Editor’s Note: This article featuring Tobi Tungl and his 2026 predictions is part of Commercial Integrator’s series running throughout the month of January. In this series, we spotlight forward-looking insights from some of the pro AV industry’s most notable luminaries.
As we look ahead to 2026, the pro AV industry stands at the cusp of exciting opportunities and transformative trends. To explore what lies ahead, Commercial Integrator turned to Tobi Tungl, chief marketing officer at CTI, for his expert predictions on the technologies and strategies that will shape the future of pro AV.
Tobi Tungl 2026 Predictions
Commercial Integrator: Without getting into any specific vendor or particular branded solutions, what technology category or solution area do you see as 2026’s ripest, most profitable growth opportunity for pro AV integrators and installers? Explain your reasoning.
Tobi Tungl: The biggest upside is in “connected experience” platforms, taking all the rooms, signage, event spaces and turning them into one coherent ecosystem. When you unify collaboration, content and control across a campus or enterprise, you unlock services, storytelling and continuous improvement…not just a one time project.
Commercial Integrator: Which emerging AV technologies do you think are overplayed? Which ones do you think will truly transform the practice of integration in the coming years?
Tungl: Anything built just to chase buzzwords, whether it is metaverse style experiences or huge canvases with no real content plan, is already overplayed. What actually matters now is AI that quietly reduces work for support teams and IP-based systems that keep big environments manageable. The magic is when the tech fades into the background and the experience is what people talk about.
Commercial Integrator: What’s getting better about the pro AV industry these days? What seems to be getting worse?
Tungl: We are finally talking more about user journeys, data and outcomes instead of just spec sheets. The best projects now start with a simple question…“What do we want people to feel and do?” rather than “How many inputs do we need?” The flip side is the talent gap at the intersection of AV, IT and data. There still are not enough people who can comfortably speak all three languages.
Commercial Integrator: What’s liable to catch some pro AV industry integrators and installers off guard in the coming year?
Tungl: A lot of teams will be surprised by how high the bar is getting for security, sustainability and data transparency. Enterprise and public sector buyers will expect AV environments to meet the same standards as any other critical system, with clear reporting and measurable outcomes. Anyone still thinking in terms of isolated projects instead of ongoing programs will feel that gap quickly.
Commercial Integrator: What’s the single most pressing challenge that professionals in the pro AV industry must tackle right now? And how would you suggest tackling it?
Tungl: A big challenge is turning AV from “infrastructure spend” into a clear driver of brand, culture and customer experience. That means tightening the story around every deployment…who is it for, what moments are we creating and how does it show up in the metrics leaders actually watch. We need AV, IT and marketing at the same table, designing with services, content and data in mind from day one so the value is visible…not assumed.
Commercial Integrator: Finish this sentence: 2026 will be remembered as the year that the pro AV industry…
Tungl: Stopped leading with rooms and hardware lists and started showing up as a true business partner, owning experiences and outcomes that move the brand, the culture and the numbers forward.
Stay tuned with Commercial Integrator as we gather year-end insights and 2026 pro AV predictions from the brightest minds in the industry. If you’d like to be featured, contact our editorial team (Alyssa Borelli, Amala Reddie and Dan Ferrisi).
