What Actually Stood Out at ISE 2026

ISE 2026 in Barcelona didn’t just feel big. It felt like a shift.

Every year, Integrated Systems Europe gives us a real-time snapshot of where the AV and video conferencing industry is heading. This year, the direction was clearer than ever.

The message wasn’t about more features.
It wasn’t about bigger systems.

It was about one thing: simplicity winning.

And that’s exactly where Boom is focused.

Simplicity Is No Longer a Differentiator.

It’s the Standard.

The video conferencing market has evolved fast. But what stood out at ISE this year is how aligned everyone is becoming on one reality:

If it’s not easy, it won’t get used.

That’s it.

We’re seeing a clear shift away from overbuilt, overcomplicated systems that look great on paper but fail in real environments. The industry is moving toward solutions that just work. No friction. No training required. No IT dependency every time someone wants to start a meeting.

Simplicity isn’t a nice-to-have anymore. It’s the expectation.

BYOM Is Taking Over. And It’s Not Slowing Down.

Bring Your Own Meeting, or BYOM, has officially crossed the line from “alternative option” to primary workflow.

We’re seeing it everywhere:

• Small and medium meeting rooms
• Flexible workspaces
• Hybrid environments
• Cost-conscious deployments

BYOM is winning because it aligns with how people actually work today. Laptops. Multiple platforms. Constant switching between Teams, Zoom, Google Meet.

And the numbers back it up.

BYOM deployments are outpacing traditional in-room systems at roughly 5:1.

Why?

• Lower total cost of ownership
• Faster deployment
• Less complexity
• Real-world usability

At the same time, organizations don’t want to rip out existing infrastructure. That’s where smart connectivity comes in.

The ability to bridge in-room systems with BYOM workflows is becoming critical. It’s not either-or anymore. It’s both.

The Future Is Platform-Agnostic. Period.

One of the biggest mindset shifts we saw at ISE:

Nobody belongs to just one platform anymore.

It’s no longer a “Teams room” or a “Zoom room.” It’s a shared space used by different people, different devices, and different workflows.

That means:

• Any device
• Any platform
• Any room

has to be the baseline.

Certification still matters. But let’s be honest. Real-world meeting rooms are rarely fully certified end-to-end.

You’ve got:

• Different displays
• Third-party audio
• Laptops and mobile devices
• Wireless sharing systems
• BYOM connections

And somehow it all still needs to work together seamlessly.

In 2026, compatibility beats checklists.

AI Is Growing Fast. But So Is Overengineering

AI is everywhere right now. Cameras, framing, tracking, audio, analytics. And yes, some of it is incredibly valuable.

But there’s also a growing problem:

Over-spec’d systems that are expensive, complex, and underused.

We’re seeing more rooms packed with:

• Multiple cameras
• Advanced automation
• Layered control systems
• Ongoing licensing and maintenance

And the result?

A higher total cost and a worse user experience.

Because complexity always shows up somewhere. Usually when someone just wants to start a meeting and can’t.

The real opportunity isn’t adding more. It’s getting the balance right.

Effortless Collaboration Is the Real Competitive Advantage

At Boom, everything we build comes back to one idea:

Make meetings easier.

Our portfolio spans cameras, videobars, audio, connectivity hubs, controllers, and complete room kits. But the goal is always the same. Remove friction.

ISE 2026 gave us the perfect platform to showcase how that comes to life across real-world deployments.

Because video conferencing isn’t a “nice-to-have” anymore. It’s core infrastructure.

And the companies that win in 2026 will be the ones that:

• Reduce complexity
• Improve usability
• Stay flexible
• Deliver consistent experiences

We expect the market to grow 10–15% this year. But growth alone doesn’t decide winners.

Execution does.

Push Beyond Isn’t a Theme. It’s a Direction.

The ISE theme this year was “Push Beyond.”

For us, that’s not a tagline. It’s how we approach the category.

Push beyond:

• Overcomplication
• Vendor lock-in
• Rigid systems
• Poor user experiences

And move toward:

• Simplicity
• Flexibility
• Real-world usability
• Better meetings

That’s what we’re building toward. And that’s what we saw validated at ISE 2026.

What Comes Next

If you’re rethinking your meeting rooms, planning upgrades, or just trying to make what you have actually work better, this is the moment to simplify.

Not scale complexity.

Simplify it.

And if you want to see how we’re approaching it, you can explore more here:
👉 https://boom.co/products/boom-arc