It’s the last day for LAVNCH WEEK 13, rAVe’s virtual event series that combines thought leadership, education and AV product updates. The theme for today? ProAV. Presenters emphasized the future of the AV industry, with a growing presence of AI and emerging technologies. Here is a wrap-up of the day’s content.
From Connecting Technology to Connected Intelligence: Reimagining AV in the AI Era
To kick off the day, AVI-SPL’s Julian Phillips delivered a keynote on what the future of the AV industry might look like and how AI fits into it all. He began the presentation by proposing a question to keep in mind throughout his keynote: “How certain are you of the world, as it is today?”
He made it clear that things are changing, but some things stay the same: The role of AV professionals is to be storytellers, connectors and real-timers.
“I think it’s really important that we remember, outside of the technology we provide, the outcome we are seeking is to help our customers to tell their story,” he said.
Phillips also highlighted three elements that will allow the industry to rethink the future of technology: Unthink, Unmake, Reimagine.
He ended the presentation with insight into how to coexist with AI. “AI will do amazing things, but AV knowledge and skills enable people to deliver shared human experiences,” Phillips said.
The State of the Integration Industry: What’s Changing in 2026
Next up, Steph Beckett and NSCA’s Tom Leblanc chatted about what’s new and changing in ProAV integration this year. LeBlanc shared about the topics covered at NSCA’s recent business and leadership conference and what leadership looks like in an uncertain and changing market.
Leblanc also dove into evolving customer expectations, particularly regarding AI and cybersecurity, and how to navigate them and capitalize on new opportunities. The session ended with a conversation about the upcoming release of NSCA’s quarterly integration market economic report and its projections for this year.
Designing the Room Around the Display: How Display Choices Shape AV System Design
In the first panel of the day, sponsored by ViewSonic, Beckett chatted with ViewSonic’s Shane Roma, CTI’s Tim Kersting and UCLA’s Joe Way. The group opened with a discussion about the importance of individual displays and mic placement in overall room design and experiences.
Here are a few key takeaways from their conversation:
- Way stressed understanding what the room will be used for in deciding how to integrate the technology.
- Kersting spoke about the importance of experiencing the space before implementing and installing displays and mics.
- The group covered some of the challenges of retrofitting spaces and implementing displays. Way shared the importance of designing in real life, not just on paper.
The panel ended with advice for the number one priority for choosing what display to go in a space: the user experience.
Future-Ready ProAV: Building Secure, Interoperable Systems for Always-On Experiences
In the final session of the day, sponsored by Zones, Steph Beckett hosted Jeff Cobb and Sean Hobday to chat about creating and implementing systems for the future of always-on experiences. The group started with a conversation about how the rise of always-on AV systems has shifted expectations, particularly in security.
Next, Cobb dove into what true interoperability looks like. “True interoperability is that all of these disparate systems that are coming under one umbrella, you can see them in the same way, you can manage them in the same way, you can integrate them across systems the same way so that you’re reducing the number of one-offs.”
The panelists also chatted about proactive management of system health. “The first thing to help you proactively manage is to ensure that you set your standards, and understand your environment very well with strong asset management.”
This was just a recap of the day. If you want to watch the full event on demand, you can access it here. As a reminder, CTS credit can only be earned live.