The potential for AV has never been greater. There’s no doubt that Smart AV will become the eyes, ears, voice and expression of an infinite array of cloud-based AI-enabled services. These systems will connect us, our cars, buildings and businesses, and will provide advanced productivity, comfort and health across the globe.
For evidence of the scale of this opportunity, look no further than the land-grab among Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Microsoft Cortana and Apple’s Siri. All are seeking a beachhead to an opportunity akin to the industrial revolution, steam, the automobile and the microchip. Huge investments by the most progressive, resourced technology firms in the world are the mere tip of the iceberg, and are indicative of things to come.
Imagine a time in the near future when the AI-enabled cognitive process is informed by diverse, cloud-based environmental and personal information so that integrated AV systems can make decisions for better experiences in the entertainment and communications domains.
Imagine entertainment content that’s audience-optimized; digital signage that’s personalized; buildings and facilities that are completely automated; or even imagine stadium experiences that are multi-dimensional. The future promises nothing less than intelligently streamlined business operations, a transformation of our education and healthcare systems, and a future where broadcasts are data-driven and seamlessly connect commerce and the viewer.
The future promises nothing less than intelligently streamlined business operations, a transformation of our education and healthcare systems, and a future where broadcasts are data-driven and seamlessly connect commerce and the viewer.
If you haven’t noticed, Artificial Intelligence is already helping determine the sound of the next chart-topper, and the soundtracks in advertising, movies and TV. The Next Big Sound built and sold to Pandora a successful business on this premise. Now consider the same premise on a localized level, where a system could determine the size, make-up, demographics and preferences of diners at a restaurant, and pair that information with the business’s product and service offerings.
With this intelligence comes the ability to make better and more creative content — including marketing content — served though AV channels in its various forms. Adobe has built the preeminent marketing cloud that marketers are using to inform, create and automate the distribution of content to devices and audiences in a shorter timeframe than ever before imagined. As AV assumes a larger foothold in the Internet of Things, the power of the Content Economy will be fully realized and the capabilities of cloud-based marketing automation to AV devices will increase massively.
As AV assumes a larger foothold in the Internet of Things, the power of the Content Economy will be fully realized and the capabilities of cloud-based marketing automation to AV devices will increase massively.
The challenge for the AV community will be to ensure that AV does not become a series of commoditized nodes on the vast web. To counter the current race to the bottom occurring in AV, but also in other IoT disciplines such as security, building automation, automotive, datacom and even electrical, AV needs to be seen to provide greater value.
I am a huge fan of what (our client) Legrand is doing with IoT in the Built Environment. They are providing a robust and expansive infrastructure for IoT where people live and work. I also think that Cisco’s Digital Ceiling initiative is among the smartest programs out there. Both initiatives deliver value via purposeful innovation grounded in how enterprises actually operate. I have no doubt they will shape AV in positive ways in the years to come.
With all of this innovation, interoperability is key. Hardware needs to discover, work with, and share data with third-party edge computing devices and the cloud, which will in turn facilitate the cognitive processes that enable autonomous systems and buildings. This is already occurring in the security sector, where video management software (VMS) with intelligent cameras, analytics and services allow a specialized networked microphone to “hear” a gunshot, automatically direct networked cameras to the site, manage local access control devices, and equip local authorities with real-time data and video.
It may seem that interoperability is counter to traditional integration, but if the system is so smart that it doesn’t need integration services, then it will certainly need programming services. We’ve already seen the industry evolve from pulling cable to pushing buttons in a transformative 10 years, and that shift will continue. This is why services are so important today and in the years to come. Services — especially services at the intersection of AV and IT — will be where audio video leaders will deliver value and strengthen their businesses.
Drive-sharing services like Uber and Lyft, house-sharing services like Airbnb and FSBO, curated shopping services like Trunkclub and Mr. Porter, and auction sites like (my personal favorite) Bringatrailer.com were all born from technology development. New, yet unforeseen AV services that capitalize upon better connected, smarter AV will certainly inspire new economies and reshape existing economies.
In speaking with manufacturers, dealers and global end-users across a wide array of verticals — not least education, corporate, retail, hospitality, government and entertainment — the latent demand for AV-related services that connect, streamline and optimize is one of the greatest opportunities this industry has ever faced.
But with opportunity comes threats. As more and more devices are networked, each presents a potential on-ramp for hackers to access, steal or destroy data and property, or assume control of devices on the network — these systems must be bulletproof. Too many instances have already occurred where networks, including AV networks, have been compromised and damage has been caused, and trust has been broken. Network security is now central to the trust between end-users and manufacturers and is a key aspect of the value manufacturers and dealers provide. Audinate, our client and neighbor in Portland, Oregon, is doing progressive work in this area, especially with the Dante Domain Manager that debuts this month.
AV can have an amazing future and I am excited to see what InfoComm will turn up. In five years or so, I think we’ll look back at InfoComm 2017 and recognize this show as an inflection point where the AV community took its place at the forefront of IoT, giving voice, vision, input and expression to connected devices, connected services and AI.
