⚡ Look Who’s Talking! 1st Wave of Lightning Talk Speakers Announced

We’re excited to announce the first round of Lightning Talk speakers at SOTN ’26. These expert talks were chosen from over 100 proposals. Check out who is presenting below, and stay tuned for more Lightning Talk speaker announcements. 

State of the Net is on Monday, February 9th. Register now!

Round 1: SOTN 2026 Lightning Talk Lineup

Irving Headshot

AI Divide/AI Inequality: It’s real, and it’s getting worse.

Larry Irving
Principal
Irving Group

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The State of the Open Web

Lila Bailey
Senior Policy Counsel
Internet Archive

&

Stan Adams
Lead Public Policy Specialist
Wikimedia

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

Michael Calabrese
Director, Wireless Future
New America

Pickles Headshot

Time to prove we’re human

Nick Pickles
Chief Policy Officer
Tools for Humanity

Thakker headshot

Why 7 GHz Spectrum Matters for the Future of Wi-Fi

Rikin Thakker
Chief Technology Officer & Senior Vice President
NCTA – The Internet & Television Association 

Trask headshot

The Missing Network Layer: Why AI Needs Its Own ARPANET Moment

Andrew Trask
Executive Director
OpenMined