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AT&T's Biggest Fiber Year Yet - and a Satellite Launch Too

The company expects to add 7 million fiber passings and launch a direct-to-device satellite service by year’s end.

Georgina Mackie

May 19, 2026 — 2 min read

Photo of AT&T CEO John Stankey from CNBC.

May 19, 2026 – AT&T is accelerating fiber expansion and preparing to launch a direct-to-device satellite service this year, CEO John Stankey told investors Tuesday.

Stankey said AT&T would add 7 million new fiber passings this year - a record pace - and press ahead with its AST SpaceMobile satellite partnership even as a broader wireless carrier joint venture works through regulatory approvals.

“We've never had a year like the one we're going to have this year,” Stankey said, speaking at the JP Morgan global technology, media and communications conference. “That is the foundation of where growth comes from.”