Zhao Dachun, vice general manager of China Mobile, shared his perspective on the 5G rollout during the third China Enterprise Reform and Development Forum.
Dachun cited research from IHS Markit forecasting that 5G will drive global economic growth of $12.3 trillion across industries by 2035.
“5G will become the aorta of the information society, the accelerator of industrial transformation, and the foundation of the digital society,” he said.
China Mobile was among the state-owned operators that recently launched what is now the world’s largest commercially available 5G network.
Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein, including Chris Lane, noted in a client briefing that although other countries introduced 5G services earlier in the year, China will operate the largest commercial 5G network. They added that the scale of China’s network and the pricing of its 5G services will have a significant influence throughout the global supply chain.
Dachun projected that by 2025, 409 telecommunications operators will offer 5G services to 1.6 billion people across 117 countries and regions, with China expected to account for at least one-third of global 5G users.
By September, the three major Chinese carriers had installed roughly 86,000 5G base stations, a figure expected to surpass 130,000 before year’s end.
“5G is not only a network but also a catalyst for emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data, and edge computing,” Dachun commented. “The integration of these technologies with 5G will accelerate digital transformation across hundreds of thousands of industries.”
China recently ceded its position as the top destination for AI investment, and strong leadership in 5G deployment could help regain an edge in the broader tech landscape.
(Image credit: MWC Barcelona 2013 – China mobile by Kārlis Dambrāns under CC BY 2.0)
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