In 2025, Poppulo grew on three fronts: acquiring CMS software company Reach, expanding its platform capabilities, and launching hardware financing options. But John Schweikert, Poppulo’s General Manager of Digital Signage, believes 2026 will be the year of truly intelligent signage.
Year in Review 2025/2026: John Schweikert | Poppulo
2025 was a busy year for Poppulo! And honestly, we wouldn’t want it any other way. Between massive strides with AI and a game-changing acquisition, it was the kind of year that sets the stage for even more in 2026. Reflecting on what we achieved in 2025, and how that sets our clients up for even more success in 2026, this year really was all about meaningful momentum. The pace was fast, yes, but the direction was clear: build things that make our clients more successful, and build them responsibly.
Milestones That Defined the Year
We started strong by becoming the first company in our category to achieve ISO/IEC 42001:2023 certification, the first internationally recognized standard for Artificial Intelligence Management Systems (AIMS). That wasn’t a ceremonial badge – it was a public commitment to doing AI the right way. AI is reshaping our industry, but speed without standards leads nowhere. Responsible AI isn’t our safety net; it’s our launchpad. Instead of bolting on AI gimmicks, we built the foundation of our AI-enabled platform.
This philosophy powered one of our biggest moments of the year: the launch of our Agentic Suite. AI-enabled tools for content creation and analytics were the first to be launched, designed to make communication creation faster, smarter, and more human – amplifying creativity and measurement. And those are just the start. At our Pop Summit customer event, we brought together industry leaders and customers to share our vision for intelligent signage and showcase agentic AI in action.
We were also recognized across the industry in 2025, featured by Invidis in their Yearbook and other coverage, a nod to Poppulo’s expanding influence in shaping the global conversation around connected experiences. It was validation of the work our teams and customers are doing every day. We’re not just building products; we’re evolving the standard for how intelligent communication can inspire and inform.
Another defining moment from 2025 was our acquisition of Reach Media Network. This strategic move strengthens our signage portfolio and broadens our reach (the pun was there, had to do it). By bringing together Poppulo’s enterprise expertise and Reach’s proven strength in scalable digital signage for education, healthcare, and mid-market organizations, we’re now uniquely positioned to serve communication needs across the full spectrum of business.
And as our platform grew, so did its interoperability. This year we advanced new integrations with Microsoft Teams and Crestron, deepening the connection between digital signage and collaboration tools that organizations already rely on. These integrations reflect a clear trend across our customer base: a growing desire to repurpose the screens that already make up a significant part of their communication footprint. By extending the Poppulo platform into the Microsoft ecosystem, we’re helping customers create more connected, flexible environments – places where every screen, from the conference room to the lobby, can help tell a cohesive story.
We also made digital transformation more accessible. Through new hardware financing options and strategic partnerships, we’ve helped organizations modernize their screen networks without heavy upfront investment – removing barriers to adoption and accelerating time-to-value. It’s another way Poppulo is meeting customers where they are: making intelligent signage not just powerful, but practical.
Looking Ahead to 2026
2025 was the year AI moved from buzzword to backbone. The question switched from does AI belong in digital signage, to how responsibly and creatively we integrate it.
2026 will be the year digital signage becomes truly intelligent. Poppulo is expanding its agentic AI framework across the full communication lifecycle: Create, Schedule, Publish, and Analyze. Imagine a signage network that adjusts content dynamically based on engagement, environment, or employee sentiment – all while maintaining human oversight and brand integrity.
The next chapter of communication is one where every screen, in every space, understands its purpose – and every organization can measure its impact. Because the real innovation isn’t just in what technology can do; it’s in what people can achieve with it.
