Government awards £25 million to 5G project winners

Six projects across the UK will explore 5G use in rural communities and industrial productivity, using applications including autonomous vehicles, drones and AI

One year on from the Government's announcement of its Digital Strategy, it has shared plans for its continued investment in 5G technology.

5G is the Government's baby, with funding commitments in the Budgets in 2016, Spring 2017 and Autumn 2017. Now, it plans to split a £25 million prize between six competition winners who are looking at the technology's use for rural communities, tourism and healthcare.

The six projects, which are based all over the UK, are run by SMEs, universities and local authorities. They will explore the use of 5G in areas including AI, the IoT and virtual reality, as well as broadband access and autonomous vehicles.

Margot James, Minister of State for Digital and the Creative Industries, said:

"One year on from the Digital Strategy, we are delivering on our commitments to create a Britain fit for the future, with a thriving digital economy that works for everyone.

"The ground-breaking projects announced today will help to unlock 5G and ensure the benefits of this new technology are felt across the economy and wider society."

The Government will grant each testbed between £2 million and £5 million.

The winners are:

• 5G RuralFirst: Rural Coverage and Dynamic Spectrum Access Testbed and Trial. Led by Cisco, this project will look at 5G's use for rural communities, including smart farming using drones and autonomous farm vehicles.
• 5G Smart Tourism. The West of England Combined Authority will focus on the use of 5G for augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR) tourism in attractions like the Roman Baths in Bath. The project will also use network slicing to provide extra capacity for emergency services.
• Worcestershire 5G Consortium - Testbed and Trials. Focussing on increasing industrial productivity using robotics, data analytics and AR, entrepreneurs will be able to test 5G capabilities in a new commercial tech accelerator located at the Malvern Hills Science Park.
• Liverpool 5G Testbed. Sensor City, a consortium of public health suppliers, the NHS, university researchers, SMEs and ‘a UK 5G technology vendor' will lead this project. It will examine open source 5G networks, AI, VR and the IoT deployed across communities in Liverpool.
• AutoAir: 5G Testbed for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles. Based on the development of 5G small cells, this project will look at how to address cell-tower handoff at fast travel speeds, and how 5G could be applicable to road and rail transportation.
• 5G Rural Integrated Testbed. The second project looking at 5G in a rural setting, the 5GRIT will trial the technology for applications including smart agriculture, tourism and connectivity, using shared spectrum.