---
title: "Trump Calls For “6G,” Which Doesn’t Exist"
description: "President Trump just tweeted that he wants American telecom companies to deploy 6G technology as quickly as possible. No one knows what that is."
date: "2019-02-21"
modified: "2019-02-21"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/trump-6g-doesnt-exist"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "5G"
  - "communications"
  - "trump"
---

# Trump Calls For “6G,” Which Doesn’t Exist

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Trump6G.png>)
*\<em\>Image: Gage Skidmore/Tag Hartman-Simkins\</em\>*

## Drawing Board

We'd like to put out an open call: if you have any idea what 6G technology is, please contact us and fill us in.

We ask because U.S. President Donald Trump [just tweeted](<https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1098581869233344512>) that he wants "6G" cell service in the U.S. "as soon as possible" — even though we don't even have 5G service yet and no one has started to meaningfully discuss 6G, [according to *The Verge*](<https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/21/18234540/donald-trump-6g-internet-5g-us-telecom-cell-network-carriers>).

## Quick Primer

5G service is expected to be the next big thing for mobile communications and has [long been slated](<https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/telecom/wireless/what-the-finnish-obsession-with-mobile-data-says-about-5g>) for a 2020 rollout. When it finally goes live, it's expected to [improve cell service](<https://futurism.com/5g-new-standalone-telecommunication-standard>), mobile download speeds, and provide better support for the internet of things.

Recently, AT&T misleadingly claimed to have deployed a 5G network before [quickly backing away](<https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/19/18231957/att-5g-evolution-fact-sheet-lies-fake>) from its own announcement. Meanwhile, there haven’t even been meaningful discussions of what a 6G network would look like.

## Invisible Hand

Trump [also tweeted](<https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1098583029713420288>) that he wants American telecom companies to lead the world in mobile network technology through a spirit of earnest and honest competition, which is a stark contrast to his own administration's plan to block Chinese 5G technology in the U.S., according to *The Verge*.

Whether it's American or Chinese telecom companies that build better 5G service, it's good to know we have a leader so focused on the future that he wants the U.S. to dominate the race to develop technology that no one has even thought about yet.

**READ MORE:** [Trump wants 6G internet ‘as soon as possible’](<https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/21/18234540/donald-trump-6g-internet-5g-us-telecom-cell-network-carriers>) \[*The Verge*\]

***More on 5G: [There's a New 5G Smartphone Coming, and it Might Finally Make the Next-Gen Network Mainstream](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/5g-smartphone-sprint>)***

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)