Fast and Furious - The world of 5G ultra fast mobile internet

So you’ve just got your head around the idea of super fast mobile internet, and the topic of 5G ultra-fast mobile broadband - exponentially faster than the internet we have available today - now becomes a trending topic in some of the largest industries of the world.

It may come as a surprise to you, but the biggest push on the ultra-fast 5G technology isn’t actually coming from within the telecommunications industry; in fact it is the automotive sector.

The President of Qualcomm European division, Enrico Salvatori, speaking at the Consumer Technology Association in Las Vegas, revealed that it's the automotive industry which is now one of the driving forces behind the development of 5G internet.

"Auto research and development is one of the most active industries for developing 5G," Salvatori told TechRadar. "They're looking at 5G to make wireless technology more reliable, robust and secure."

5G would deliver better coverage and connectivity, meaning your vehicle will always be connected to the internet; providing entertainment, information and various safety features, such as intelligent roads which provide an up to date feedback to drivers about road conditions in the cities of the future. Once widely implemented, it could also provide the driver with real time data about other road vehicles, enhancing driver safety. So, in the event of an accident, the car closest to the accident can automatically transmit information to all the other road users.

Qualcomm also showed off its latest automotive tech at CES 2016: a Maserati with a surveillance system. Now, surveillance systems are a common place in high end cars, however this one consisted of a camera facing the driver.

The facial recognition camera monitors the driver’s face to ensure that the driver isn’t distracted and in an event of a distraction, the system will play an audio alert to warn the driver. It doesn’t end there; Qualcomm is also testing steering sensory technology, which provides the car with information on the driver, such as heart rate, blood pressure and more.

Of course, not all of this depends on solely on the ultra-fast 5G, other technological advances must be made before these technologies can be fully fitted to cars.

It is expected that the first deployments of the ultra-fast 5G will be in 2020, although you’ll have to wait a few more years for vehicles to have full usability and integration.