Special Session 8: “Next Generation Healthcare: High Density 6G Connectivity for Agents, Sensors, and Virtual Care Ecosystems”
Date, hour and room to be defined
Session chairs:
- Christoph Lipps (German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), DE)
The healthcare sectors is undergoing profound change, primarily driven by ongoing demographic pressure, persistent staffing shortages, and rising costs of operation, which are increasingly pushing existing systems to their limits. At the same time, however, rapid technological advances are opening up new avenues for more resilient and human-centered healthcare models. At the core of this transformation is the convergence of next-generation connectivity, artificial intelligence methods, and new digital ecosystems extending healthcare far beyond traditional clinical settings.
The rollout of 6G connectivity, for example, holds the potential to become a cornerstone of this development. With its ability to deliver ultra-low latency, massive device density, and seamless data integration, 6G lays the foundation for a continuously connected healthcare landscape. It enables the real-time transmission of large, multimodal data sets -from sensors, diagnostic devices, wearables, and clinical systems- without compromising performance or reliability. This uninterrupted flow of information supports more accurate insights, earlier interventions, and an unprecedented level of coordination between different care facilities.
As part of this infrastructural shift, clinical AI agents are beginning to redefine the organization of work in healthcare. These intelligent digital assistants can process complex information, help physicians manage their workload, generate documentation, and identify subtle patterns in patient data, which might otherwise remain undetected. Rather than replacing physicians, they act as trusted colleagues, reducing administrative burden and improving the precision and timeliness of care.
The same technologies are also enabling the rise of virtual hospitals, where comprehensive care can be delivered remotely through densely integrated networks of sensors, monitoring platforms, and telemedicine services. These digital hubs provide access to expertise across regions, expand capacity without physical expansion, and ensure that patients with chronic or mobility-limiting conditions receive consistent, high-quality follow-up care.
At the same time, next-generation wearables are evolving into sophisticated health companions capable of continuously capturing physiological signals, detecting subtle changes, and supporting personalized treatment adjustments. As such devices become increasingly ubiquitous, they are driving the growth of predictive public health by enabling healthcare systems to anticipate disease patterns, respond earlier to new threats, and allocate resources more effectively.
With all these advances, sustainability is becoming a guiding principle. Digital care reduces unnecessary travel, connected systems optimize energy consumption, and smarter infrastructure helps build a healthcare ecosystem that is not only more efficient but also more environmentally conscious.
Together, these developments point to a future in which healthcare is more connected, more predictive, and more patient-centered -designed to meet rising demands while safeguarding the well-being of people and the environment.
Programme
The Special Session is scheduled for 90 minutes and will open with a motivation and lightning talk (20 minutes) delivered by a representative from a key semiconductor provider enabling medical IoT, hospital monitoring equipment, pharmaceutical security, and edge AI clinical innovations: NXP Semiconductors. This introduction will set the stage for four expert presentations, each offering a 15 minute deep dive into different dimensions of the topic.
First, a speaker from a major international hospital will outline the thematic focus from an application driven healthcare perspective. The second contribution, presented by an SME from Poland, will highlight the innovation potential unlocked through intelligent and secure connectivity. The third expert will provide a regulatory perspective, addressing the implications of the Cyber Resilience Act and the EU AI Act. Finally, a Spanish company specializing in managing the networks interconnecting hospitals will offer insights that combine scientific and industrial viewpoints.
Together, these talks will deliver a comprehensive and multi stakeholder exploration of the challenges and opportunities in the field.
Motivation / Lightning Talk: Stefan Maas – Project Manager – NXP Semiconductors Germany GmbH.
Stefan will motivate how the convergence of secure edge processing, advanced sensing, and ultra‑reliable connectivity is enabling a new generation of intelligent, patient‑centric medical devices -from continuous monitoring wearables to AI‑enhanced acute‑care systems- and how 6G will further expand these capabilities by supporting real‑time, privacy‑preserving clinical intelligence at scale.
Talk 1: Julie Courpron – Directrice de la Recherche et de l’Innovation – Centre hospitalier universitaire de Rennes (CHU Rennes).
Julie will give an insight into the day-to-day operations of one of the largest hospitals in France, and will particularly address the weaknesses of the existing system and provide insights into the daily routine of an operating room.
Talk 2: Piotr Pawalowski – Vice President and CTO – medVC.
Piotr will contribute deep expertise in real‑time telemedicine infrastructure by demonstrating how advanced multi‑stream surgical video systems, interactive remote collaboration tools, and secure high‑quality audiovisual platforms can integrate with 6G and AI‑enabled healthcare workflows to support virtual hospitals, remote expertise, and next‑generation connected care
Talk 3: Hans Wenner – Senior Manager Regulatory Affairs – VDE Association for Electrical, Electronic & Information Technologies.
Hans -with his long experience (also from the perspective of a notified body)-, will give a classification in the regulatory context of 6G but also in relation to the European Cyber Resilience Act and the AI Act.
Talk 4: Álvaro Fanego -Senior Project Manager – Supercomputación de Castilla y León (SCAYLE).
Álvaro’s will give insights in large‑scale, high‑performance digital commerce infrastructure by demonstrating how a modular, API‑first platform -proven in demanding real‑world environments- can inform the design of secure, scalable, low‑latency data architectures for next‑generation connected healthcare services powered by 6G and AI.
