Have you ever heard someone say, “Well, that wasn’t on my 2025 bingo board!” after something unexpected happened? If you haven’t, let me introduce you to an event-based bingo board, where we make 25 predictions and check them off as they occur! Unlike regular bingo, this won’t be competitive, but rather a fun, casual and interactive way to track some top-level events in the RF/microwave industry.

Before we launch into the introduction of each square, let’s go over the order of operations and a few rules.

How it Works:

For every square we cross off, we’ll post a new blog explaining why. We’ll also have a small section at the end of each blog to provide progress updates on other squares.

How Do We Cross Off a Square? This is where you, our readers, come in! Has your company recently accomplished something that you think matches a bingo box? Did you see a press release that could be applicable? Send it to us and specify which square you think we should cross off, and we’ll take a look! If we agree that your event meets the criteria, we’ll cross off the square and blog about it! Simple as that. The center and corner boxes are “freebies” — we’ll cross them off post-event with a blog summary of the event.

BINGO Rules:

B: Be sure to include your sources! We will assume anything sent (i.e. press releases, photos, etc.) are okay for us to share. If they are not, please specify.

I: If all 25 predictions came true, I would have to quit as Technical Editor and become a full-time fortune teller or lottery player. Not every square will get checked off, and that’s okay! This will become an annual blog, and we can carry over squares that might still happen!

N: No direct promotional content, please. We love hearing about your wins, but we have different channels for that. (Let me know and I can connect you to the correct team).

G: Go easy on us! This is bingo launch #1, and every good final article has a rough draft. This is the rough draft, and we’re excited to see the bingo board improve year over year.

O: Optional: Send in partials! For example, if drone deliveries are expanded but not at 10+ states yet, let us know and we’ll provide an update in a baby blog! Also, if a square has been crossed off and there’s more news, still let us know. We’re here to spread good info!

Square-by-Square:

EMC+SIPI 2025: We’ll recap the 2025 IEEE International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility, Signal and Power Integrity, taking place in Raleigh in August.

New metamaterial enters full-rate production: We’ll cross this square off when a metamaterial becomes widely used across an industry sector and makes it beyond academia and research levels.

Drone delivery is offered in 10+ states: Currently, a few states have zones with drone delivery — whether it's mail, packages or takeout. We’ll cross this square off when we reach ten different states with these services!

ORAN is commercialized: We’ll cross off this box when Radio Access Network (RAN) graduates from a proprietary network segment to an open network segment and becomes more widely available.

EuMW 2025: We’ll recap European Microwave Week 2025, taking place in Utrecht in September!

The Supreme Court of the United States rules on a major AI case: While a strong tool, AI is beginning to ruffle feathers in many academic and industry sectors. As we see more pushback, we’ll see more court involvement. We’ll cross this off when a matter concerning AI makes it to SCOTUS.

Key merger in the drone industry: The drone industry is buzzing (literally and figuratively)! As smaller companies gain traction, we expect some larger entities to acquire them to strengthen their technologies and eliminate competition. We’ll cross off this box when we see a large drone company acquire a small, growing player.

New multiport connector architecture: The connector and connectorized component industries are making significant progress, but most solutions have the same basic structure on a smaller scale. We’ll cross this box off when a brand-new idea hits the market.

NASA mitigates sonic boom: NASA is working on an aircraft that will turn a sonic boom into a sonic “thump.” This has big implications for military and commercial air travel. We’ll cross off this box when they achieve this goal!

20+ U.S. airports implement THz screening: Airports are quickly upgrading scanners to ease travel and detect more materials. These THz scanners are gaining traction in Europe, and we think they’ll make their way to the U.S. soon. We’ll cross off this box when we know of more than 20 commercial airports with them.

Autonomous ride sharing is available in 10+ U.S. cities: I’m sure all IMS 2025 attendees saw the autonomous cars around San Francisco. They’re in a few other cities as well, but we’ll only cross this off when they’re in ten or more cities.

New University RF program or lab is introduced: Like many industries, RF is facing a challenge concerning workforce development. We’ll cross this box off when a university announces a new program or lab dedicated to RF.

IMS 2025 (free square!): We’ll recap International Microwave Symposium 2025, which took place in San Francisco in June!

FDA approves a new RF medical device: We’re seeing an uptick in academic papers on RF medical devices, and given the positive initial findings, we think they could make it through the FDA approval process soon. When one does, we’ll cross off this box!

Operational RF-enabled 1000+ qubit quantum computer: Quantum computing has been a hot topic for years. As we approach 1000+ operational qubits, it will be a benchmark worth noting. When we do, we’ll cross off this box and review what RF technology enabled quantum technologists to reach this benchmark.

Satellite constellation rivals StarLink: StarLink is far ahead of other LEO constellations, both in revenue and in quantity of satellites. We’ll cross off this box when another LEO constellation launches or announces a larger satellite constellation.

eRedCap is commercialized: We’ll cross off this box when enhanced reduced capacity (eRedCap) is commercially available.

WRC 2027 agenda prompts proposal announcements: We’ll cross off this box once the World Radio Congress agenda is posted and an attending organization publishes its intent.

Five arenas replace MIMO with massive multibeam systems: Many arenas are using MIMO systems to deliver wireless service to large crowds. As massive multibeam gains traction, we predict a shift to passive systems. We’ll cross off this box when five or more arenas make this switch.

6G graduates from R&D: We’ll check off this box when we hear an announcement on the next phase of 6G: pre-commercial implementation. As 5G reaches maturity, we expect post-test motion in the 6G realm.

Satellite 2026: We’ll recap Satellite Show 2026, taking place in Washington, DC in March!

A new U.S. foundry is announced and backed by the CHIPS Act: As global trade relations remain uncertain, the U.S. is investing in efforts to bring manufacturing back to U.S. soil. The CHIPS Act is a concerted effort to accomplish this, and we’ll cross this box off if a major semiconductor company announces a new foundry in the U.S.

3D-printed RF element goes to full-rate production: As 3D printing gains traction as a quick, affordable manufacturing option, companies are exploring new materials. Multiple companies are working on RF elements, and we’ll cross this box off when one of these efforts graduates from a research experiment to a full-rate production product.

AI EDA program produces the first usable chip: EDA groups are implementing AI to take over simple tasks so RF engineers can spend more time applying their expertise. As EDA turns to AI to create “first draft” designs, they have yet to produce a usable chip in design round 1. When this happens, we’ll cross off this box.

MWC Barcelona 2026: We’ll recap Mobile World Congress Barcelona 2026, taking place in March!