Struggling Through Half a Power Hour of Innovation Wireless
Disclaimer: Everything below is a mix of what I observed and heard during the event. The goal isn’t to pinpoint "who exactly said what," but to share (usually) an outsider's view and overall perspective on these industries. I’m not here to act as a definitive firsthand source—readers should do their own research. I hope this inspires you to attend events, explore new industries, and hear what leaders are presenting. These notes combine my observations with thoughts on how things could run smoother and how ideas connect (IMO). I’m not an expert, you know? Just hanging out in the room with them. Enjoy!
Topic: Internet, Wireless, Technology, Innovation, Surveillance Normalization, Weaponized Waiting, Human Experience, Facial Recognition, Scouting, Filtering Comments, Innovation
Step right up and hear the latest on innovation from the best in the business, so they claim. What tech is coming? What tech is here? What’s going on that we don’t even realize. Oof. This is the type of event WORTH going to, but you’ll probably leave as a changed person - for better or for worse? That’s up to you…
Why Attend? This was a nearly whole-day event I was expecting to be a bit ritzy, showy, and flashy. Typically - this actually “why attend” section, i write before events, to share my true feelings why I want to attend. Unfortutely, I didn’t ahead of time - and this one specifically i wish I ahd. It was alng the lines of “cause they’re a successful tech company offering a 1-day event with food.”
Overall Event Review: Venue (3/5), Food (5/5), Speaker Content (1.5/5), Networking (1/5), Likeliness to Return (2.5/5)
Photo Collage and Commentary:
Notes from the Event:
This event was crazy to me, just cause like it was so much exposure to surprirses in such a short amount of time. Arriving there was wild, cause it was a bit of a haul and then the campus was huge. So many buildings with similar names, and all epic. Then finally I found it off the side, and surprisingly as I walked out, I saw a ballet school was in the same building or something? I didn’t get a drone view but i just was like what the heck is that doing there? Like thsi campus is so hard to navigate and just like so much tech here. What? Why these young children, girls and boys in tight clothes, right here in the center of this place?
And I had my expectations a bit high for this event, too, but it was a lot of “reality check” times two. More than expected, but I guess not surprising. And, I also didn’t have SO MUCH TIME and their schedule was super inconvenient to my schedule, too - so, I hardly stayed - for at least 2 reasons. You know?
I talked to Ai a lot about my experience + shared my notes. So, first i’ll put the 10 Ten Takeaways from what I saw from this event (as told by Ai) and then below that, my normal style notes. Here is Ai’s take on the “TOP 10 Double-Take-Aways” from this event:
(double-take-away: things that make you do a double take - either good or bad, and you walk away thinking of it)Let’s let Ai pick up on what we noticed, or didn’t pick up on as humans - based on my notes and experience….
TOP 10 DOUBLE-TAKE-AWAYS (by Chat GPT + Perplexity)
Procedure: each come up with 10… then i ask both what themes they find in each, what’s missing… and then 10 turned into 18… so.. enjoy 18 takeaways :)
🤖 Ai’s Double-Take-Aways
Engineered Waiting & Designed Friction
The deliberately slow entry process without Face ID was a strategic move to create mild annoyance, encouraging attendees to embrace facial scanning as a convenient alternative. This reflects how technology can be framed as a solution to problems that are, in part, deliberately manufactured.
2. Spreadsheets with Attendee Photos and Notes
Staff maintaining detailed spreadsheets of attendees, including photos and notes, reveals a culture of extensive profiling. This openness about tracking attendees speaks to normalization of data gathering as a fundamental part of event management and networking.
3. Surveillance as a Marketable Feature
The overt promotion of technology capable of tracking people, vehicles, and drones “without cameras” indicates that surveillance is no longer just a backend security measure but a front-facing product attribute. This suggests a broad industry acceptance and commercialization of monitoring technologies.
4. Two-Tier Truth with Badge Color Codes
The insider guidance to be cautious when interacting with those wearing certain badges (such as white badges for press or vendors) exposes a layered social structure within the event. This creates distinct narratives and access regimes for different groups, managing the flow of information and trust.
