Shandong University (SDU) co-hosted the 2026 China Institute of Communication (CIC) Blue Ocean Forum for Worldwide Scientists in Jinan, Shandong province. Focusing on the future of 6G, the forum brought together top-tier researchers, industry experts and young scholars to exchange insights on advances in 6G and intelligent communications.

SDU President Li Shucai, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said the university has been pushing forward research in cybersecurity, communication materials and intelligent communications. He called for deeper cooperation in fundamental research, core technologies and talent cultivation.

Lu Jianhua, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and editor-in-chief of China Communications, an English-language information and techonology control (ICT) journal, said communication technologies are increasingly converging with sensing, computing, control technologies and artificial intelligence. He noted that communication networks are evolving from pure information transmission systems toward complex intelligent systems.

Lu added that the forum is intended to identify scientific questions that remain insufficiently understood or unresolved, and encourage interaction between fundamental theories, engineering practice and different disciplines.

Keynote presentations discussed topics including intelligent information networks, AI-driven modeling and prediction for satellite-communication channels, and intelligent video communications.

Invited presentations covered integrated communication, sensing, computing and AI, collaborative sensing for smart cities and the low-altitude economy, air-space mobile information networks, and intelligent communication systems for unmanned tunnel engineering.

The forum also featured a discussion between young scientists, a roundtable session and six parallel sessions on frontier ICT technologies and real-world applications.