5G coverage is still making its way around the US, let alone the entire world, but it seems that companies such as Apple could already be researching the next generation in wireless technology: 6G. This is according to a report from Bloomberg who discovered job listings for engineers over at Apple.According to the description of the job listings which calls for Wireless Research System Engineers and RAN1/RAN4 Standards Engineers, “You will be part of a team defining and doing research of next-generation standards like 6G. You will research and design next-generation (6G) wireless communication systems for radio access networks with emphasis on the PHY/MAC/L2/L3 layers.”
That being said, don’t get excited just yet. Like we said, 5G is still in its infancy which means that it will probably be a long time before we see 6G, but it’s not surprising that Apple is looking into it now. The company currently relies on Qualcomm for its 5G modems, but after acquiring Intel’s modem business, we imagine that the company will eventually start making its own 5G modems and possibly even 6G moving forwards.
Apple is also part of the “Next G Alliance” industry group that includes other companies such as Google and LG to help define the specifications of 6G, so in a way, it shouldn’t be surprising that they are already starting work on it.