The wireless landscape evolves through generational cycles defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Fifth-generation (5G) systems continue to roll out globally, but the industry already has one eye on 5G-Advanced and the earliest stages of sixth-generation (6G) research. In March 2026, the First Responder Network Authority announced that 3GPP working groups had frozen Release 19, thereby marking the start of a study cycle for Release 20. Release 20 will focus largely on exploratory work for 6G; the International Telecommunication Union’s 6G research schedule calls for technology proposals by early 2029 and completed specifications by 2030. The first normative 6G release, known as Release 21, is expected to begin after the study phase concludes. Antenna designers must therefore prepare for a decade in which specifications are fluid and oriented toward research rather than mass deployment.
The shift from 5G to 5G-Advanced will push antennas to operate across wider frequency ranges and support extreme spatial multiplexing. Release 19 and Release 20 introduce features such as enhanced multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), integrated sensing and communications, and support for low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite communications. These capabilities require new antenna form factors capable of covering sub-THz bands while maintaining efficiency. Release 20 documents note that at least two releases – 20 and 21 – will be needed to complete 6G normative work. Consequently, component manufacturers must invest in reconfigurable and broadband arrays that can be upgraded via software as specifications crystallise.
Antenna engineers must also consider the interplay between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks. Release 20 includes studies on integrating LEO satellites and direct-to-cell services, while Release 21 will formalise requirements for 6G new radio (NR). The resulting environment will demand dual-band or even multi-band antennas that can handle classical sub-6 GHz frequencies alongside millimetre-wave and sub-THz bands. Designers must also anticipate strict requirements on antenna beamforming accuracy, true-time-delay implementation and dynamic spectrum sharing. Preparing for this landscape now will help manufacturers develop versatile products that remain relevant as 3GPP work progresses toward 2030.