5. Theatrics and Spectacle Over Substance
The event relied heavily on theatrical lighting, immersive demos, and playful installations to create a sense of excitement and inevitability around 5G innovation. However, this spectacle often overshadowed the delivery of concrete technical details or clear explanations.
6. Odd Juxtaposition: Ballet School & Surveillance Event
The proximity of a children’s ballet school to a surveillance and telecommunications event presents a visually and symbolically striking contrast. This unexpected pairing raises questions about the messaging and cultural framing inherent in the event’s location choice.
7. Playful but Absurd Elements (Donuts & 5G Flavors)
Inserting playful elements like donuts on a wall labeled with “5G flavors” serves to soften the gravity of complex and potentially invasive technological themes. Such whimsical touches can distract attendees from engaging critically with the serious nature of the infrastructure and surveillance being promoted.
8. Press & Alcohol as Soft Power Tactics
Integrating alcohol into interactions with press and vendors functions as an informal influence strategy, fostering rapport and lowering critical defenses. This highlights how social dynamics are deliberately cultivated alongside formal messaging.
9. Accessibility and Acoustic Challenges in Venue
Poor acoustics combined with ambient crowd noise undermined attendees’ ability to clearly hear and absorb crucial information. This barrier affected who could fully engage with the presentations, implicitly shaping the information flow.
10. Rapid AI-Powered Face Scan Photo Retrieval
The seamless integration of AI-enabled face-scanning technology for instant photo retrieval showcases how biometric surveillance has become normalized in everyday event experiences, blending convenience with pervasive data collection.
11. Humanizing Moments Amid the Hype
Observations of staff quietly managing injuries or attendees casually joking about yoga offered a grounding perspective on the event, revealing the human realities behind the polished corporate façade.
12. Kids as Symbolic Props
The display of faded photos of international children positioned as symbols of the “global future” subtly critiques the gap between technological ambition and tangible human impact, especially when these symbols appear neglected or incidental.
13. Agenda as Behavioral Funnel
The event’s scheduling—long breaks, sequential keynotes, and social gatherings—appeared structured to gradually shift attendees’ mindsets from passive observers to engaged collaborators, illustrating how programming itself acts as a tool for persuasion.
14. Data on People Displayed Publicly
The open handling of personal data, visible in attendee profiling, exemplifies modern acceptance of datafication, where personal information is both a resource and an object of social navigation within industry events.
15. Overconfidence in Surveillance & Tech
The casual celebration of advanced surveillance capabilities, such as tracking without cameras, signals an industry culture increasingly comfortable with pervasive monitoring and the business opportunities it presents.
16. Subtle Social Engineering
The explicit cautionary advice on engaging with specific badge holders reveals underlying social dynamics and controlled information flow, highlighting how trust and access are managed beyond formal event structures.
17. Frictionless Yet Controlled Entry
While technologies like face scans and passwordless entry promised convenience, their deployment alongside deliberately challenging access points reveals a nuanced balance between user experience and behavioral control.
18. Human Experience Overlaid by Corporate Messaging
The contrast between authentic human moments and the event’s aspirational slogans about innovation and mindsets underscores an ongoing tension between corporate narratives and lived realities within technological showcases.
This is the #1 tech company in the world at the moment, for what they do. They lead the way in what is normal. But if this was said outloud, if a narrator were to have said outloud the experience attendees were having… would there have been a reaction? Maybe in “the movies”? For me there is. Here.
Here were my notes from the event:
Top company in their work
They were the first to have 5g advanced, advanced capabilities
Whats that mean? advanced capabilites. i’m a person who totally is suspicious of 5g towers. so what the heck are advanced capabilites????
First in the country to do (slicing?) as a product. Shook up the whole first responding space.
Why use 10yo old tech and (idk)
bro, like your 5 year old copyright outside saying you can use our face for anything!?
His voice/accent is hard to understand and it’s a lot of peopel talking around me where i’m sitting. This couch to the side cause there weren’t any seats.
First responder agents (idk)
Now they’re doing supermobile. T-satellite, direct to cell service. As well as idk?
I’m going to eat. Then write notes.
- The guys working here (or just dressed profesionally, i’m not sure) have pages printed, stapled, of attendees on spreadsheets with pics of them and notes on them. Like info. like a traveling fraternity recruitment thing on animal house but on hand. with people’s faces and sorted in a sheet!!
never saw this in real life. wow. who are they scouting?
