Guest editorial: Convergence of 6G-empowered edge intelligence and generative AI: Theories, algorithms, and applications

• Published in: China communications Vol. 22; no. 7; pp. iii - vi
• Main Authors: Yuan, Wu, Niyato, Dusit, Shuguang, Cui, Lian, Zhao, Quek, Tony Q.S., Yan, Zhang, Liping, Qian, Rongpeng, Li
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: China Institute of Communications 01.07.2025
• ISSN: 1673-5447
• DOI: 10.23919/JCC.2025.11119180

The rapid advancement of 6G communication technologies and generative artificial intelligence (AI) is catalyzing a new wave of innovation at the intersection of networking and intelligent computing. On the one hand, 6G envisions a hyper-connected environment that supports ubiquitous intelligence through ultra-low latency, high throughput, massive device connectivity, and integrated sensing and communication. On the other hand, generative AI, powered by large foundation models, has emerged as a powerful paradigm capable of creating, predicting, and synthesizing complex multimodal content. When combined, these two domains promise to reshape how information is generated, transmitted, processed, and consumed at the edge of the network. The convergence of 6G and generative AI represents not just a technological milestone but a paradigm shift toward distributed intelligence, where learning, inference, and decision-making processes are pushed closer to the network edge.