Connectivity innovation doesn’t come cheap — or easy — but the payoff is becoming clearer across standards, spectrum, and applied use cases.

With 6G on the horizon, Qualcomm Vice President of Technical Standards Juan Montojo-Bennassar reminds us that standards are built not just in labs but in meeting rooms, by people who devote decades to organizations like 3GPP and ETSI. In a uniquely personal piece, Sean Kinney speaks with Montojo-Bennassar about his family life and the sacrifices he’s made for his career. “It’s a lot of work … I love my job. [But] it’s a thin line — being super busy versus being stressed out,” shares Montojo-Bennassar. The quiet grind by him and countless others underpins global connectivity, ensuring new technologies can scale reliably and efficiently.

RCR has our road warriors, too — James Blackman reports from Amsterdam, where the Things Conference highlighted an “IoT-within-a-niche” dynamic. The takeaway? Despite fragmentation, IoT is settling into practical markets where it can scale sustainably — a sign the sector is maturing beyond early hype. But don’t take it from me, make sure to read his full account.

In other news, Federated Wireless CEO Iyad Tarazi, in an interview, explains how Wi-Fi is finally going “full power.” Using Automated Frequency Coordination, Wi-Fi 6E can break old limits, scale like 5G, and prepare the ground for Wi-Fi 7. The shift could transform stadiums, campuses, and enterprise deployments. Plus: Boldyn and Nokia dropped 5G hundreds of meters underground, deploying a private network at Callio FutureMINE in Finland and CelcomDigi launched Malaysia’s first AI-driven traffic system.

The message today is something we already know, but worth memorializing: Innovation demands serious investment — of money, talent, and  time — before it reshapes our daily life.