Drones bring high-speed WiFi to rural Wisconsin

Wisconsin TeleLift founders Scott Williams and his wife, Greta, were working with a nonprofit in Africa doing conservation work in 2014 when they began using drones to help protect wildlife from poachers.

In 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic moved work, school, health care and more online, the Williamses—who had since moved back to Greta’s native Wisconsin—decided to put their technology to work in Wisconsin’s Northwoods.

Earlier this year, WEDC provided a $100,000 Capacity Building Grant to the Forest County Economic Development Partnership for a pilot program using Wisconsin TeleLift’s tethered, drone-based system to provide high-speed internet in rural areas....

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Ken Notes: Interesting, BUT if we want to solve rural internet access issues we must tie urban 5G systems to providing rural access. Other states are doing this successfully - We are not. We allow cell companies in the state to make billions and then pay them even more to provide rural access. We are nuts, we have the ability to trade for rural high speed internet at no cost. Does it work, lets see Rural Electric - CHECK, Rural Phones - CHECK, Rural Roads - CHECK, Rural Mail - CHECK. What am I missing?...