In a first for Africa – and the higher-education sector – a 5G lab has been launched.

Wits University, Huawei and Rain jointly launched the 5G Innovation Lab at the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct to provide students with access to a live 5G environment that will help them innovate solutions that promote social progress in the era of Industry 4.0.

5G technology enables faster internet speeds with myriad applications in the internet of things, enterprise networking and critical communications.

Currently, the lab showcases two 5G applications– smart/safe campus (relaying feeds from cross-campus safety and security-camera networks) and live virtual-reality e-learning broadcasts of lectures and classes.

‘We are working with the pioneers in digital innovation to train a generation of smart, savvy scholars who will transform the world, using the latest technology available to effect beneficial change in our world,’ says Adam Habib, Wits vice-chancellor and principal. ‘We are not re-imagining the future; we are creating a better future for all today.’

10 November 2020
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