On 21 May, Senior Managing Director Richard Marsden will moderate the panel “Standards, Timing, and Consensus Building—Can We Deliver Global Alignment?” at the ForumGlobal 6G Global Summit. Mr. Marsden will be joined by Surrey University Professor Adrian Scrase, Ericsson Vice President Havish Koorapaty, APT Programme Officer Forhadul Parvez, TRA Bahrain Manager Ahmed Salman Hamada, ANATEL Senior Advisor Artur Coimbra, and AT&T Associate Director Ilaria Brunelli. The panel will explore how the global standards process for 6G is unfolding and how policymakers, industry, and standards bodies can work together to ensure the next generation of connectivity is built on a foundation of global cooperation.

Decisions made in the coming years will be critical to defining the technical architecture, capabilities, and timelines for next-generation networks and are taking place in a complex environment shaped by national research strategies, industrial competition, and broader geopolitical dynamics. Maintaining globally interoperable standards has been a defining feature of previous generations of mobile technology but growing emphasis on digital sovereignty and regional industrial policy raises new questions about whether the same level of alignment can be achieved for 6G. 

The panel will cover the following questions:

• In what areas are we seeing national and regional 6G strategies around the world converging, and where are divergent pathways becoming apparent?
• As the 6G standards process begins, what are the key milestones and timelines expected over the coming years?
• What technical priorities and capabilities are emerging as the main focus areas for early standardization work?
• To what extent are regional strategies for “digital sovereignty” and current geopolitical challenges more broadly risking a fractured, non-interoperable 6G ecosystem? How can policymakers balance domestic priorities with the need for global coordination?
• How can the global community ensure that the standards process remains open and collaborative? What role can international bodies such as the ITU, 3GPP play alongside regional standards groups in helping to deliver this?
• What role will national and regional research initiatives play in shaping the direction of global 6G standards?