As artificial intelligence becomes a key part of national infrastructure, developers across the United States are rushing to build large data centers in many regions. Many of these areas haven’t seen this level of industrial growth in decades, and these projects appear to bring the promise of jobs and economic growth to communities that need it. Despite the potential for renewed prosperity, local residents are opposing data centers. Most cite environmental impacts and increasing energy costs as major concerns. Are these worries based in reality? If not, where are they originating from, and how can we address these narratives?

To discuss this, I am joined by Lynne Kiesling and Steve DelBianco. Lynne is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where she leads the Electricity Technology, Regulation, and Market Design Working Group. She also directs the Institute for Regulatory Law and Economics at the Northwestern University Center on Law, Business, and Economics, and is a member of the US Department of Energy’s Electricity Advisory Committee. Steve is the president and CEO of NetChoice, where he collaborates with its members to protect online free enterprise and free expression. He is a seasoned expert on internet governance.

The GPS is essential to modern navigation, communication, and critical infrastructure. However, the United States faces serious threats to GPS technology, many of which are rarely discussed publicly. In addition to the looming threat from Russian and Chinese weaponry, increasing orbital debris and severe space weather have the potential to damage or destroy American satellites, causing a complete collapse of our navigational systems. A sustained disruption could significantly impair navigation, timing, and communications systems nationwide.

America has more satellites than any other country, and our economy depends heavily on space-based positioning, navigation, and timing services. Former members of the National Security Council and outside advisers have called GPS “a single point of failure for America.”

To discuss this matter, Shane is joined by two experts in GPS policy. Dana A. Goward is president of the Resilient Navigation and Timing Foundation and a former member of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Advisory Board, which advises the government on GPS policy. He took this role after retiring from service in the Coast Guard and as the United States maritime navigation authority. Also joining Shane is Coast Guard Rear Admiral Jeff Hathaway (ret.), a longtime navigator and board member of the foundation.

Innovations in drone technology have expanded their usefulness and made drones increasingly present in everyday life. Despite this progress, key limitations such as short battery life and limited payload capacity have hindered their full potential in critical infrastructure. That reality is beginning to shift. Recent breakthroughs in long-endurance flight are pushing drones beyond these limits and into entirely new possibilities. As these advances reshape what drones can do, we must ask: What new possibilities do these breakthroughs unlock? And what might these possibilities mean for our everyday lives?

In this episode, Shane is joined by Brian Hinman, the founder and CEO of SiFly, and John Donovan, the CEO of Qudit Investments and a board member at Palo Alto Networks and Lockheed Martin. As leaders of these innovations in drone technology, they draw on their extensive experience in aviation, defense, and technology to help us explore how this next phase of drone development could change the way we think about infrastructure, emergency response, and the future of aviation itself.