcelona Activa) selected the twelve start-ups to join us at MWC Shanghai so they can meet like-minded individuals from the Asian market, knowledge-share and maybe even gain investment from Asian investors. Based in Barcelona, Spain the Mobile World Capital foundation works to extend the impact of MWC throughout the year.

• The metaverse is a very hot topic currently and 5G is, of course, playing a big part in making it happen. At 5G IN, why not stop by China Mobile Migu’s stand where they will be presenting their enhanced metaverse experiences?  

• 5G Messaging developer community Walnut Hardcore will be at 5G IN alongside their key partners, demonstrating the leading 5G messaging solutions. Swing by to see the solutions available at present, including Baidu’s Ernie Bot, which is at the forefront of 5G messaging. 

• We will also have some actual drones on the exhibition floor for you to see! When they are equipped with 5G, drones can enjoy low latency, high bandwidth, more reliable and secure data transfers.

• China Broadband Capital will be bringing their cloud, network, edge, and security solutions to 5G IN and will be taking part on several OpenNet discussions across our event forums.

That really is the tip of the iceberg and there’s so much more beyond these. Throughout the event you’ll find various forums, talk tracks, investment opportunities, 5G technology product showcases, and so on. I can’t wait to see where and how 5G is enabling innovation cross-industry, and I recommend you try to see as much as possible.

Are there any talks at 5G IN I should look out for?

A session I’m especially looking forward to is the CEO Tech Talk between the GSMA Ltd. CEO, John Hoffman, and the CEO of HONOR Device, Mr. George Zhao.

In the fireside chat, taking place on the 29^th June at 12pm, the two CEOs will be talking about what comes next for the smartphone and personal device ecosystem. As the replacement cycle of consumers gets longer and market capacity keeps shrinking, they’ll discuss what the future opportunities are for this market – and how relevant industry parties can work together to find a solution.

It seems a new era in the smartphone evolution is on its way and I’m looking forward to hearing what they both think the industry should be looking out for.

OpenNet Summit will also be on the 5G IN stage and will feature China Broadband Capital and its portfolio companies talking about their views on future open networks, as well as discussing how to work together to drive future innovations. Register to attend MWC Shanghai here.

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You can find the 5G IN Zone in Hall N3 at MWC Shanghai 2023, which is taking place at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC). The Zone will be open to visitors from the 28-30^th of June. For more information, check out our dedicated page: https://www.mwcshanghai.com/experiences/5gin/