Governance, media, business and global geopolitics are all being reordered at breakneck speed—all simultaneously. It's the Great Upheaval. We're witnessing more change, across more parts of life, at more speed, than ever before. This means opportunity—and new threats or surprising shifts—pop up faster and faster. Anticipating change is tougher than ever. There are several causes: a global populist surge, an AI arms race, shifting political alliances globally and domestically, and radical changes in how people worldwide get and share information. President-elect Trump's governing plans are designed to exploit this emerging phenomenon—and speed it up. Elon Musk routinely tells Trump this will be the most dramatic transformation of business, governance and culture since the nation's founding. It's classic Musk salesmanship, as we've seen with cars: Promise vast, immediate change—regardless of feasibility.

According to data from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), there are now more than 400 public broadband networks in the US, serving over 700 communities. Moreover, several (but not all) communities have prevailed in recent years at changing existing state laws preventing the launch of public broadband networks, including most recently Colorado and Minnesota. That leaves 16 states with legal roadblocks still in place, according to Community Networks. That's a fair amount of progress ... but there's more work to do to address the "fear and hesitation" that's stopping some communities from pursuing the public model, says Gigi Sohn. Sohn, who took on the role of executive director for the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) in 2023, says she is seeing growing interest in public broadband networks. But several factors are still stunting growth, including some communities taking a "wait and see" approach as it pertains to the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. In other words, some communities that may be interested in pursuing public broadband want to see if BEAD solves their problems first.

In 2022, President Joe Biden (D-DE) signed the Data Mapping to Save Moms' Lives Act, which directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to “incorporate publicly available data on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity into the agency’s Mapping Broadband Health in America platform, in consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” The bipartisan bill was introduced in 2021 by Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Todd Young (R-IN), and Brian Schatz (D-HI), with a goal of identifying where improved access to telehealth services can be most effective in reducing maternal mortality. At the October 2024 FCC Open Meeting the Connect2Health task force presented on the mapping effort, and announced updates to the platform that would launch the following month, including improved broadband mapping data and the addition of facts about infant health outcomes, breast cancer prevalence, and other social indicators of health.

Representative John James (R-MI-10) introduced the App Store Accountability Act, a landmark bill designed to increase safeguards within app stores to empower parents and protect children. The bill ensures that children are not accessing age restricted material through digital app stores and provides parents with more control over what their children are able to access. Specifically, the App Store Accountability Act would:

• Require age verification for access to App Store ID.
• Require parental consent for users under 18 using App stores.
• Link devices of minors on app stores to parents/guardians.
• Require app age rating displays.
• Establish enforcement mechanisms for violations of this act.

Elon Musk’s eleventh-hour support for a child online safety bill is creating an early test of the tech billionaire and Trump ally’s influence on Capitol Hill. Musk called for the passage of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA)—a polarizing bipartisan bill intended to create more protection for minors online—after his social media platform, X, worked on changes with the bill’s Senate sponsors. Advocates for KOSA expressed optimism that Musk’s support could quell free speech concerns among members in the House, which has yet to vote on the bill with just weeks left in the lame-duck session. But Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has shown little sign of relenting on his concerns about KOSA, sparking questions over Musk’s ability to push the bill across the finish line. Musk, who calls himself a fierce advocate of free speech, and Donald Trump Jr. argued over the weekend that the updated Senate version of KOSA achieves members’ safety goals without hindering First Amendment rights. 

Women have exerted historic levels of influence over technology policy in the past four years, holding prominent roles across the federal government and overseeing major issues including artificial intelligence, antitrust, chip manufacturing and internet connectivity. The Republican sweep in this year’s elections, coupled with at least one key retirement, is poised to usher many out of power—with men set to step in. Incoming changes in the Trump administration represent a setback for women’s representation in top tech roles in government after it had reached unprecedented heights.