The state of 3GPP after the latest meetings

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Latest26 Oct 2026Weekly

SA2#177 agrees interim 6G core principles but postpones the architecture choice to November

SA2 set interim 6G core principles in Prague without choosing among three candidate architectures. RAN1 in Jeju fixed 6G cell-search basics and deferred bigger radio choices to RAN1#127. Industry claims this week are read against that record.

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22 Oct 2026Meeting report · Architecture · Rel-20

SA2#177 in Prague: 6G core principles agreed, architecture choice moved to November

SA2 approved interim principles on NAS, migration, voice, QoS and the data framework, but did not pick between the three candidate 6G core architectures. Informal polls show where companies stand ahead of the SA2#178 deadline in Calgary.

22 Oct 2026Meeting report · Radio · Rel-20

RAN1#126-bis in Jeju: 6G cell search takes shape, the big radio choices move to Calgary

RAN1 fixed the slot structure of the 6G synchronization block, made four-step random access the baseline and dropped a low-PAPR scheme for 16QAM. The SSB length and default period, and whether one transport block may span 400 MHz, are deferred to RAN1#127 in November.

9 Oct 2026Preview · Architecture · Rel-20

Sleeping base stations, 5G voice and AI in the core: 6G's October choices

Proposals on the table for 12-16 October 2026 weigh three trade-offs. One is base-station energy against how fast phones find a 6G cell. Another is whether calls may stay on 5G while data moves to 6G. The third is whether AI becomes part of the core network or sits beside it. The radio groups meet in Jeju and the core-network groups in Prague. Nothing has been decided yet.

1. 8 Oct 2026
   NR sidelink, Release 16–19: from vehicle links to relay chains

   Over four releases, NR sidelink grew from a direct vehicle-to-vehicle link into a toolbox of power saving, relaying, multi-path, shared-spectrum and multi-hop features that let a UE reach other UEs and the network well beyond direct radio range.

   Feature · D2D · Rel-16—Rel-19
2. 29 Sept 2026
   RAN#113: 6G migration postponed, NTN scope revised, 5G-Advanced lines drawn

   In five agenda items spanning 6G and 5G-Advanced, RAN's September plenary postponed the migration decision to December (RAN#114), approved a revised NTN scope, kept looser transmitter rules out of Rel-20 5G-Advanced, and earmarked power boosting as a potential 6G objective.

   Meeting report · RAN Plenary · Rel-20
3. 8 Sept 2026
   6G Takes Shape: What the August 2026 Working Groups Actually Agreed

   Eleven agreed contributions entered the 6G architecture report in August. IMS voice carries over, the control/user-plane split loses its optional variants, slicing identifiers stay unchanged - and the AI architecture is still undecided. With the Release 21 schedule that says when any of it becomes a specification.

   Roundup · Architecture · Rel-20

All 12 reports →

1. Nowas of 25 Oct 2026

   6G: study agreements, not yet a normative standard. 4 open questions wait for the next 2 meeting weeks.

2. Calgary16–20 Nov · working groups

   RAN1#127 · On the agenda · 6G radio

   How long may a 6G base station stay silent?

   RAN1 chooses the length of the synchronization block (4, 5 or 6 symbols) and its default period for initial cell search, from 20 to 160 ms. The period sets how long a cell can stay silent, the core of 6G network energy saving.

   Sources: RAN1#126-bis draft report, R1-2608788In the 6G monitor →RAN1#126-bis report →

   RAN2#136 · Next chance · 5G-Advanced radio

   Which system information will carry early channel feedback?

   RAN1 could not choose between SIB1 and a new SIB and left the choice to RAN2. RAN1 requires only that the configuration reaches the phone before MSG3.

   Sources: R1-2606466In the 5G monitor →RAN1#126 roundup →

   SA2#178 · Deadline · 6G core

   Which overall architecture will the 6G core use?

   SA2 has three candidate architectures that differ in where AI sits, and the SA plenary wants a choice no later than this meeting. In informal October polls, 46 companies to 7 wanted essential connectivity to work without AI; AI agents as a core part of the architecture drew 16 yes and 32 no.

   Sources: S2-2610852, S2-2611243, S2-2611351, S2-2611359In the 6G monitor →SA2#177 report →

3. Boston7–10 Dec · plenaries

   RAN#114 · On the agenda · 6G migration

   How will phones move between 5G and 6G?

   RAN#113 kept 6G standalone with spectrum sharing as the base case and postponed any additional option to December. A 14-company coalition led by Samsung, Qualcomm and NTT DOCOMO wants 6G-anchored dual connectivity; Nokia and Ericsson reject every dual-connectivity and dual-stack variant; CMCC, Orange and satellite operators want dual registration, which the core architects must confirm first.

   Sources: RP-262262, RP-261880, RP-261840, S2-2611399In the 6G monitor →RAN#113 report →

Updated 25 Oct 2026. Meeting dates from the 3GPP meeting calendar; a meeting can postpone a decision again.

1. Rel-205G-Advanced continues · 6G study352 specsStage 3 freeze planned Mar 2027
2. Rel-19AI/ML, Ambient IoT1,835 specscomplete Dec 2025
3. Rel-18First 5G-Advanced release1,838 specs
4. Rel-17NTN, RedCap, sidelink1,712 specs
5. Rel-16URLLC, V2X, industrial IoT1,606 specs
6. Rel-15First 5G NR release1,491 specs