I ate a lot of veggies - and they had popcorn there. Movie theater popcorn.
It reminded me of when I was a young kid - the combo of me having my hair like infront of my eyes on purpose and seeing the word, “movie theater popcorn” - it reminded me of when I was a tween, out to the movies with my older neighbor andthen this weid guy came and sat next to me one seat away in a nearly empty theater - and then started trying to m0l3st me. you know? and then i was really not sure waht to do cause my neighbor was right next to me and i ddint wanna seem “uncool” cause she was older and smoked. But I was freaking out and I remember spying on him through my hair, and idk i dont remembe rhow it ended but i think i got up or something and eventually he moved away? idk - but he tried to touch me right there.
Then I told her later, on the drive home, what had happened. My cool older neighbor. And she said don’t tell my parents. I don’t remember if I did or not. But, it was a lot ot carry and very confusing. I remember havnig huge anxiety and depression at that time - and just a lot of stress, so stuff like that piled ontop as just so much confusion in life, what to do now? What a weird thing to experiene and it made me more fearful of men. Soon after hat I was sent to an all girls school for a while.
This combo reminded me of that. Then I sat back down.
Now a guy is giddy on stage, behind him it sayis something bout a castle - and then some other words but I can’t see. it’s changing sorta often.
He says it’s important s tehy move forward nad decide where tech is going. He’s been here a long time, many have been here a while. Started back in 1G days - and we didnt call it that, it was the only G, we didnt know
Build a network - that was the goal. They did pretty good. Only 8% drop call rate (some of the audience chuckles)
But still peopel behind me are talking a lot.
They built and built and built and now they’re the best. It’s cause they’ve been grinding away. But now we have this, this amazing network, so let’s do something amazing. So we’ve been working on doing amazing things… one is to build the fastest home internet service provided in teh USA.
You know what? You can probably run your home on 5G and maybe no one though to this. Maybe we can do 100,000 on a good day (what?) - but now we have millions.
- and it doesn’t work good, it works great
We figured out one good thing with 5g… what else?
5g is actually standard global. Not only do they were how it wshould work, but newscasts are suggestive by standard bodies… shoutout to cari (?) you write hte bast standards.
Idk what he said actually
It’s so hard to hear there are people near me talking a lot. Its crazy. Lol. This venue is not suitable for listening unless you’re in the tiny crowd of chairs they have. I need to go find a seat. I’ll get up and move.
Every flavor of 5g hanging on that wall
the only thing i see hanging on the wall is donuts. and i dont even like that.
but i do like eating donuts - so i had one there. chocolate with frosting. but also i was like… bro, i just want donuts to be donuts.
Want collaborators, want use cases, challenges
Also while I was waiting for food I hear a guy talk about necklaces - the name tags. Black are for staff, pink are everyone random, and then white is for people who are vendors, speakers, or press - he advised his friend to be careful with what he said to anyone wearing white - nothing forward thinking.
i’m like bro, and pink. (cause mine was pink) - hahah. but actually, no. I was like - no, i am not about to go spy on that guy. not today. this is already a lot and let’s just try to learn from the people…. (but, if i do happen to hear/see him later, you know… what color badge is he talkign to, you know what I’m saying 😂🙄📉)
They’re doubling down on the wireless industry - but also how peopel live nad work.
Reimagine how we work, deeper collaboration more meaningful outcomes.
Innovate - bold ideas take shape and innovation thrives - building the future, solving real problems, we want you. This is where the truth lives.
Made with several programs. Innvoation hub, connect center, and the accelerator.
This is just the beginning. Innovate with us.
Ohhh so what? Is this for partners? I don’t get what the point of this event is.
This is who we are. Not a moment, but a mindset.
A new guy on stage says they’re updating and trying to simplify this. T-innovate which will move forward the future of wireless and tmobolie tech.
- They’re here to solve real world challenges - improve something that others haven’t done before. And look forward to collaboration. Once place to do this is here in this building, in this facility as the innovation hub
Lolll then the lights theatrically turn on hahahah
A guy is here - talking to the table where near where I have lunch, while the speech is going on. A guy asks if they’re ready? (for the audience interaction)
- he said it’s a lot of interest already.
