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5G Revolution: Unlocking the Digital Age

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5G Revolution Unlocking the Digital Age

5G Revolution: Unlocking the Digital Age

Imagine if you were to jump straight from using a typewriter one day, to typing on a laptop the next. The speed and ease at which it would improve your tasks is undeniable.

With 5G, we’re on the cusp of a similar transition in the global communications system. Total connectivity could soon be at our fingertips.

Today’s infographic breaks down the potential that 5G promises, and the immense opportunities stemming from its implications for smart tech and the Internet of Things (IoT).

A Timeline of Wireless Generations

The world’s appetite for wireless speed has been insatiable. We’ve powered through five generations of wireless connectivity in just 40 years.

  • 1982-1990s: Analog 1G
    1G only supported voice calls, and little else.
    Data bandwidth: 1.9 kbps
  • 1990s: Digital 2G
    2G supported text, picture, and multimedia messaging (SMS, MMS).
    Data bandwidth: 14.4 kbps – 384 kbps
  • 2000s: 3G Smartphone Era
    The first 3G networks go online, supporting high-quality audio and video, and international roaming.
    Data bandwidth: 2 Mbps
  • 2010: 4G Streaming Era
    4G and LTE supported HD video streaming, and is deployed in Europe, and later in the U.S.
    Data bandwidth: 2 Mbps – 1 Gbps
  • 2019-Present: Full Speed Ahead to 5G?
    South Korea first launches 5G across the country, followed by 50 cities in China. The U.S., UK, and Germany also roll out 5G on a limited basis.
    Data bandwidth: 1 Gbps – >10 Gbps
  • *k/M/Gbps: kilobytes/ megabytes/ gigabytes per second.

The global 5G market is projected to reach $668 billion at a 122% compound annual growth rate (2020-2026), with nearly half this growth coming from Asia-Pacific.

4G versus 5G: What’s the Difference?

5G is on the verge of taking off. What sets it apart from its predecessor?

For starters, 5G’s speed improvements are something to behold—it is up to 20x faster than 4G. On 4G, an average movie takes 6 minutes to download. With 5G, it will take less than 20 seconds.

4G5G
Faster downloads
Peak data date
125 megabytes/second2,500 Mbs
Increased connectivity
Devices supported per km²
100,000 devices/km²1,000,000 devices/km²
Lower Latency
Delay/ lag time
50 milliseconds <2 ms

In other benefits, 5G supports 10x more devices per square kilometer. As a result, 5G will be able to seamlessly handle many more devices, within the same area as before. This is pivotal for its use in the imminent Internet of Things (IoT).

Finally, latency is the delay (lag), or the time that it takes to send data from point A to point B. With 5G, latency plunges 25x compared to 4G. This results in almost instantaneous data transfers.

5G will go from promise to roll-out in 2020.

Morgan Stanley

Beyond the Smartphone

5G is one of the most anticipated technologies of our time, and with good reason. In the coming years, the partnership between 5G and the IoT could bring about a boom in smart tech, and this effect could trickle into growth for the economy and investor portfolios.

The 5G network is the perfect backbone for the IoT—supporting increasing device numbers, facilitating growing data transfers, and improving response time among connected devices.

According to McKinsey, 5G will likely speed up the mainstream adoption of the IoT across multiple industries:

1. Transport

5G enables self-driving cars to make “split second” decisions, making them safer. These cars can also connect to buildings, street lights, other cars, and even pedestrians in smart cities—responding rapidly to any issues and improving traffic flow.

These two use cases are estimated to bring a $170-$280 billion global GDP boost to the mobility sector by 2030.

2. Manufacturing

5G could usher in high-tech industry, using AR/VR to boost productivity and precision. Analytics and advanced robotics in smart factories can streamline manufacturing processes, leading to efficiency gains and cost savings. Altogether, the impact could be a $400-$650 billion GDP boost to the industry by 2030.

3. Healthcare

While robotic surgeries are not new, 5G could allow these procedures to occur remotely.

Wearables and other smart medical devices provide real-time updates on patients, and make accurate diagnoses. These two applications will contribute an additional $250-$450 billion in GDP to the healthcare space by 2030.

A New Wireless Era

5G is only scratching the surface of its full potential, though a few caveats remain before it can scale successfully. A whole new lineup of infrastructure will be needed to support this latest wireless generation, including enabled devices, network density and access, and getting telecoms operators and carriers on board.

The complete uptake of 5G will take a few years to realize. But as the technological shift continues to unfold, investors can take advantage of the wave of opportunities it presents.

5G is more than an upgrade—it’s a crucial transformation of major segments of the economy.

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Charted: The Jobs Most Impacted by AI

We visualized the results of an analysis by the World Economic Forum, which uncovered the jobs most impacted by AI.

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Charted: The Jobs Most Impacted by AI

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Large language models (LLMs) and other generative AI tools haven’t been around for very long, but they’re expected to have far-reaching impacts on the way people do their jobs. With this in mind, researchers have already begun studying the potential impacts of this transformative technology.

In this graphic, we’ve visualized the results of a World Economic Forum report, which estimated how different job departments will be exposed to AI disruption.

Data and Methodology

To identify the job departments most impacted by AI, researchers assessed over 19,000 occupational tasks (e.g. reading documents) to determine if they relied on language. If a task was deemed language-based, it was then determined how much human involvement was needed to complete that task.

With this analysis, researchers were then able to estimate how AI would impact different occupational groups.

DepartmentLarge impact (%)Small impact (%)No impact (%)
IT73261
Finance70219
Customer Sales671617
Operations651817
HR57412
Marketing56413
Legal46504
Supply Chain431839

In our graphic, large impact refers to tasks that will be fully automated or significantly altered by AI technologies. Small impact refers to tasks that have a lesser potential for disruption.

Where AI will make the biggest impact

Jobs in infogramtion technology (IT) and finance have the highest share of tasks expected to be largely impacted by AI.

Within IT, tasks that are expected to be automated include software quality assurance and customer support. On the finance side, researchers believe that AI could be significantly useful for bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing.

Still interested in AI? Check out this graphic which ranked the most commonly used AI tools in 2023.

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