The 2026 trends in the Pro AV industry

The professional AV (Pro AV) industry is standing at a pivotal moment. As Sean Wargo of Apogee Insights outlined at ISE 2026, the sector is not just tracking alongside global economic growth – it is consistently outperforming it. Historically, Pro AV has delivered roughly a two‑point lift over GDP, meaning that in a world growing at around 3%, Pro AV growing at 5%+ annually is both reasonable and already observable.

This outperformance is not accidental. It is the result of structural shifts in how consumers spend, how enterprises compete, and how technology is deployed to create experiences rather than just “installations.” Those dynamics are now shaping a clear set of investment hotspots that are likely to define the next wave of growth in AV.

From macroeconomics to micro-experiences

Even amid macroeconomic uncertainty – geopolitics, tariffs, supply chain disruptions – global growth has proven more resilient than many forecast. For AV, the more important story is how that growth is being expressed: through experiences.

Consumer spending has remained robust, even as sentiment surveys suggest people feel cautious or pessimistic. Beneath that apparent contradiction lies a crucial shift. As Wargo noted, Gen Z is cutting back on traditional discretionary spend (like apparel and electronics) but paying a premium for “micro-luxuries” and experiences with social or emotional value.

That is precisely where Pro AV lives.

From venues, live events, stadiums, and hospitality to houses of worship and media environments, AV is the invisible infrastructure behind compelling experiences. Data from AVIXA’s IOTA report highlights that verticals most closely tied to experiential engagement are outperforming the broader market. Government, energy, and utilities remain solid, often recession‑resistant pillars, but venues, events, and experience-centric environments are increasingly where the upside lives.

For investors and operators alike, the message is straightforward: follow the experiences, and you’ll find the growth.

Integration and managed services

One of the clearest investment hotspots Wargo highlighted is integration and services. For years, the industry narrative has been dominated by hardware – displays, control systems, collaboration endpoints. Those remain important, but the growth engine is shifting.

From AVIXA data and platforms like Jetbuilt, several trends stand out:

• Integration services are growing faster than hardware. Services such as Cloud, remote management, and managed services are expanding at rates above the general market, with growth around the mid‑single digits and higher in specific niches
• Recurring revenue is no longer aspirational – it’s becoming the model. Integration firms are using managed services to break free from the old seven‑year “rip and replace” cycle and instead build ongoing, subscription-like relationships with clients
• Business toolkits are emerging as critical infrastructure. Platforms such as Jetbuilt, which manage project design, specification, and pipeline, are more than operational aids. They provide a real-time lens into future demand – which technologies, markets, and verticals are gaining traction long before revenue is booked

For investors, this points to a clear opportunity. Companies that successfully combine technical integration, data-driven operations, and recurring services are positioned to capture outsize share of AV’s growth.

Audio and the rebalancing of the AV stack

Another notable shift Wargo highlighted is a rebalancing of investment within AV systems. For roughly two decades, displays have been the star of the show. But recent project-level data suggests that audio is claiming a larger share of project budgets.

Enterprise and institutional buyers are putting more emphasis on sound quality – speech intelligibility, immersive audio, beamforming microphones, and echo cancellation – especially as hybrid work, remote participation, and experiential environments demand flawless audio.

This shift is already visible in deal activity: acquisitions around beamforming, audio processing, and audio over IP (such as Biamp-ClearOne, Ross Video’s audio-related expansions, and consolidation of premium audio brands under larger umbrellas) point to audio as a strategic battleground.

Investors looking for differentiated value in AV would be wise to pay close attention to innovative audio vendors, especially those tightly integrated with IP networked environments and Cloud workflows.

Software, AI, and the rise of the AV tech stack

If integration and audio are hot, software and AI are on fire!

Wargo called out standalone software – not just embedded code that ships with devices – as a key growth category. This includes:

• Design and documentation tools that automate drawings, specifications, and system recommendations
• Proposal and pipeline platforms that give integrators visibility and control across hundreds or thousands of projects
• Monitoring and management solutions that enable proactive support, SLA-driven managed services, and data-backed customer success

AI is becoming the multiplier on top of all this. In integration businesses, AI is starting to:

• Auto-generate designs and bill of materials
• Recommend products based on use case, environment, and budget
• Predict maintenance needs and optimise service routes

In broadcast and content creation, AI touches everything from automated camera tracking to intelligent editing and content personalisation.

In operations and investment, AI-driven analysis of deal flows shows increasing capital deployment towards companies that can credibly claim AI-enabled efficiency, optimisation, or security.

Data centres, streaming, and the infrastructure behind experiences

Another emerging hotspot is the data centre and network infrastructure layer that underpins modern AV.

Exploding demand for high-resolution streaming (1080p, 4K, and beyond), live events delivered over IP, and rich media services has driven a surge in data centre investment. While not all of that spend is labelled ‘AV’, AV is a direct demand driver:

More streaming → more bandwidth → more data centres and Edge infrastructure.

More real-time experiences → higher requirements for reliability, latency, and redundancy.

More AV-over-IP and Cloud production → deeper integration between AV, IT, and data centre ecosystems.

For AV stakeholders, this opens opportunities in smart networks, Cloud production, monitoring, and services that sit at the intersection of AV and IT – a fertile area for both strategic partnerships and acquisitions.

Consolidation and capital: where the money is moving

Finally, Wargo pointed to a steady drumbeat of M&A activity in Pro AV, with a particular focus on:

• Experiential technologies (immersive platforms, experiential media, interactive environments)
• Premium audio portfolios, bundled into broader ecosystems
• Workplace experience and collaboration providers that treat meeting rooms and digital workplaces as experiential environments, not just utilities

Even as overall global deal volumes have fluctuated, Pro AV’s slice has been sustained by a clear investor thesis: own the platforms, brands, and services that sit closest to the experience and furthest from commoditisation.