InfoComm 2026: buyers demand usable agentic-AI products as any-vendor interoperability goes live

InfoComm 2026 opened its exhibit floor in Las Vegas on June 17, drawing more than 750 exhibitors through a three-day run that closes June 19, according to Tech Times.

Two stories are competing for the show's defining headline: the maturation of agentic AI from buzzword to buyer requirement, and a structural shift in how audiovisual hardware ecosystems are built.

Agentic AI moves from question to demand

A Microsoft vice president is headlining the keynote program with a dedicated address on agentic AI — systems capable of taking autonomous, multi-step actions rather than simply responding to individual prompts.

The show's programming reflects how seriously the industry is treating the topic, with 46 sessions carrying an AI tag across the conference schedule, per Tech Times.

On the exhibit floor, the mood among vendors has shifted noticeably from prior years. Exhibitors report that buyers are no longer arriving with questions about whether AI is relevant to their operations.

Buyers have moved past asking why AI matters and now want to see real products they can actually use. — Exhibitors at InfoComm 2026, as reported by Tech Times

That shift places new pressure on product teams: demonstrations and case studies of working deployments now carry more weight than roadmap promises or conceptual pitches.

Agentic AI is particularly relevant in pro-AV contexts such as intelligent meeting rooms, automated content routing, and real-time language services — environments where systems must act on changing conditions without constant human input.

IPMX certification delivers any-vendor interoperability

The second major development at InfoComm 2026 is the arrival of full interoperability across IPMX-certified devices, a milestone that changes the calculus for systems integrators.

Under the new standard, any IPMX-certified device from any manufacturer can interoperate with any other certified device, according to Tech Times — eliminating the compatibility risk that has historically forced integrators to commit to single-vendor ecosystems or accept performance compromises.

The practical implication is significant: integrators can now specify best-in-class hardware across categories and manufacturers, assembling solutions based on capability and price rather than ecosystem allegiance.

For manufacturers, the development introduces more direct head-to-head competition at the product level, since the moat provided by proprietary interoperability is now narrowed.

What the convergence means for the industry

The pairing of agentic AI demand and open interoperability points toward a more modular, capability-driven AV market.

Buyers are now positioned to build AI-enabled environments using hardware from the vendors best suited to each component, rather than accepting the AI roadmap of whichever vendor controls their existing infrastructure.

With 750-plus exhibitors competing for that business across just three days in Las Vegas, the pressure on vendors to show — not just tell — will define which companies leave InfoComm 2026 with the strongest pipeline.