China advanced its 6G timeline by approving the 6 GHz band for large-scale field trials and technical standardization.

The country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) greenlit the IMT-2030 (6G) Promotion Group to begin regional 6G technology trials to be based on ITU-defined 6G standards.

According to state media platform China Daily, the approval allows local engineers to transition 6G testing into practical urban and industrial settings, helping the nation achieve its goal of commercializing 6G by 2030. China’s 6G trials are structured in three phases, with initial exploration of key technologies reportedly completed last year, and the development of more than 300 core technologies.

The ongoing second phase, expected to run through the end of next year, focuses on validating technical solutions and final system-level networking tests using pre-commercial 6G equipment.

The IMT-2030 Group was formed by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) in 2019. The group brings together telecom operators alongside a mix of domestic and international communications companies, including Huawei, ZTE, Xiaomi, Ericsson, Nokia, and universities.

Du Ying, deputy director of the wireless and mobile communications research institute at CAICT, predicted China would yield a $147 billion) 6G industry and application market by 2035.

The outlook reflects 6G’s strategic priority in the nation’s current national planning cycle. Its “15th Five-Year Plan,” covering 2026 to 2030, sets the direction for both government and industrial priorities, with a strong emphasis on advanced technologies such as artificial general intelligence (AGI), sovereign semiconductor ecosystems, and quantum networking.

State media reports suggest the country accounts for roughly 40% of global 6G patent filings, while industry trade group GSMA identified China as one of the key markets expected to lead early 6G deployments, alongside the U.S, Europe, and India.

The MIIT's approval comes after China's first pre-6G test network reportedly began operation in the city of Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. According to state media outlet The People’s Daily, the network integrated 6G technologies into an existing 5G framework. Although formal 6G specifications have yet to be defined and are not expected to be finalized until late 2028, systematic verification was reportedly carried out in functions such as low-altitude inspections, industrial manufacturing, and physical AI.