State of the Net 2026

9:00amEST

Welcome / Introductions

9:30amEST

Keynote with Arpan Sura 

9:45amEST

Fireside Chat with Congresswoman April Delaney 

10:15amEST

Keynote with Commissioner Anna Gomez 

10:30amEST

The Missing Network Layer: Why AI Needs Its Own ARPANET Moment (Lightning Talk)Andrew Trask

30 for 30: 30 Years of Broadband Competition, 30 Years of What’s Nex tKelcee Griffis • Evan Swarztrauber • David Don • Blair Levin • Christopher Lewis

Chatting with Machines: Mental Health, AI Companions, and the New Psychology of Connection Amrith Ramkumar • Amina Fazlullah • Amanda Lenhart • Adam Thierer • Shae Gardner

Hitting Refresh on Cybersecurity to Address Emerging Technologies Shane Tews • Camille Stewart Gloster • James Lewis • Michael Daniel • Rob Knake

10:40amEST

Time to Prove We’re Human Nick Pickles

10:50amEST

The State of the Open WebStan Adams • Lila Bailey

11:00amEST

Open Sourcing Safety: Why The Internet Needs Shared Tools, Not Silos Naren Koneru

11:10amEST

Crawling the Web We Want: Policy Choices Shaping the Agentic Web Courtney Radsch

11:30amEST

From Research Labs to Policy Agendas: What Computer Scientists Are Thinking About Now that Policymakers Will Be Discussing Soon Jeremy Epstein

AI Liability: Who's Responsible When Machines Act?Miranda Bogen • Tod Cohen • Helen Toner • Neil Chilson • Aaron Rieke

Making BEAD a Success To Connect All Americans Chris Teale • Nicol Turner Lee • Lyndsay Moyer • Paul Garnett • Joseph Wender

The Future of AI Infrastructure: Affordably Securing Energy for Innovation Rebecca Kern • Lindsey Baxter Griffith • Steve DelBianco • Tanya Das • Marsden Hanna

11:40amEST

A Proactive Response to AI-Driven Job Displacement Revana Sharfuddin

11:50amEST

AI Divide / AI Inequality: It’s Real, and It’s Getting Worse Larry Irving

12:00pmEST

Cybersecurity for AI that Acts: Agents and Vulnerability Management Heather West

12:10pmEST

AI Memory as a Governance Surface: Prioritizing User Privacy and Control Ruchika Joshi

12:30pmEST

Lunch

1:30pmEST

Keynote with Cory Gardner 

1:45pmEST

Keynote with Commissioner Olivia Trusty 

2:00pmEST

Fireside Chat with Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling 

2:30pmEST

Defining Technologies: Which Definition of AI Should Policymakers Use?Nicholas Garcia

Sovereign AI and the New Internet Order: Governing Intelligence Across Borders Nancy Scola • Kellee Wicker • Caitlin Clarke • Morgan Reed • Adrian Shahbaz

The New Frontiers of SpeechLuke Hogg • Ashkhen Kazaryan • Corbin Barthold • Joel Thayer

Verifying the Future: The Paxton Decision, Age Assurance, and the Next Phase of Online Safety Ashley Gold • Ariel Fox Johnson • Sarah Scheffler • Jessica Melugin • Jon Schweppe

2:40pmEST

Why 7 GHz Spectrum Matters for the Future of Wi-FiRikin Thakker

2:50pmEST

What 6G Should Be: Ubiquitous and Seamless Connectivity, Not Just Another ‘G’ Michael Calabrese

3:00pmEST

The Hidden Regulators: Public Utility Commissions and AI GovernanceScott Babwah Brennen

3:10pmEST

Balancing Privacy and Power: How Data Governance Will Shape AI’s Future Lauren Culbertson Grieco

3:30pmEST

Coffee Break

3:45pmEST

Fireside Chat with Assistant Secretary Arielle Roth 

4:15pmEST

Fireside Chat with Senator Scott Wiener 

5:00pmEST

Copyright and AI: Training, Outputs, and the Law Nicholas Garcia • Adam Eisgrau 

The First Amendment in the Digital Age: What Still Holds, What’s BreakingKate Ruane • David Gossett