Number of Wi-Fi 5/6/7 technical contributions worldwide 2008-2020

As reported by IPlytics, in 2020 there were 1,021 Wi-Fi 7 technical contributions worldwide, far above the 281 Wi-Fi 6 technical contributions that were recorded for the same year. Wi-Fi 7, also known as 802.11be, is the newest form of Wi-Fi in development, hence technical contributions were only first recorded from 2019 onwards.

WiFi 6 standard

A wireless local area network (WLAN) is a network that allows devices to connect and communicate wirelessly. WLAN standards, or wireless fidelity (WiFi) standards, have traditionally used cryptic abbreviations. However, the WiFi Alliance, a non-profit organization that promotes WiFi technology and certifies them for conformity, decided that future WLAN standards will follow a generation label. As a result, the previously named 802.11ax is simply called WiFi 6.

WiFi 7 standard

Wi-Fi 6 was approved in the second half of 2019 by the consortium that develops Wi-Fi, otherwise known as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The Wi-Fi Alliance certified Wi-Fi 6 straight after this, allowing the technology to arrive into phones, laptops, and network equipment. The IEEE has also started working on WiFi 7, also known as 802.11be. The next development in Wi-Fi is expected to deliver speeds as high as 30 gigabits per second, although analysts suggest that it won’t be commercialized until late 2024. In 2020, Qualcomm was the leading provider of technical contributions to the Wi-Fi 7 standard globally, ranking ahead of Chinese firm, Huawei, as well as fellow U.S. company, Intel.