ISE 2026 at Half-Time: Busy and Full of Surprises

Wednesday is traditionally the busiest day at ISE. This year, however, Tuesday already felt like a Wednesday: packed aisles, and in Hall 3 there were moments when it was barely possible to move. While ISE traditionally withholds official visitor numbers until the end of the show, all observations and available indicators suggest that the event may once again surpass last year’s attendance record.

One industry trade show after another is setting new benchmarks – something few would have predicted after the Covid pandemic, when trade fairs were widely declared dead. ISE has not only managed to retain its audience, but to attract new visitors as well – including from new regions. The Global Panel at DSS ISE was emblematic of this development, with participants representing every continent.

A regional shift was also clearly visible among exhibitors: Chinese companies are highly present across the halls. While this is not entirely new, both the growing number of exhibitors and the evolution of booth design – from purely bombastic to spectacular yet application-driven – reflect changing market dynamics. Chinese manufacturers such as Hisense or BOE are set to play an increasingly important role in the hardware segment in the years ahead, and will continue to push more aggressively into the European market.

AI inside the systems

From a product perspective, there was no major “big bang” this year. However, significant developments were taking place beneath the surface. It is no coincidence that invidis published two videos titled Hidden Highlights and Trends behind the Scenes. These themes were perhaps best illustrated by Samsung’s booth, which deliberately avoided a large LED wall and instead focused on presenting the integration of hardware and software as part of a broader ecosystem.

There, as at many other stands, AI was embedded directly into hardware and operational processes. This is a topic that tends to resonate more in technical conversations than in press releases – but it is precisely where much of the real progress is happening.

As a result, the second half of ISE will continue to be defined by this duality: crowded halls on the one hand, and hidden highlights on the other. For the industry, this combination is a healthy and encouraging sign.