The AV Trends Review 2026, published at the end of June by Olympia Events and Aztec Event Services, is the most useful snapshot of where UK live event production is heading this year, and it deserves a practical reading. Its core finding: live events are shifting from traditional AV delivery towards immersive, personalised, content-led experiences, with clients judging technology by how it serves storytelling rather than by the kit list. Its two warnings: AI hype is outpacing practical application, and build times keep compressing. Here is what each finding means in practice for anyone organising events in the next twelve months, from a production company that works alongside Aztec on live shows.
From Equipment to Experience
The review’s headline shift, covered by Conference News and Exhibition News, is that clients no longer care what technology is used, only how it contributes to the audience journey. We see the same in briefs: nobody asks for a specific switcher any more, they ask for a remote audience that stays watching. The practical consequence for buyers: brief suppliers on outcomes, and let them propose the toolset.
AI: Hype vs Application
The review flags that many organisations struggle to find meaningful AI use cases despite widespread adoption. Our field experience matches: AI camera tracking, live captioning and automated social clipping genuinely reduce cost or increase output; most other applications remain demos. Ask any supplier claiming AI capability the simple question: where did this save money or improve the result on your last real show?
Compressed Build Times
Venues and organisers keep shortening get-ins, and the review names it one of 2026’s defining pressures. Production companies respond with pre-configured, owned systems and overnight builds; organisers can help by involving technical suppliers earlier, sharing floor plans and schedules before contracts rather than after. A supplier who asks detailed venue questions at quote stage, as we recommend in our supplier selection guide, is a supplier who will not lose your morning to discovery.
What We Would Add From the Floor
Two trends the review’s framing supports but understates. First, the remote audience is now the majority audience for most flagship events, so “experience” has to include the person on a laptop, as our 2026 virtual event trends report sets out. Second, content is the event’s second life: the shows that win budget next year are the ones whose sessions became a month of clips, quotes and campaign assets within days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who published the AV Trends Review 2026?
Olympia Events and Aztec Event Services, jointly, in late June 2026. Aztec is a long-standing AV partner of ours on live productions.
What are its key findings?
A shift from equipment-led to experience-led production, AI hype outpacing practical application, and compressed build times reshaping how shows are planned and rigged.
What should event organisers do differently because of it?
Brief on outcomes not kit, interrogate AI claims with real examples, and bring technical suppliers into planning earlier to protect the build schedule.
Planning Against the 2026 Trends?
We deliver the broadcast layer for experience-led events across London and the Southeast. Talk to us.
