Mobile Artificial Intelligence is the next frontier of technological competition, and the ability to compete will depend largely on the strength of wireless networks and how effectively new 6G technologies are supported.
A little-known secret in the tech world is the tight relationship between mid-band spectrum and global AI leadership. America’s technological advantage in AI depends on access to adequate spectrum, the invisible range of frequencies that carry wireless signals.
As AI applications become more deeply integrated into the physical economy, the ability to move vast amounts of data quickly, reliably, and securely will become increasingly important. Data transmission is, of course, the linchpin of AI effectiveness. Mid-band spectrum is uniquely suited to this task, combining capacity and coverage to support high-performance wireless networks across cities, industrial sites, transportation corridors, and other high-demand environments. It is the backbone of the advanced wireless networks that will increasingly support AI-enabled services and 6G technologies.
What is done to expand the availability of mid-band spectrum, and how quickly it is done, is about far more than consumer benefits. It is a matter of economic competitiveness and national security. The United States’ ability to move with urgency will determine whether it can capture the significant economic and strategic advantages of the AI era. The nations that deploy AI the fastest across their physical economies will shape the next industrial age—making it critical that the U.S. government prioritize mid-band spectrum.
China understands this. It holds nearly four times more mid-band spectrum than the United States—a disparity that should alarm anyone concerned about our nation’s technological future and security. Likewise, Chinese firms are already leading in several measures of 6G-related patent activity. By 2027, China is projected to have substantially more licensed mid-band spectrum available for commercial use than the United States and most other major economies. Most recently, China approved an additional 6 GHz trial spectrum specifically for 6G field testing.
These numbers on Chinese investment are striking, and proof that the country views next-generation wireless networks as critical infrastructure that will help determine who leads in AI. Beijing sees that AI is rapidly moving beyond software into the physical world, where it will power autonomous systems, connected factories, precision logistics, and smart infrastructure, and recognizes that those systems will require fast, reliable, high-capacity wireless networks operating at scale.
As a matter of real urgency, the U.S. government needs to respond. If American carriers cannot access the spectrum needed to build next-generation networks, the companies relying on those networks will face growing challenges competing at scale. Expanding the availability of spectrum is, in a very real sense, a critical national security imperative.
The good news is that U.S. policymakers are increasingly recognizing the strategic importance of mid-band spectrum, and the 2.7 GHz band in particular has emerged as one of the most promising opportunities to strengthen America’s wireless infrastructure. Because the band sits adjacent to spectrum already used by American carriers, it has the potential to create large, contiguous channels capable of supporting the next generation of AI-enabled applications, advanced manufacturing, and critical infrastructure systems.
The challenge now is execution. Before this spectrum can be put to productive use, federal agencies must complete transition planning, modernization efforts, funding coordination, and auction preparation.
Sadly, despite mid-band’s significance, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), a small but important agency that plays gatekeeper where spectrum used by the federal government is involved, has been slow to act. Instead of seizing the moment and working side-by-side with the FCC to streamline the transition of the 2.7 GHz frequency band from federal to non-federal use, the NTIA is dragging its feet and insisting on a sequential process that may possibly delay U.S. 6G development by years. But the United States cannot afford years of delay in high-speed race technology race with China.
The next phase of AI competition will not be won solely in data centers. It will be won across factories, transportation networks, logistics systems, ports, warehouses, and other forms of critical infrastructure connected by advanced wireless networks. The countries that deploy those systems fastest and at greatest scale will shape the next industrial era. And that, in turn, requires spectrum.
In this moment of fierce technological competition between the United States and China, time matters. Every day, week and month that goes by without progress on spectrum allocation for 6G in the United States means China increasing technological advantage until, perhaps, it is too late. To compete effectively, the U.S. government must prioritize spectrum availability and treat it as the strategic priority that it is.
Paul Rosenzweig served as deputy assistant secretary for policy at the Department of Homeland Security. He is a professorial lecturer at The George Washington University Law School and senior fellow in the Tech, Law & Security Program at the American University, Washington College of Law. He advises technology and telecom companies on cyber and national security issues.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.