Technologies

6G Phones Won’t Just Be Fast. They’ll Plug You Into an ‘Always-Sensing Network’

We’re edging closer to yet another technology transformation. «6G will provide context» to help AI agents get things done, says Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon.

You’ve seen the progression on your phone screen over the years: 3G technology was followed by 4G, and now, probably more often than not, your phone is connecting over 5G. On the ever-closer horizon is, you guessed it, 6G.

Unlike with the Gs that preceded it, 6G has been flying under the radar. It’s less a source of consumer hype and more a point of discussion around the telecoms industry and the networks it relies upon.

But that isn’t quite the full story.

During his keynote address at Web Summit on Tuesday, Cristiano Amon, CEO of chipmaker Qualcomm, hinted that 6G networks, which are scheduled to launch in the US in the early 2030s, might have something exciting to offer us after all.

«6G is designed for AI,» he said at the event in Lisbon, Portugal. It will boost the speed of connectivity and sense what’s around us, providing context to the AI agents that are coming to do things on our behalf.

Following this tantalizingly brief comment, I was keen to find out more about what 6G cellular technology might do for the average smartphone user, so I asked Amon to elaborate on what we can expect from this next-gen network technology.

Every generation of network tech has been the gateway to a new experience, Amon said. 2G was about making sure everyone in the world can have a mobile phone, 3G was for connecting the phone to the internet, 4G turned our mobile device into computers. 5G has allowed us to have critical connectivity and unlimited data.

What then, can 6G offer us above and beyond what we already have?

The obvious answer: even faster speeds and even lower latency. But that takes on particular importance given the coming shift in how we’ll interact with our AI-enabled devices, Amon said.

One of the big benefits of the more advanced large language models we’re now using — the foundational technology that underlies AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Copilot — is that they can understand our natural speech, making voice the easiest and most obvious way for us to chat with our AI agents.

«Voice is going to become important again,» Amon told me. «We’re going to use voice to connect to agents and to all the different devices, so it’s going to even further improve the response time, and it’s going to provide you faster connectivity.»

6G will drive an ‘always-sensing network’

Qualcomm has been an early proponent of the potential of AI agents, which can independently carry out tasks on your behalf. Its chips are already beginning to power agentic experiences across phones, wearables, computers and cars.

If we’re relying on our voices to interact accurately and confidently with agents, which might be making payments or emailing a client on our behalf, absolutely seamless connectivity will be critical to ensure nothing gets lost in translation. This is where 6G will come into its own, according to Amon.

«The devices we interact with are going to understand what we say, what we hear, what we see,» he said. «6G will provide context.» We’ll be surrounded by an «always-sensing network» that will allow our agents to predict what we’ll do and need next based on what’s going on around us, he added.

On stage, Amon gave the example of applying AI to a radio — 6G, like its predecessors, is a radio communication technology — so that it can detect disturbances in the radio frequency environment in a room. It could, for instance, detect changes to a baby’s breathing while it’s in the crib without requiring a wearable monitor. Another, perhaps less appealing example, is mass facial recognition, which would allow for the simultaneous identification of everyone in a room.

«I know it sounds a little bit scary,» said Amon. But the 6G network understanding our context will be key to enabling AI agents to operate, he added.

With at least five years until 6G is due to launch in the US and with AI continuing to develop at a rapid pace, it’s hard to predict exactly what will happen when the two technologies finally collide. But one thing is for sure: 6G will power new experiences — some of which might not have been invented yet.

Disclosure: Katie Collins traveled to Lisbon as a guest of Web Summit to serve as a panel moderator. Her reporting from the event was independent of that role.

Technologies

SXSW 2026 Updates: What We Expect on Tech and Culture From Austin

Technologies

Uber May Soon Let You Book a Zoox Robotaxi in Las Vegas and LA

Amazon-owned Zoox hopes to start offering paid robotaxi rides to regular riders sometime this year. Right now, the rides are free.

No steering wheel, no pedals, no problem. Zoox announced Wednesday that it’s partnering with Uber to make its robotaxis available on the ride-hailing company’s app in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, pending US government approval.

The multiyear partnership, announced by Zoox and Uber on Wednesday, would enable Uber customers to get rides on Zoox robotaxis in Vegas this summer and in LA in 2027. After the partnership launches, the app will match riders with robotaxis on eligible trips, Uber said in a statement. Zoox will also offer rides on its robotaxis through its own app, so customers can use either the Uber or Zoox app to ride in the vehicles.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi called Zoox an «ideal partner» in a statement.

«The Zoox robotaxi is unlike any othervehicle on the planet — it was purpose-built from the ground up to deliveran extraordinary experience,» Khosrowshahi said. «Zoox’scommitment to safety and their advanced autonomous driving technology makethem an ideal partner. We’re thrilled to work together to introduce moreriders to the future of mobility.»

Zoox, founded in 2014 and acquired by Amazon in 2020, currently offers free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco during its demonstration phase of service. The company said its robotaxis have logged more than 1 million miles for more than 300,000 riders.

Zoox is also conducting tests in six other cities — Seattle, Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Washington, DC, and Austin, Texas — and announced earlier this week that Dallas and Phoenix are next. Only people in San Francisco and Las Vegas can currently get test rides through the Zoox app.

«We’re taking a measured, step-by-step approach by starting small, learning quickly, and scaling responsibly,» Zoox said in its announcement Wednesday. «This partnership with Uber will mirror that approach, beginning with a controlled deployment with the potential to expand as we refine our operations, technology, and customer experience.»

No steering wheel

The Zoox is a fully autonomous vehicle that can carry up to four passengers (PDF). It has no steering wheel, no accelerator or brake pedals, and is bidirectional, meaning it can go forward and reverse by simply switching which end of the car is considered the front. There are touchscreens and emergency call buttons. Zoox had early issues with erratic braking that caused injuries and a crash, but addressed the issue through software updates during the ensuing investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

CNET’s Abrar Al-Heeti caught a ride in a Zoox in Las Vegas. She said she felt «oddly at ease as I watch a stream of cars, chain restaurants and desert landscape flash past the windows.»

Before it can start making money on its robotaxi rides, Zoox must get an exemption from the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. NHTSA is now accepting public comments on Zoox’s application for the exemption — you can post a comment here until April 10.

Zoox is seeking eight federal vehicle safety exemptions, including from rules requiring windshield wipers and windshield defrosting systems, TechCrunch reported.

Waymo is currently the main player in the US robotaxi market, with fully autonomous service in 10 US cities. But several other companies are looking to ramp up their self-driving presence this year, including Zoox, Tesla and Uber. That market expansion aligns with a Goldman Sachs forecast that more than 35,000 robotaxis will operate in the US in 2030, up from 1,500 currently. That would represent 8% of the rideshare market, with traditional human-driven rideshare comprising the other 92%.

Uber has partnerships with 25 other robotaxi services around the world, primarily Waymo — you can use the Uber app to get Waymo rides in Atlanta and Austin — and China’s Baidu, which will be testing self-driving rides in London this year.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for March 12, #1005

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for March 12 No.1,005.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

I spotted a couple of the categories in today’s NYT Connections puzzle, but the fact that I don’t take a lot of gym classes hurt my knowledge. You avid exercisers will have an advantage today. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Beach time.

Green group hint: This way, then that way.

Blue group hint: Workout time.

Purple group hint: Chirp!