Etisalat broke world records for 5G internet speeds with a live trial at Gitex 2017.

Alongside a fleet of humanoid robots, autonomous vehicles and ‘connected cars’, UAE telecoms giant Etisalat broke the record at its stand in Dubai World Trade Centre, reaching 71Gbps. The trial operated over e-band using 2Ghz of bandwidth as well as massive MIMO - antennas that help boost the transmission signal to devices.

In an interview with Arabian Business, vice president of Etisalat and official spokesperson, Dr Ahmed Bin Ali, said its 5G (5th generation mobile network) trials will continue in 2018 for a commercial launch in 2019.

“Etisalat have started 5G trials a few years back, and we have been a pioneer in testing this rate of speed,” said Dr Bin Ali.

“Now are a few years we are very proud to announce that Etisalat have reached the fastest speed ever reached in a live 5G trial; and we have exceed 71 Gb. And that’s a huge speed that’s going to enable all smart cities, smart homes, individuals, to benefit from these latest technologies.”

Expo 2020 will also boast the fastest internet in the world, Dr Bin Ali added.

“This high-speed will be the basis for Expo 2020, where Etisalat has promised to have the fastest connected spot on earth in the Expo 2020 area,” he said.

Etisalat also showcased their ‘connected car’, a Model X Tesla is connected to the web by an data Etisalat sim running on 4G.

It is equipped with all the hardware for autonomous driving, media apps such as radio, and a built-in internet browser so you can surf on the web.

Also unveiled was autonomous humanoid robot Sophia flown in from Hong Kong to greet tech enthusiasts.