China is officially starting work on 6G technology.

Chinese state media, Science and Technology Daily, which is published by China's Ministry of Science and Technology, reported on Nov. 7 that the country has begun researching sixth-generation telecoms technology, even as 5G is being hailed as the next big thing.

The Chinese government ministries and research institutes have met in the first week of November with talks of establishing a national 6G technology research and development group.

Three-horse race

At the moment, the race to the 5G peak is a three-horse race, with China, United States and South Korea in the lead.

Beijing's move to kick-start research into 6G comes days after the country's top three telecos rolled out 5G mobile phone services nationwide.

China's 5G plans were accelerated the past several months.

The country had originally planned to launch the ultra-fast mobile internet service early 2020, but tensions with the United States heated up, precipitating a tech race.

China's announcement is perhaps also a dig at other countries at the forefront of tech.

In April, South Korean officials declared victory over the United States and China by having the world's first commercial launch of a 5G telecoms network.

This was after an actual 5G phone was able to connect to the new network.

However, US carriers disputed South Korea's claims of being first.

What is 5G good for?

The world's most advanced countries are racing to get 5G wireless networks up and running to provide data speeds that are at least 20 times faster than 4G.

5G tech will usher in a new era of faster connectivity to support new technologies such as self-driving cars and augmented reality.

[Reuters]