W12 – Emerging Metaverse and 6G Massive/Immersive Communications (6G Metaverse)

Co-organizer: De Mi, Birmingham City University, U.K.
Co-organizer: Zhen Gao, Beijing Institute of Technology, China
Co-organizer: Sami Muhaidat, Khalifa University, UAE
Co-organizer: Abbas Jamalipour, University of Sydney, Australia

Abstract: This workshop is the second edition of IEEE VTC 6G Metaverse (and its seventh version across different venues) and is driven by the imperative to unravel the challenges and harness the opportunities that arise from the emerging computer and data communication networks, e.g., Metaverse and 6G networks. The requirement for the Metaverse, i.e., connecting the real world to the virtual world, cannot be ignored for many future vertical industries. It will necessitate intelligent solutions and novel physical-layer technologies, which can be provided by the advanced 6G networks. The enhancement from the eMBB and mMTC to Immersive Communication and Massive Communication has been considered as one of the paradigm shifts in 6G, as endorsed by ITU-R.

Co-organizer’s Bios:

De Mi:

De Mi (Senior Member, IEEE) received the Ph.D. degree (2017) from the University of Surrey, U.K. He is currently an Associate Professor and Head of Future Information Networks Research Cluster at Birmingham City University. His main research interests and expertise span a range of areas in communications theory and signal processing for wireless communications, including B5G/6G radio access techniques, next-generation broadcast and multicast communications and future open networks. His research has been supported by the EU FP7 and H2020, UK DCMS, DSIT and IUK, EPRSC, and China-UK collaborative programs. He has served as an Editor of IEEE/CIC China Communications, IEEE Network, IEEE/KICS Journal of Communications and Networks and Space: Science & Technology (Science Partner Journal). He has also served as publicity chair, session track chair and workshop chair for a number of international conferences, e.g., VTC 25, ICCC 24, MECOM 24, ICRA 24, IJCNN/WCCI 24, ICIT 2024, and GLOBECOM/ICC/VTC/WCNC etc. He was the recipient of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society 2020 Scott Helt Memorial Award and IEEE Best Conference Paper awards in UCET 2020, Blockchain/BSS 2023, IECON 2023 and Ucom 2024.

Zhen Gao:

Zhen Gao (Member, IEEE) Zhen Gao received the Ph.D. degree in communication and signal processing from the Department of Electronic Engineering, Tsinghua University, China, in 2016. He is currently a tenure-track Associate Professor with the Beijing Institute of Technology. His research interests are in wireless communications, with a focus on multi-carrier modulations, multiple antenna systems, and sparse signal processing. He was a recipient of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society 2016 Scott Helt Memorial Award (Best Paper), the Exemplary Reviewer of IEEE COMMUNICATION LETTERS in 2016, IET Electronics Letters Premium Award (Best Paper) 2016, UCET 2020 Best Paper Award, IEEE/CIC ICCC 2021 Best Paper Award, IEEE IWCMC 2022 Best Paper Award, and also the Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program (2018–2020) from China Association for Science and Technology, Elsevier 2021 and 2022 MOST Cited Chinese Researchers, First Prize in Chinese Institute of Electronics Technical Invention Award 2021 and 2022, and Beijing Science and Technology Rising Star 2022. He currently serves as an Editor for IEEE Transactions Vehicular Technology, IEEE Communications Letters, IEEE Systems Journal, and Frontiers in Communications and Networks.

Sami Muhaidat:

Sami Muhaidat (Senior Member, IEEE) received the Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada, in 2006. He is currently a Professor at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE, and an Adjunct Professor with Carleton University, Ontario, Canada. Prior to this, he was an NSERC Post-Doctoral Fellow with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, ON, Canada, and then an Assistant Professor with the School of Engineering Science, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada. His research interests focus on advanced digital signal processing techniques for wireless communications, intelligent surfaces, MIMO, optical communications, massive multiple access techniques, backscatter communications, and machine learning for communications. He is currently an Area Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Communications, a Guest Editor of the IEEE Network “Native Artificial Intelligence in Integrated Terrestrial and Non-Terrestrial Networks in 6G” special issue, and a Guest Editor of the IEEE OJVT “Recent Advances in Security and Privacy for 6G Networks” special issue.

Abbas Jamalipour:

Abbas Jamalipour (Fellow, IEEE) received the Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan in 1996. He is the Professor of Ubiquitous Mobile Networking with the
University of Sydney and the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON VEHICULAR TECHNOLOGY. He has authored nine technical books, eleven book chapters, over 650 technical papers, and five patents, all in wireless communications and networking. Prof. Jamalipour is the recipient of several prestigious awards such as the 2025 Neville Thiele Eminence Award from Engineers Australia, IEEE ComSoc Harold Sobol Award, the IEEE ComSoc Best Tutorial Paper Award, as well as over fifteen Best Paper Awards. He was the President of the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society (2020-2021). Previously, he held the positions of the Executive Vice-President and the Editor-in-Chief of VTS Mobile World and has been an elected member of the Board of Governors of the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society since 2014. He was the Editor-in-Chief IEEE WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS, the Vice President-Conferences, and a member of Board of Governors of the IEEE Communications Society. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical, Information, and Communication Engineers (IEICE), the Institution of Engineers Australia (IEAust), and the International Artificial Intelligence Industry Alliance (AIIA), and a Visiting Fellow of the UK Royal Academy of Engineering.

Paper submission deadline Extended: 8 February 2026
Acceptance notification: 18 March 2026
Final paper submission deadline Extended: 7 April 2026

Submission requirements: 5-page paper (without overlength charge) and up to 2 additional pages are allowed with the purchase of additional page charges in the amount of $100 USD per additional page at the time of registration and final paper submission.

Paper submission can be located here: https://vtc2026s-rr-wks.trackchair.com/