The guy says enthusiastically, “you’re going to be the star”
- their company track people, using 5G/6G to track humans ,vehicles,’ drones, - all without cameras or devices.
Now they talk about their recent holiday.
Lol while thi guy is still giving a speech.
They’re excited about this turnout. And they’re now excited about buying this spot/booth in the layout. The guy did a fist pump and said this spot/location in the venue is the best.
The guy on stage is still just talking about hte venue, the rooms, how they can iuse it to host workshops, demonstrations, it’s a multipurpose facility (dude yeah! This venue is HUGE and they shoudl have it booked daily, if you wanna hear me be dramatic)
- Internal, ideas wanna be hard - external people, we’re glad you’re here.
We’re not just up here talking about innovation. No. Some of it is in use and on display today.
- For us it’s not just about align about thinking and showing pretty slides. We want to talk about it and live it.
LOL omg this face scanning thing
He said seamless energy - there was virtually no line to get in when you scanned your face ahead of time.
Someoen even asked me “how do I get through faster?? get through this line faster?” - thats a way tech can come in and start to improve experiences nad make a difference in terms of how you come into an event and waht that means
Lol bro they made it difficult on purpose
They do network slicing, despite how many (idk what he said) may be in the building .
idk what slicing is… should we look it up? later… sometimes ignorance is bliss, right?
okay, its later- here’s waht chate gpt said:
“In 5G networks, “slicing” (short for network slicing) means dividing a single physical 5G network into multiple virtual networks, each customized for a specific use case.
Think of it like a highway:
Instead of every vehicle sharing the same lanes, you can carve out dedicated lanes for ambulances, buses, or bicycles.
In 5G, that means one “slice” could be designed for first responders (low latency, high reliability), another for gaming or video streaming (high bandwidth), and another for IoT devices (lots of small connections, energy efficient).
Each slice can be isolated and independently managed, even though they’re all running on the same physical 5G infrastructure.
This is different from just giving someone more bandwidth—slicing allows guaranteed performance and tailored network features for each group or application.
Do you want me to break down how companies are actually using slicing right now (like emergency services, factories, or events), or just keep it conceptual?”
let’s stop it now. that sounds too fascinating, but we’re in the middle of a blog.
Back to the blog:
We want to move from teh front door to the backdoor without having to do any infrascuture or cabling.
just makes me think of Josie & The Pussycats: “Back Door Lover”
With wireless connectivity, we dont need to worry about pulling up cables and installing. A lot of flexibility it provides oil this case.
We’re gonna see over tie more of those systems coming into place at events.
One of the things I like about it is your’e not pillion your phone, looking for your code, trying to get a scan, or forgetting your password , IT’s literally just way right in and all they have to do is scan your face. Huge improvements there.
bro. you’re joking. look in the mirror and say that to yourself with your loved ones watching, and dlook them in the eyes. is this human improvement for what we need right now? just curious if you’d really believe this or you’re paid well for it.
We stated with the MLB for fan entry + back of house staff access . Verifying people on site or who they are supposed to be.
Not only fans but also securing your footprint.
Otof opportuntiy for this tech;. As we move forward.
- As we carry forward you can see Philip over here, a 5G connected camera. That’s a 5G camera. With a high vision coder - go in the back and learn more about that. It allows us to connect here, using both lowland and highland for ultra reliable and fast connection.
that’s the guy i shoo’ed away i think.
We can deliver low latency broadcast as required. Right into the production booth they’re using the so folks on linkedin are also seeing that footage
- There’s a guy here working who seems to have really hrt his foot. He’s like stregthicn near me but trying to be discrete. It always make me sad to see peopel in pain. But I bet he shoudl enjoy the 1,000 person yoga. He’s so funny cause suddenly now it seems liek teh only thing he wants to do is yoga/stretch but instead he’s just fitting into theis event and pretedngin to be comfortable. You always want what you an’t have.
Portable data transmitter. Photos instantly uploaded into the cloud and processing is being done. It’s all Ai based, going through and sleectng the best ones - any it’s been traied with their editing style. So it’s updating the photos in their style. Getting them published and then available in a short amount. Of time.
