[Video Recording] Ryan O’Sullivan Featured on FNTV at Fiber Connect 2025

Ryan O’Sullivan, Commercial Sales Director at AFL, participated in Fierce Network’s FNTV, at this year’s Fiber Connect conference in Nashville, TN, to discuss key trends shaping the fiber industry. While today’s market presents its share of challenges, Ryan remains confident in the long-term outlook. With strong demand across multiple sectors and fiber playing a key role in emerging technologies, the future is full of opportunity.

FNTV’s Alejandro Piñero began the conversation with the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. Ryan described the current rollout as slow and marked by uncertainty, largely due to administrative changes and evolving policy landscapes, including the ongoing changes in tariffs. These factors, he noted, have delayed funding, created inconsistent direction and posed as a distraction for manufacturers, making progress challenging. “Uncertainty is the word for it,” he said, though he remains optimistic about the program’s potential.

Despite these hurdles, Ryan highlighted areas of strength and opportunity. Demand for fiber remains strong, driven by growth in fiber-to-the-home deployments, grid modernization initiatives and the rapid growth of AI and hyperscale data centers. “Fiber is the backbone,” he said, pointing out that the fiber is playing a critical role in enabling these transformative technologies.

Looking ahead, Ryan believes that the future of fiber is in a great place. While uncertainty still exists, he’s optimistic that BEAD funding will accelerate, and that fiber will serve as foundation for broadband, AI and energy infrastructure.

“While there is a lot of uncertainty,” Ryan acknowledged, “there’s a lot of good going on too.” The future of fiber is bright!

Watch the full interview in the video above to hear Ryan’s complete perspective.

For more information on AFL's role  in Connecting America, visit our webpage or reach out to us at ConnectingAmerica@aflglobal.com.