6G4Society Meetup in Ghent Explores the AI–IoT–6G Innovation Triangle
On July 2, 2025, 6G4Society brought together researchers and technologists in Ghent for a Meetup exploring the convergence of AI, IoT, and 6G, a powerful triangle driving the next wave of digital innovation.
Hosted at the offices of Waylay, by its co-founder and COO Veselin Pizurica, and moderated by Rob van Kranenburg (Founder of IoT Gent Meetup and Senior Policy & Communication Expert at Martel Innovate), the event highlighted how Europe is preparing for 6G deployment, expected around 2030, by aligning technical development with real-world societal and industrial use cases.
Featured Speakers & Key Discussion
The meetup featured two keynote presentations highlighting how AI and next-generation wireless networks are already reshaping connectivity, from research labs to real-world rescue missions.
Prof. Dr. Adnan Shahid, SMIEEE, Ghent University, presented cutting-edge research on wireless technology recognition (WTR) using a patching-based Transformer approach. His team’s work shows significant improvements in classification accuracy and energy efficiency, as they move toward a unified Wireless Physical-layer Foundation Model (WPFM) to replace today’s fragmented, task-specific AI in wireless networks. The long-term goal: agentic AI capable of autonomous adaptation in dynamic environments. This work is supported by the 6GXCEL project, funded by SNS JU under Horizon Europe.
Tom Collins, Research Expert at Citymesh, discussed the company’s advanced research activities, including the 5G Jump pilots and early 6G explorations. A focal point of his talk was the BOLSTER project, an Open-RAN compliant, beyond-5G tactical network funded by Belgian Defense. Designed for disaster response and civil protection, the project aims to create resilient “tactical bubbles” that support search and rescue operations, emergency communications, and secure drone deployment when public networks are unavailable. The network integrates features such as MCx, PTx, and 5G broadcasting, while academic partners investigate anti-jamming and cybersecurity measures.
Tom also highlighted thought leadership shaping the broader 6G narrative. He referenced Dean Bubley’s vision of 6G requiring a rethinking of localized roaming and network interconnect, where devices increasingly shift across networks or link peer-to-peer, an idea captured in the evolving #6GReset concept. Additionally, he shared insights from Sebastian Barros, who argues that the locus of innovation has shifted from connectivity to AI. As Barros puts it, the value is no longer tied to spectrum alone, but to intelligent, adaptive, and automated infrastructure that delivers real-time intelligence beyond the network layer.
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