Along with the SCN Top 50 Systems Integrators 2025 list, we polled a selection of leading firms on current Pro AV industry trends.
What will be Pro AV’s hottest technology trends in 2026?
Todd Hutchins, AV Principal and CTO, USIS AV
AV as part of intelligent buildings. New construction is increasing across the country, especially in our New York metro area. This creates a larger opportunity to integrate AV into building management systems (BMS), facilitated by future-ready infrastructure. For property developers and owners, this translates into centralized monitoring for things like shared conference rooms and amenity spaces, with AV as part of that same dashboard as lighting, HVAC, and security.
Jeremy Elsesser, President and CEO, Level 3 Audiovisual
AI, networked AV, and software-defined AV are driving the biggest changes we have seen in years. These technologies are no longer emerging; they are here and reshaping how we design, deploy, and support systems. AI is improving automation and user experience. Networked AV gives us flexibility and scale. Software-defined AV is changing how we think about hardware altogether. The industry is shifting fast and the teams that lean into this evolution are going to lead it.
Ben Seiber, VP of Innovation, PTG
We believe the hottest trends in Pro AV will center around the integration of multiple technologies to create smarter, more connected, and more predictive environments. The industry is moving beyond standalone solutions toward ecosystems that seamlessly combine hardware, software, data, and AI to enhance both operational performance and the customer experience. Advanced monitoring and analytics will play a larger role, giving organizations real-time insight into the consumer experience, including dwell time, wait time, and engagement patterns. Sensors and AI-driven predictability will also gain significant traction. From anticipating system failures before they happen to dynamically adjusting content or audio based on environmental conditions, these technologies will shift AV from being reactive to truly proactive.
Musfik Dogancay, Executive Director, JKL Technologies
AI powered cameras, auto-framing speakers, and audio systems that are auto-adjusting DSPs to changing room acoustics are changing the user experience in conferencing spaces. In many products, the intelligence is driven simply by more capable algorithms and not true AI. Nevertheless, these breakthroughs have changed the expectations around the user experience in every single technology space. It has raised the bar significantly for what our industry needs to keep delivering.
Matt Thorne, EVP, ECC
We believe that hybrid work models will continue to drive enhanced meeting and training room spaces. A combination of AI-powered virtual meeting rooms spaces along with augmented and virtual reality technologies will push the limits of a physical meeting room. Also, migrating dual displays into a single 21:9 display will create a better experience for the end user while also minimizing design challenges for the AV designer.
Kris Begnaud, VP Sales, Data Projections
dvLED will continue to grow as prices come down and technology improves. More AV systems will be designed as network-native, cloud-ready, manageable over IP, less tied to legacy cabling or proprietary hardware.
Travis Askew, COO, Solutionz
Pro AV is shifting fast toward connected, intelligent systems powered by AI and smart automation. Cloud tools have changed what clients value most. They expect meeting spaces that do more but feel easier to use. Technology managers want systems that can see problems coming and fix them before anyone notices. The industry has moved past hardware specs. It is about connected intelligence and how well everything works together.
Keith Neubert, CEO, WPS
More than just a buzzword at this point, AI-integrated systems will continue to expand throughout the AV landscape, not just with conferencing systems like intelligent framing and isolation, but also in performance audio, broadcasting, control, and video. We expect that manufacturers will continue investing heavily in adaptive, self-learning technology that can adjust certain parameters based on sensor input from the system's overall environment.
Jon Fine, VP of Solution Architecture, Vision Technologies
In 2026, AI-powered meeting rooms and cloud-based AV management will take center stage. Smarter spaces will automatically adjust lighting, audio, and cameras for each meeting, making collaboration effortless and consistent across locations. Cloud management will let teams monitor, update, and troubleshoot AV systems remotely, reducing downtime and support costs. Together, these technologies will create more flexible, reliable, and user-friendly environments that fit the hybrid work model. The focus is shifting from complex, hardware-heavy installs to intelligent, software-driven systems that learn, adapt, and keep every meeting space ready at a moment’s notice.
Mike Cavanagh, President, Key Code Media
2026 will be the year AI-enabled workflows, hybrid event infrastructure, and IP-based, AV over network systems go fully mainstream. Clients are demanding smarter automation, predictive monitoring, and data-driven analytics across their AV and production environments. Technologies like NDI 6, Dante AV, IPMX, and SMPTE ST 2110 are now mature enough to deliver true interoperability between broadcast and AV workflows. We are also seeing rapid growth in cloud production and remote collaboration tools, no longer as temporary pandemic-era solutions but as permanent, integrated parts of facility designs. These technologies are enabling centralized management and more efficient use of AV resources, which is especially valuable as organizations look to reduce operational overhead.
