Today’s headlines highlight the ways telecom players are both shoring up the present and sketching out the future — from stadium Wi-Fi to sensing fiber to the early stirrings of 6G.

In the U.S., Verizon is looking ahead. Just as it convened partners during 5G’s infancy, the operator has launched its 6G Innovation Forum, led by CTO Yago Tenorio. The focus, tellingly, isn’t on the radio layer but on use cases — a signal that the industry knows technical leaps alone won’t carry the next “G.” Don’t miss Sean Kinney’s conversation with Tenorio. At the same, the carrier is outfitting St. Louis Blues fans and staff with advanced Wi-Fi and equipping Tampa police with nearly a thousand 5G smartphones under its Connected Officer program. Leadership shifts are also underway. T-Mobile US named Srini Gopalan as its next CEO, effective November 1, as Mike Sievert steps down. The appointment keeps continuity in the C-suite while adding international experience at a moment when competitive pressure and capital intensity remain high.

In the U.K., post-merger VodafoneThree is moving quickly. The operator signed £2 billion in supply deals with Ericsson and Nokia, targeting near-universal 5G Standalone coverage by 2034 and pledging to eliminate 16,500 square kilometers of coverage “not spots” by year-end. And finally, in India, state-owned BSNL is preparing its long-awaited 5G launch in Delhi and Mumbai, leaning on indigenous 4G development and government backing. Operators and vendors alike are balancing today’s rollouts with tomorrow’s bets, navigating the dual pressures of immediate service demands and long-horizon innovation.