Digital infrastructure is no different from other public goods that we deem essential, but that aren’t universally provided by the market. Some of the most effective tools for closing these gaps over the long term come from community finance, not one-off federal grants. Connect Humanity was created for this purpose.
After reselling Starlink's traditional service to business customers who are out of reach of terrestrial broadband connections, Alaska's GCI is now doing more with Starlink by tapping the satellite broadband service for backup connectivity at several locations. GCI, Alaska's top cable and mobile operator, said it plans to use Starlink's dedicated service with bonded gateways to provide more resilient and reliable connectivity to thousands of customers across several "major community hubs," including Bethel, Sitka, Kotzebue and Dillingham.
Hyperscaler capex is poised to set records in 2026, as cloud giants scramble to build enough compute capacity to meet growing demand. Energy remains a key constraint—and point of public contention—but an upcoming regulatory decision is poised to offer either grief or relief. There are two key energy issues: power generation and years-long interconnection queues, and how large-load customers like data centers impact other users on the grid.
Qualcomm is working on over 40 designs of new AI devices, CEO Cristiano Amon told CNBC, as the chip designer prepares for a wave of “agents” across consumer electronics. Amon laid out his views on the changing role of smartphones and apps, why smart glasses could be the next major consumer device, new types of electronics that will hit the market, and how chip architectures will need to change for even smaller gadgets.
Verizon announced the next step in its ongoing transformation, replacing complexity and friction with simplicity and true customer choice. The company is putting its customers first—existing and new—by redefining loyalty and eliminating activation and upgrade fees. As part of the customer-centered reboot, Verizon is also launching “Verizon Simplicity,” the industry’s most simple and cost-effective plan. With Simplicity, there are no network tiers; everyone gets Verizon’s best 5G network.
Rep Brett Guthrie (R-KY-02), Chairman of the House Commerce Committee announced that Chris Sarley has been named Senior Director of Policy & Stakeholder Engagement. Additionally, Chairman Guthrie has named Ryan P. Murphy the Director of Member Services.
DigitalC, a nonprofit technology social enterprise on a mission to bridge the digital divide, for good, has surpassed 10,000 connections in Cleveland, Ohio. With Tarana’s next-generation Fixed Wireless Access (ngFWA) technology, DigitalC has deployed a citywide, high-speed broadband network, delivering affordable internet service to neighborhoods long overlooked by traditional telecom investment in Cleveland and beyond.
SpaceX will buy Cursor parent Anysphere for $60 billion, striking a massive deal for an autonomous coding agent that could help the company catch up with its AI rivals after its blockbuster IPO. Cursor will receive $60 billion worth of SpaceX stock under the agreement. The deal comes days after SpaceX’s historic public offering.
© 1994-2026 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.
