• US government body the NTIA is revamping its areas of focus
• It has identified the need for the US and its allies to get more involved in standards-setting processes as the 6G era approaches 
• It also wants the US to be at the forefront of AI-native RAN architecture developments
• And it’s shifting what grants it still has away from its previous Open RAN focus and towards AI-RAN

The US Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which advises the President on communications, broadband and internet policy and which is responsible for distributing what is left of the Wireless Innovation Fund grants, is switching the focus of its funding from Open RAN to AI-RAN. 

The move was signalled in late February by Arielle Roth, the US administration’s assistant secretary of commerce for communications and information and administrator of the NTIA, when she gave an address at the Media Institute Communications Forum Luncheon Series on 25 February. 

Roth covered  a broad range of topics during her speech, including standardisation and AI infrastructure. 

She noted: “One of the most critical things we are focused on at NTIA is increasing US participation and leadership at standards-setting bodies. Organisations like 3GPP set the technical frameworks that will define next-generation networks. I attended a 3GPP meeting last year, and it was very clear that if the United States is not present, engaged, and leading in these bodies, others” – could that be China? – “will be – and the standards that emerge will reflect their priorities, not ours. We are working to bolster America’s presence at 3GPP to ensure technical specifications accommodate America’s leading role in international spectrum policy.”

Roth continued: “Similarly, we must remain vigilant against efforts to transform the ITU into a centralised ‘internet regulator’. Certain member states have advanced proposals to convert the ITU’s mandate from technical coordination toward a broader regulatory or governance role over the internet, most recently at last December’s World Summit on the Information Society. This would shift decision-making authority from decentralised private sector innovators and engineers to a forum where many member states reject free expression as a governing principle. NTIA is showing up at international meetings, from Azerbaijan to China, to push back against mission creep and efforts by our adversaries to fundamentally change the character of the internet. That is also why leadership at the ITU matters – and why the US supports the reelection of Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin to keep the ITU anchored in transparency and its core technical mission.” 

“We also must be proactive when it comes to next-generation networks. Ensuring the widespread adoption of a trusted 6G stack is foundational to achieving America’s vision of a free and decentralised internet – one built on secure and trusted architecture rather than state-directed models. That’s why we’re working with US companies and other trusted partners and supporting innovations like AI-native RAN. 

“To drive further development of US-based AI-native RAN architecture, NTIA will launch a new Notice of Funding Opportunity in the coming months to explore how the US can promote a domestic, exportable AI-native 6G stack using the Innovation Fund’s remaining $50m. This initiative advances the administration’s AI Action Plan and strengthens our effort to build and export a secure American AI technology stack.”

In advance of the launch of that notice of funding opportunity, the NTIA has announced it is hosting a public listening session on 23 March to “gather input from stakeholders and the broader public”. 

Now, $50m isn’t much in the scheme of things but it seems likely there might be more to follow. Initially, the NTIA had been handed a $1.5bn slice of the Chips and Science Act funding to “support the development of open and interoperable networks” through the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund (aka the Wireless Innovation Fund), and had been distributing funds to various Open RAN-related companies, including in late 2024 $273m to companies engaging in Open RAN radio unit research and development activities. 

But President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was passed in July 2025, rescinded the $850m of Wireless Innovation Fund cash that had not been allocated. 

It seems, however, that $50m was left in the purse and if the US wants to be the world’s AI-RAN powerhouse then it’s hard to imagine there won’t be more where that came from.  

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV