The majority of business executives working in the healthcare, transportation, energy, and manufacturing industries believe the advent of 5G will positively impact their businesses and intend to invest more heavily in wireless technologies in 2018, according to a Harris Poll commissioned by CTIA. 

According to the survey, 80 percent of business leaders in these industries think their businesses will benefit from 5G, while 62 percent intend to spend more on wireless advancements next year.

 The poll also found that seven out of 10 executives think the United States must be a global leader in 5G to stay economically competitive.

“Key corporate executives know the U.S. needs to lead the world in 5G because wireless leadership is critical for their continued global competiveness,” Meredith Attwell Baker, president and CEO of CTIA, commented in a statement about the findings. “The global race to 5G is on and this is a race that America has to win.”

Wireless technologies also appear to be increasingly key to businesses, according to the survey. Nine out of 10 executives across industries said they rely on wireless more today than compared to five years ago, while 87 percent of respondents also characterized wireless as “very important” to their business today.

Here are some additional benefits executives believe will come with 5G, broken down by industry:

Healthcare:

• 84 percent of healthcare executives polled think 5G will help create better patient outcomes through advancements such as remote, real-time patient monitoring and telemedicine
• 67 percent believe 5G will reduce medical costs

Transportation:

• 81 percent of transportation executives polled think 5G-powered autonomous cars will improve roadway safety, reduce traffic congestion and accidents, and prevent traffic deaths

Energy:

• Three out of four energy executives polled think that a wireless-powered smart grid will help consumers and businesses save money on electric bills and reduce energy consumption

Manufacturing:

• 73 percent of manufacturing executives surveyed think wireless technologies will make their business more competitive in the global marketplace
• More than seven out of 10 believe 5G will be very important to a variety of manufacturing cases including management, production, logistics, and distribution