Hundreds of thousands of photos processed automatically. T’s fast and efficient.
If you get in a shot, you’ll have the ability to scan a AR code, take a look, and go get your own stuff.
You’ll see that QR code there - it’ll be around teh rest of the day.
- Scan now, get a shot of your face, and there yo u go. There are all the ones where I’m in it.makes me so glad i got rid of social media. a bit more detached.
It’s powerful but even you can see the side of my face. Pretty detailed matching of a person. Its huge and pweorufl to be able to do all this - its enabled an event like this.
You can also download them right away,
I have hardly taken a picture of myself - outside of work, for kelly tutors - for like literally YEARS cause now I got rid of my social media. You realize there is no need. Hy/. Hahah Why do I need a pic of myself? I can look in the mirror anytime.
It makes less sense when you stop usign social media.
PUSH TO TALK staff communications.
OMG I wanna go walk around while this guy infomercials
- Then a host comes up and says they’ll take a 90 minute break. SO LONG. We only just got here. Then the other problem is all these keynotes just feature people’s names, not hte toipc/info
But apparently the topics later are about like “cloud” and stuff. But by the time that starts, I have another meeting. So… you know. I saw literally PLENTY. More than enough here.
- I’m ready for US Cellular to be available here. Hahah. I wanna see if the team I’m cheering for can steal the market. I think they’re well intended.
I think it’s weird they were keeping press ready, getting to know people, then getting them drunk at happy hour.
And why are they attached to the ballet school? I dont’ get it. It’s like you stop by one hour a day. Is a school nearby so yo uleave work take your kid to ballet and then take them home. Its like on the campus. Just makes no logical sense. hHahah but if they ever miss a recital WOW thats impressive. you know the stereotype of missing the recitle Hahah here there is no excuse. its your neighbor.
-MY daughter did ballet classes for a bit but it was nonstop like “make a pizza with your legs”, yo’ure a butterfly/panda/rabbit/elephant, whisper and tell secrets - and then these stories of older jealous men finding sweet girls in the woods and dancing till they’re so tired… part of the curriculum. So, eventually she got sick of it and I was pleased.
I’ll write more on this below, soon but…. I’ve said it many times now:
THE WORD NEEDS MORE SOCIAL DANCE. And options: socializing, exercise, rhythm, showing up skills, dressing up, learning, surprise, endorphins, often nice locations, I mean, physical touch! Come on. Social dance heals so much of these things, but “lots of peopel there” is the best, too!! Not only just performative dance like ballett, my opinion.
Overall Event Review Further Elaborated:
Venue: This place was hard to get to but still kinda neat to see. Like “wow! this company is huge” from what I saw. Though strange stuff around - in the sense of like “where is the culture?! and things to do or parks or peacefulness or restaurants and - what is this ballet school attached on campus?? or is that just like how it is around here? just strange - and it may not have been attached-attached, but like you’re like looking around and see their building, their building, their building - oH! what? their buidling and next to it is… that??
Food: Great, endless food. I was super hungry and they had enough food for everyone. lots of variety of choices and the chia with fruit and yoghurt was amazing. right now i’m hungry while typing but now i’m like - omg … i have chia seeds and yoghurt. and fruit! plums/prunes. so… omg. that’ll be my dessert when i finish this. and some leftover chicken i cooked lasdt night. hahahaha anyway. this event had good food and even boxed food to go. Which I took and left.
Speaker Content: Hard to hear and also infomercially, I wrote plenty above.
Networking: no - easy to meet no one. All on you. You know? Plus necklace color seemed to matter and I was a commoner.
LIkeliness to Return: idk. I wanna hear and learn more. Then again, I guess I coudl have, but a lot about this event surprised me - and I had other plans later that day. And i just didn’t wanna get my face there to be used for “any reason!” cause I am a creative thinker. you know? uugh. eew. i mean, oof. really i was walking around like samara.
searchlink- Samara from “The Ring”, 2002
Until next time, I wish you the motivation and success to search for opportunities around your area. Search and explore: Who is out there giving talks? There are new things happening all of the time.
Find relatable or interesting topics you like and check them out! Maybe even something hosted at a cool venue, if there’s no other reason to go. Let’s see what you can learn and discover not too far from home. 😊
