In his fourth Policy Address, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu reaffirmed his ambition to position the city as a global hub for artificial intelligence development, declaring AI a core industry in the city’s future economy. With AI and cloud technologies rapidly transforming sectors from healthcare to finance and public services, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government has signaled a clear intent to take the lead in driving the new era of digital transformation.

Hong Kong boasts one of the highest 5G network coverage rates globally, with over 90 percent of the population covered as of early this year. In core business districts, coverage has reached an impressive 99 percent. While this robust infrastructure lays a strong foundation for digital innovation, questions remain about whether the city’s AI ambitions can fully capitalize on it and what the SAR government’s next steps will be.

To turn Hong Kong’s vision into reality, the first and foremost prerequisite is a stable and future-ready network infrastructure. AI services that process vast amounts of data in real time cannot function without fast, low-latency, and highly reliable communications networks. In this sense, the true arrival of the AI era hinges on the readiness of the underlying network infrastructure to support them at scale.

The first step in building this foundation is the deployment of 5G standalone (SA) networks. Today, most 5G services still operate on non-standalone (NSA) networks, based on 4G cores. While these may suffice for everyday internet use or video streaming, they fall short in time-critical applications like remote robotic surgery or emergency response systems, where even a few milliseconds of delay can have dire consequences. For such high-stakes use cases, 5G SA’s ultra-low latency and guaranteed reliability are indispensable.

As a positive signal, Hong Kong’s 2025 Policy Address places network infrastructure at the heart of its digital ambitions. The SAR government’s commitment to building edge computing facilities and a new AI supercomputing center further highlights the need for robust, low-latency connectivity

A key strength of 5G SA is its ability to support network slicing, which is a virtual partition of the network customized to meet the performance requirements of specific use cases. In scenarios like autonomous vehicles navigating city streets or precision control of robots in smart factories, 5G SA enables service-level agreements (SLAs) that ensure network performance tailored to each use and each industry.

This is true also for consumer use cases, where 5G slicing can deliver capabilities that are relevant for different value propositions of diverse users. A person would be able to apply for subscriptions that are more suited for their specific needs. Someone who mainly uses the connection for online streaming would not need the same network characteristics as a gamer who values low latency, or an influencer who may value stronger upload speeds for their created content.

And with the advent of AI, we will start seeing different use cases such as “always-on” XR glasses which would need to take in the surroundings, analyze them and be able to provide tailored services to the user. This would require specific capabilities from a slice and guaranteed parameters that would not be possible with today’s best effort generic connections.

In other words, building networks without slicing is like asking everyone to take the train, it’s good, reliable and fast — but having network slicing for users allows them to choose their mode of transportation, whether it’s a car, bike, plane, or boat — depending on their preference and their needs.

Above all, despite Hong Kong being one of the markets with the highest 5G network coverage in the world, its current network infrastructure presents critical gaps. For instance, though there is extensive coverage, some areas are still behind with higher latency, which can hinder the performance of real-time applications. Additionally, network congestion in densely populated areas has been known to lead to slower speeds and less reliable connections.

To prepare for the era of AI and 6G, the existing networks must be modernized and upgraded to simultaneously enhance service quality and energy efficiency. This is more than just a replacement of facilities, it should be viewed as a strategic investment to strengthen the foundation of next-generation networks.

As a positive signal, Hong Kong’s 2025 Policy Address places network infrastructure at the heart of its digital ambitions. The SAR government’s commitment to building edge computing facilities and a new AI supercomputing center further highlights the need for robust, low-latency connectivity. While 6G was only briefly mentioned, its inclusion in the context of aerospace and satellite innovation signals early policy interest in next-generation networks.

The development and adoption of differentiated connectivity for services meeting varying cases is how end-users will derive maximum value from 5G. And it is also how service providers will deliver maximum value for the network and help Hong Kong to advance its AI ambitions.

The author is a senior vice-president and head of Ericsson Northeast Asia.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.