The i2CAT Foundation returns to the Mobile World Congress to propose technologies and innovations that enable a connected world

In this edition, you will find i2CAT at the Mobile World Congress  in two different spots:

• In Hall 4 C1 – booth 29, you will learn how i2CAT leverages its expertise and knowledge in advanced digital technologies to enable innovation and build the digital future. Especially on 5G, 6G, and holographic communications as metaverse technologies. The visitors will be able to experience our holoconference prototype HoloMIT.
• Additionally, this year i2CAT is also in the NewSpace Strategy of Catalonia booth – Hall 4 C1 booth 31– as one of the three reference centers in the NewSpace ecosystem. This booth aims to be a space where the visitors learn about the innovation and R&D activities developed under the NewSpace Strategy led by the Government of Catalonia.

You can keep up-to-date on the several i2CAT’s activities in Mobile World Congress Barcelona here.

Metaverse enablers: 6G and holographic communications

6G will serve as a distributed neural network that provides communication links to fuse the physical and cyber worlds. One way to represent this digital world will be through Metaverse, which will consist of a virtual world to which we will connect with immersive devices and which will make us experience that we are actually inside it.

i2CAT has a leading role in the 5G technologies arena. The center’s expertise has been awarded both at a European and national scale. The European Commission has granted 16 projects under the 5GPPP, three of them coordinated, and the CDTI has recognized i2CAT as a “CERVERA Excellence Center in 5G”. Additionally, the Spanish Government has recently granted the center 6G projects within the UNICO-5G program with overall funding of 17M EUR. i2CAT carries out other additional activities to boost innovation, such as creating the spin-off on 5G private networks Neutroon.

Leveraging this knowledge i2CAT is working on a set of 6G technologies that will make the metaverse possible:

• Realistic photo capture and representation of people and objects
• Control and synchronization technologies between various elements and events
• Advanced communication and processing that improves the deployment of the metaverse and makes it accessible through various types of network
• Security that will enable secure and reliable interactions

Catalonia Looks Up!

NewSpace provides opportunities to use and exploit space platforms in Earth Observation, Telecommunications, and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), allowing the development and qualification of space technology and the extension of spatial data services.

The NewSpace ecosystem in Catalonia is an emerging, innovative sector with great potential for technological transformation in industries such as telecommunications and audiovisual, agriculture, Smart Cities and emergency-security.

The Government of Catalonia leads the NewSpace Strategy of Catalonia with the support of the Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC), the Fundació i2CAT, and the Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC). These centers gather a remarkable expertise in space, digital and communication technologies, and geoinformation services which is key to the new space economy. Their aim is to foster the competitiveness and growth of the digital and space industry. The collaboration and coordination between IEEC, i2CAT, ICGC, and the Government will identify and generate synergies and promote a joint strategy. How? By developing innovation activities, R&D actions, and projects to demonstrate the viability of space technology for the benefit of the NewSpace ecosystem. The NewSpace Strategy has gathered momentum. Some of the key milestones are:

• Launch (on March 2021) and commissioning of a mission (nanosatellite Enxaneta) that enables direct communications between IoT and the spacecraft.
• The new missions planned for 2022 will provide Earth Observation data to complement the European Sentinel missions.

The strategy enables the development of innovative use cases that were not possible before. Public institutions, governmental bodies, industry, and society are working together to ensure the success of the NewSpace sector in Catalonia linked to technologies such as Earth Observation, IoT/5G, and GNSS for the benefit of society in the era of the digital economy.

The NewSpace sector in Catalonia will quadruple its turnover and employment in the next five years.

Besides, i2CAT participates in several side events of the Mobile World Congress. You can find all of them here!