Broadband is entering a new phase defined by how networks perform at scale, support seamless experiences, and adapt as both demand and threats evolve. Over the past year, CableLabs has focused on technologies highlighted in its Technology Vision, a roadmap to prepare the industry for this next era of broadband innovation.
In 2025, CableLabs made progress across access technologies, security and emerging network capabilities, advancing network performance with a focus on scalable deployment and enhancing experiences.
Advancing Scalable Network Performance
Evolving DOCSIS® technology remained a core foundation for hybrid fiber coax (HFC) networks, supporting continued evolution without disrupting existing infrastructure. DOCSIS 4.0 interoperability milestones throughout the year demonstrated increasing ecosystem maturity, including multi-vendor configurations achieving record-setting 16 Gbps downstream and validating readiness for commercial deployment.
CableLabs also certified the first DOCSIS 3.1+ device with four orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) channels, which delivers meaningful capacity gains without requiring plant upgrades. The certification demonstrated how DOCSIS technology continues to extend network capacity through incremental, deployable advances.
In addition, the introduction of the DOCSIS 4.0 Optional Annex pushes HFC spectrum up to 3 GHz (~25 Gbps), demonstrating how far existing infrastructure can scale while highlighting deployment considerations related to power requirements, amplifier density and cost.
From Speed to Experience
2025 also marked a clear pivot toward experience-driven innovation. As connectivity becomes ubiquitous, what differentiates networks is no longer throughput alone, but how seamlessly they adapt to users, devices and environments.
Context-aware networking initiatives advanced this shift by rethinking how devices are recognized across operator footprints, reducing friction, eliminating manual onboarding and enabling connectivity that simply follows the user. Similarly, CableLabs’ work on Seamless Connectivity Services and Mobile Optionality brought us closer to networks that dynamically adapt across access types, supporting reliability rather than forcing tradeoffs.
Wi-Fi innovation reflected the same priorities. From tackling “sticky Wi-Fi” challenges to advancing Low Latency, Low Loss, Scalable throughput (L4S), the focus stayed squarely on delivering consistent, interactive experiences.
Building Intelligence and Trust Into the Network
CableLabs successfully field-tested agentic AI technology, demonstrating how autonomous, multi-agent systems can operate as a virtual team of experts. These systems showed potential to reduce service disruptions, accelerate troubleshooting and enable proactive maintenance, a critical step toward adaptive networking that acts before users feel an issue.
Regarding network security, CableLabs continued to collaborate with a number of cybersecurity organizations, collaborating on best practices. CableLabs also continued to prepare the industry for emerging cryptographic threats, including post-quantum threats, while strengthening protections across home, enterprise and core network environments.
Expanding the Ecosystem, Together
Interoperability played a critical role across access, optical, wireless and security advancements in 2025. CableLabs continued to make advancements in XGS-PON and Coherent PON, including developing the industry’s first single-wavelength 100 Gbps PON specifications.
CableLabs also evaluated emerging technologies like distributed fiber optic sensing and satellite-terrestrial integration, with a focus on real-world applicability.
O-RAN PlugFests and Open AFC collaboration reinforced the same principle across wireless domains: innovation accelerates when it is shared, tested and validated across stakeholders.
Turning the Vision Into What’s Next
The progress made in 2025 demonstrates how the CableLabs Technology Vision is taking shape across the industry. That momentum now carries into the next phase of collaboration, where ideas move faster from lab to deployment and where interoperability, intelligence and security are built directly into network design and operations.
To see where this vision is headed next — and how the industry can help shape it — join us at CableLabs Tech Summit 2026. Tech Summit — April 27–29 in Westminster, Colorado — will bring together CableLabs member operators and exhibiting vendors for two days of strategic collaboration, practical insights and technology.