Has China Switched to 10G Internet? Here’s the Truth

China has made headlines lately with reports of a new “10G” network being activated. News shared in Turkey also contributed to the perception—at least from the headlines—that the country has transitioned to 10G internet.

However, some circles have misinterpreted this development as a switch to a “10G mobile network.” In reality, it has nothing to do with mobile internet technologies. Instead, it refers to a fixed broadband infrastructure offering fiber optic internet with a capacity of 10 Gbps.

No, China Hasn’t Moved to 10G! The Fiber Infrastructure Reaches 10 Gbps

This system, developed through a collaboration between Huawei and China Unicom, has been launched in Xiong’an, a next-generation city located about 110 kilometers southwest of Beijing. The infrastructure uses a new generation fiber optic transmission technology called 50G Passive Optical Network (PON). Thanks to this technology, the network has achieved a data download speed of 9,834 Mbps—very close to the 10 Gbps mark.

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Despite these high speeds, this development is not directly related to mobile networks. The term “10G” here doesn’t refer to a generation, but rather to a transmission capacity of 10 gigabits per second. In fact, 5G mobile networks already have theoretical maximum speeds of up to 10 Gbps.

With 6G, these speed limits are expected to reach up to 100 Gbps. Therefore, a concept like “10G mobile internet” is not technically valid, and today’s mobile communication infrastructures do not offer such speeds.

The system established in Xiong’an is entirely based on fixed fiber infrastructure. With the low latency provided by 50G PON technology, high-performance connectivity becomes possible in areas such as virtual reality, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, remote healthcare, distance learning, and smart agriculture. With this system, China has taken a step forward in advancing the digital infrastructure of its smart city project.

Previously, countries like the United Arab Emirates and Qatar stood out for achieving the highest internet speeds. However, in those countries, high-speed networks are still only available to a limited number of users. China is the first to commercially deploy 10 Gbps fixed broadband service in a city on a large scale.

Officials stated that if the system tested in Xiong’an proves successful, it could also be rolled out in other major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. This would increase intercity connection capacity across the country.