Alright. I will be writing this again in 10-minute chunks of time. Apparently. Let’s talk about today. My calendar was full to the brim with appointments and I got to check out the tech and insights from:

• Christie
• Yealink
• SCT
• HDBaseT
• Navori Labs
• PlexusAV
• Bolin Technology
• Epson
• Visionary Solutions

I entrusted Gary with running around the show floor and keeping his eyes peeled for anything that he thinks I should check out. And he really wanted me to tell you guys about ROE Visual/CecoCeco’s ArtMorph solution. I honestly haven’t seen anything like it. Here’s the promo video:

So yes, if you have questions after that … so do I. How did they develop an LED that shines perfectly through fabric and other (thicker) materials? I have been saying that there needs to be a Samsung Frame type answer for places like museums, corporate lobbies, hotel lobbies, etc. in which you need something that looks good even when it’s off. And that’s this! I’m in love with it. I’m just mad that Gary saw it first!

In terms of the other booths I visited on this day (listed above), I talked with most of these people about trends. And the trend everyone brings up? AI. It’s being utilized in ways I haven’t even been able to fathom. From content creation in digital signage to room monitoring in meeting spaces, it almost seems like our industry is finally starting to figure out how best to use it: to help make people’s lives easier. I maintain that AI will never be able to replace most of our jobs or do too many of our tasks, but it can take the most boring parts of our tasks away. And that’s pretty cool!

For example, here is my interview with Issa Makemreh at Navori Labs. Navori specializes in digital signage solutions and AI-driven marketing analytics but the company also makes hardware like the StiX series of media player devices. In this, we talk about what about them is AI-driven and how exactly AI is driving the company.

It’s interviews like this that make me feel less squirrelly about where the industry is going. I still feel incredibly curmudgeonly about the use/overuse of AI, but we move. It’s not like it’s going anywhere so as long as I can see and understand the good it’s doing the industry, that’s probably enough.

You might be wondering how I spent my after hours time. I have a very strict rule. One party per evening. And this evening was reserved for Shure. This was my favorite Shure party I’ve ever attended — I was even brave and talked to people. And while you may think, “Steph, you talk to everyone. You love to talk.” I do! Until I’m forced to. Networking feels like pulling teeth for me sometimes but everyone at this party was so nice! However, it did help that I had some rAVe backup.

I wish I had gotten some videos — the performers were actually so good! Maybe next year I’ll be better at gathering content. It’s important that we all have goals. More discoveries (and probably another party) coming tomorrow — stay tuned.