ITU: Global internet users to reach about 6.3 billion in 2026

The headline number matters less than the caveat attached to it: roughly a quarter of the world's population is still projected to be offline, and the ITU frames the gap as structural across countries and population groups rather than a simple connectivity shortfall. For digital-asset and tokenization projects that pitch inclusion as a core use case, that persistent divide is the relevant constraint, since adoption still depends on access, devices and affordability, not just on-chain infrastructure. Whether the ITU's next assessments show the gap narrowing or hardening is the open question.