THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2026

Agenda

Click here for Full Conference Agenda PDF

Wednesday, November 18, 2026 - PRE-CONFERENCE

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

Member Meetup

Networking with Fiber Broadband Association as we prepare to kick off the full conference.

Location: Cambie, Conference Floor (CF)

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Co-Mixer

Hosted by FBA’s Women in Fiber Committee – This event is open to all. Cash bar available.

Location: TBD

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER, 19, 2026 - MAIN CONFERENCE

7:15 AM

Registration Opens

7:15 AM - 8:00 AM

Networking Breakfast with Exhibitors

8:00 AM - 8:05 AM

Welcome & Introduction

Richard Williams, FBA Conference Program Director

8:05 AM - 8:25 AM

Fiber Broadband: The Future that Fiber Enables

Gary Bolton, President & CEO, Fiber Broadband Association

8:25 AM - 8:30 AM

Platinum Sponsor Remarks

TBD, Adtran

8:30 AM - 9:00 AM

Opening Keynote

Julie Cook, Acting Director General, Strategic Planning, Broadband Fund & Networks, Telecommunications Sector, CRTC

9:00 AM - 9:40 AM

Case in Point: Building the Fibre Infrastructure Behind the AI Economy: From Demand to Deployment

Ian Oliver, Technology and Project Consultant, Globema

Jerry Mi, Managing Director, BT Energies Corp.
Arman Salah, CTO & President, Manufacturing Operations, IONAXIS
Rob Barlow, Director, RevQuotient
Christine Marion, President PomeGran Québec

9:40 AM

Breakfast Sponsor Remarks

9:40 AM - 9:45 AM

Older Adults Technology Services (OATs) and FBA Program

Richard Williams, FBA Conference Program Director

9:45 AM

Networking Break Sponsor Remarks

Dr. Kalai Kalaichelvan, Chairman & CEO, Pomegran Inc.

9:45 AM - 10:30 AM

New AI Inference Driven Fibre Broadband Requirements

Cliff Grossner, Ph.D., Chief Innovation Officer, OCP

Tyler MacDonald, Regional Sales & Business Development Manager, Noramco Telecom
Nicolas Philiptchenko, VP, Strategic Accounts, Vytal Digital Infrastructure

10:30 AM - 11:15 AM

Networking Break with Exhibitors

11:15 AM - 11:20 AM

FBA Membership Update

Jennifer Vassil, Vice President, FBA Membership

11:20 AM - 12:00 PM

Community-Led Connectivity: Building Broadband in Rural and Indigenous Communities

Robert Petruk, VP Strategic Growth & Partnerships, CommTech Solutions and Co-Chair, FBA Canadian Working Group

Marissa Nobauer, Director, Reconciliation, Community Engagement & External Relations, TELUS
Nathan Pullar, VP Network Technology, Northwestel
David Dwyer, Director, Business Development & Partner Strategy, KGPCo

12:00 PM - 12:05 PM

FBA OpTIC™ Program: Developing that Workforce Needed

Laura Hartman, Workforce Development Program Manager, FBA

12:05 PM - 12:45 PM

Networking Lunch

12:45 PM - 1:30 PM

Networking Dessert with Exhibitors

1:30 PM

Lunch Sponsor Remarks

Ryan Strietelmeier, Business Account Manager, Whidbey Telecom

1:30 PM - 2:15 PM

AI Automation – What’s the Value to Telecom?

David Eckard, Co-Chair FBA’s AI & Machine Learning Working Group and VP of Broadband Partners, Nokia

Rob Josey, Application Sales Manager, Calix
Cory Zimmer, CEO, One-Up Technologies Inc.
Monali Supramanyam, Managing Director, Xeo Strategic Consultancy
Michael Kuhlmann, President & CEO, Colony Networks
TBD, Adtran Canada

2:15 PM - 2:30 PM

Sip & Stretch Coffee and Snack Break

2:30 PM

Networking Reception Sponsor Remarks

Shawn Arnot, Vehicle Upfit Specialist, Sterling Fleet Outfitters

2:30 PM - 3:25 PM

From Lab to Market: Accelerating AI and Quantum Technology in British Columbia

John George, Sr. Director, Global Business Development, Lightera and Chair, FBA Technology Committee, FBA Senior Council

Rob Goehring, CEO and Founder, Wisr AI
Dr. Thomas Jennewein, Professor, Canada Excellence Research Chair, Simon Fraser University
Saeed Shamsi, Head of AI Platform and Automation, BUZZ HPC
Ilijc Albanese, Ph.D., P.Eng., Lead Quantum Engineer, TELUS

3:25 PM - 3:30 PM

Closing Remarks

Richard Williams, FBA Conference Program Director

3:30 PM - 4:30 PM

Networking Reception with Expo Hall

Registration Rates & Sponsor/Exhibitor Opportunities

Registration Rates

Attendee Type

Member

Non-Member

Network Operators

$99

$199

Public Officials

$99

Vendors & Suppliers

$249

$349

Professional Services

$149

$249

Non-Profits

$99

Academic/Education

N/A

$99

Enterprise/Commercial

N/A

$359

Sponsors/Exhibitors

Contact Us

Lucy Green

[email protected] | 714-768-1606

NEED ASSISTANCE?

SPONSOR/EXHIBITOR:
Already sponsoring or exhibiting? Contact our Expo Services Team at [email protected] or call +1.202.624.1759
For inquiries about sponsor or exhibitor opportunities, contact Lucy Green at [email protected] or call +1.714.768.1606
REGISTRATION:
Contact us at [email protected] or +1.202.624.1756
Open weekdays, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm ET, excluding holidays.
MEMBERSHIP:
Contact us at [email protected]

Ready to join us in Vancouver?

Hotel Details

The DOUGLAS

Address: 45 Smithe Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Phone: 604-676-0888
Check-in/out time: 4:00 pm / 12:00 pm

Hotel Room Discounted Group Room Rate: 379CAD/night plus 20.68% taxes
Hotel Cut-off date: Tuesday, October 27th at 5:00 pm PT or when the block sells out, whichever comes first.
Booking Link: Reserve Your Room

Onsite Parking: $55.00 self-parking, $65 valet.

Thank You to Our Sponsors & Exhibitors