Fiber Forward Weekly: RFCs in 8 New Cities

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📍2027 Regional Fiber Connect Workshops Land in Eight New Cities📍

FBA has announced the cities and themes for its 2027 Regional Fiber Connect workshops:

City Date Theme

Washington, DC February 1-2 Data Centers, Neocloud

Toronto, Ontario March 22-23 Canadian Fiber Infrastructure

Portland, Maine April 19-20 Rural Broadband

Madison, Wisconsin July 12-13 Construction Innovation

Ft. Collins, Colorado August 23-24 AI, Quantum, Hyperscale

Eugene, Oregon September 20-21 Tribal Broadband, Middle Mile

New Orleans, Louisiana October 25-26 Urban, MDU

Austin, Texas November 17-18 Inference, Edge

The Regional Fiber Connect workshops are a series of events created to address real-world challenges and opportunities facing the fiber infrastructure industry, from Fiber-to-the Home to fiber’s use in data center development, Quantum networking, and other emerging industries and enterprises.

The workshops pull together fiber infrastructure leaders and regional stakeholders to share strategies for advancing fiber deployment and innovation, best practices, and lessons learned. Agendas feature insights from local network operators, officials, and community anchors, tying each event closely to regional priorities.

Read the Announcement

💡Fiber Policy Lab Highlights the Power of Fiber💡

FBA hosted its sixth Fiber Policy Lab in Savannah this week, in conjunction with the latest Regional Fiber Connect workshop. It brought together local, state, and federal leaders, broadband advocates, and policymakers to discuss how to accelerate fiber broadband deployment, strengthen community partnerships, overcome infrastructure challenges, and leverage data and AI to improve customer engagement and expand connectivity across the region.

Attendees had the opportunity to hear from Sarah Baska, Director of the Georgia Broadband Office; Jim Stritzinger, Director of the South Carolina Broadband Office; and Reagan Harrison, Senior Advisor at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Read the Announcement

123Net Awarded $86M in Federal BEAD Funding for Michigan Broadband Infrastructure

GoNetspeed Brings eero Mesh Wi-Fi to MDU, Commercial Customers for Enhanced Connectivity, Coverage

Surf Internet Wins 2026 BBB Torch Award for Ethics

CTC CEO/GM Kristi Westbrock Named to USTelecom BoD

gFiber, Qualcomm, Gemtek Unveil AI-Native Wi-Fi 8 Gateway

Whidbey Telecom Hosts Leaders for U.S. Dept of State's Intl Visitor Leadership Program

Want to see your company's fiber news featured here? Email your press releases and related images to fiberforward@fiberbroadband.org by noon ET on Wednesdays.

Next-Generation Tech Discussion: Hollow-Core and Multicore Fiber 101

For decades, single-mode fiber has been the workhorse of communications networks, and that is not changing anytime soon. But as AI data centers demand more capacity, more fiber and lower latency, the industry is beginning to look at new ways to push the physical limits of the network itself.

This week’s Fiber for Breakfast focused on two technologies beginning to move from the lab into real-world applications: multi-core and hollow-core. Gary sat down with John George of Lightera, Jon Fitz of Prysmian, Dr. Jason Eichenholz of Relativity Networks, and Nilson Gabela of Corning to explain what these new fibers do, where they may fit, and why AI infrastructure is creating demand for capabilities that traditional fiber was never designed around.

As George put it, multi-core and hollow-core are “amazing fiber typers with very specific use cases." AI is already creating those use cases. Quantum networking and future applications may create others. And as those demands grow, the industry is learning that even fiber—the infrastructure we have spent decades building—can continue to evolve.

📖 Read the Full Summary | 📺 Watch the Full Episode

Fiber for Breakfast is sponsored by Amdocs.

🖥️Join FBA & AARP OATS to Improve Aging Through Broadband Adoption🖥️

FBA's initiative with AARP's Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) program

provides FBA member operators with a ready-made pathway to improve digital skills and benefits for the communities they serve. Get started today by contacting Deborah Kish at dkish@fiberbroadband.org.

💠Connect senior centers, libraries, and community hubs to fiber

💠Utilize Senior Planet's existing, proven digital skills programming for telehealth education, online safety, and social connection

💠Scalable tiered model that works whether you serve one town or 100 cities

💠Educate the aging population to safely participate in the digital world

👆 Learn More 👆

🙌 Upcoming FBA Member Mingle 🙌

📆 Wed., Nov. 18 | Vancouver, B.C. | 5 PM local time

There is no cost to attend FBA Member Mingles. Remember to bring business cards to enter door prize drawings! RSVP to any of these events by emailing membership@fiberbroadband.org. Stay tuned for more upcoming Member Mingles and track all upcoming FBA events here.