Completing the 5G journey: Why APAC's 6G ambition depends on what we do next
Fri, 22nd May 2026 (Today)
Across Asia Pacific, the conversation is already shifting to 6G. That reflects both ambition and confidence in the region's ability to lead.
5G has scaled rapidly, supported by substantial investment and widespread rollout. Since 2019, operators have committed close to $220 billion to 5G infrastructure.
The next challenge is to translate that progress into measurable outcomes. While device upgrade cycles have moved millions of users onto 5G networks, the full value of 5G, particularly in enterprise, is still emerging.
The missing piece: enterprise scale
The long term impact of 5G will not come from faster smartphones alone. It will come from embedding connectivity into industries.
By 2030, 5G is expected to contribute more than $130 billion to the Asia Pacific economy, with the largest gains in sectors such as manufacturing and services.
At the same time, the mobile ecosystem already contributes around $950 billion to regional GDP, underlining the scale of the opportunity.
The opportunity now is to accelerate enterprise adoption and move from deployment to utilisation at scale.
The role of the Tokyo Accord: A Vision for the 6G Era
The GSMA Tokyo Accord, launched by the GSMA at the Digital Nation Summit in Tokyo, brings together leading operators and 6G alliances across Asia Pacific with a shared focus on completing the 5G journey.
It is designed as a practical collaboration rather than a policy initiative, focused on accelerating the industrialisation of advanced 5G capabilities and translating them into real, commercial outcomes.
The emphasis is on delivery, specifically how to move faster from innovation to scale, and from capability to usage across participating markets.
From ambition to execution
The next phase is defined by three priorities.
First, creating greater focus on advanced network APIs, including areas such as quality on demand. This is about moving beyond technical availability to consistent, scalable consumption. Enterprises need to be able to rely on these capabilities in the same way they rely on cloud services, with predictable performance, clear commercial models, and integration into their existing workflows.
Second, increasing the cross‑pollination of 5G innovation between markets. In practice, this means identifying a small set of priority use cases and scaling them across multiple operators. If a network API such as quality on demand or identity is proven in one market, it should be replicated quickly in others using common technical and commercial models. Without this discipline, 5G remains a set of isolated pilots rather than a scalable proposition.
Third, continuing the progression to stand alone and 5G Advanced, with a sharper test of success. The focus should not be on deployment milestones alone, but on whether these capabilities are being used to deliver tangible enterprise outcomes at scale, including productivity gains, new services, and sustainable revenue streams.
Why this matters now
Asia Pacific combines some of the world's most advanced 5G markets with large, fast-growing digital economies. At the same time, almost half the region's population is still not using mobile internet, highlighting both the scale of opportunity and the work still to be done.
This diversity is where the next phase of value will be tested and proven.
Delivering on the next phase
Completing the 5G journey now means making networks usable, programmable and commercially relevant at scale. It means turning capability into measurable outcomes.
6G will be shaped by what is delivered over the next few years. The focus must be on execution.