An Overview of 3GPP Release 17 & 18 Advancements in the Context of V2X Technology

The 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) for the first time introduced the NR-V2X standard in its Rel. 16, which is progressively improved by the researchers and industrial verticals to provide ubiquitous connectivity to the Internet-of-Vehicles (IoV). The 3GPP recently finalized NR-V2X standardization in its Rel. 17. This paper overviews the recent technological advancements made in Rel. 17. Moreover, this paper summarizes the work items proposed for the 3GPP Rel. 18 and identified the potential research opportunities. The work items included in 3GPP Rel. 18 are primarily focused on integrating artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) into the core radio access network (C-RAN) to boost network performance. The 3GPP plenary consensus on Rel. 18 as an evolution to 5G-Advanced. This paper presents in-depth insights related to NR-V2X and its evolution to 5G-Advanced V2X. Energy efficiency, beamforming management, relaying User Equipment (UE), sidelink innovations, and Reduced device Capabilities (RedCAP) are the key aspects of the 5G-Advanced V2X.