Let’s be Frank: Insights from Frank Pisano, CEO
From Screens to Solutions: The Shift Is Official
NRF and ISE made one thing clear: the conversation has shifted from screens to solutions.
Customers are no longer evaluating hardware in isolation. They’re looking for integrated, scalable ecosystems where display, operating system, and content platform work together seamlessly.
Think of it less like assembling individual star players and more like building a championship team. A great quarterback alone doesn’t win games. You need alignment across offense, defense, and coaching. The same is now true in digital signage. Hardware, OS, and software must operate as a coordinated unit.
Here’s what’s defining 2026 so far:
All-in-one simplicity is winning. Purpose-built displays with embedded operating systems reduce external hardware, wiring, and failure points.
Partnerships matter more than ever. The strongest solutions are built through tight collaboration between display manufacturers and software platforms.
Flexibility drives longevity. Supporting multiple operating systems and evolving ecosystems is a strategic advantage.
Edge intelligence is becoming mandatory. Compute power at the display is no longer optional.
Reliability at scale is the true differentiator. Pilots are easy. Global rollouts are not.
What we hear from end-users:
Can it be more flexible and less complicated?
Can it be simplified without being limited?
At Bluefin, this is exactly where we’ve invested. Our all-in-one OS options are designed to deliver flexibility without complexity. Just as importantly, we’ve built the partnerships that make execution seamless. By working closely with leading software platforms and ecosystem providers, we help customers deploy, manage, and scale with confidence.
The market is maturing.
Buyers are more sophisticated.
Expectations are higher.
When solutions matter more than specs, execution is everything.
We’re energized by the momentum coming out of NRF and ISE — and excited to help our customers make 2026 a breakthrough year.
All-Access Pass Winners Share their take-aways:
Our two All-Access pass winners, Scot Plewaski and Lee Dydo, share their insights and take aways from #RetailsBigShow
Scot Plewacki, DARKO Inc.
NRF offers a powerful snapshot of where retail is heading — but it isn’t necessarily a roadmap for every corner of our industry. Much of this year’s conversation centered on retailer-led digital and operational platforms, particularly how AI is shaping e-commerce, loyalty, and owned digital channels to better understand shopper behavior. That perspective is valuable, and there are always nuggets worth taking away.
I was pleased to confirm that our direction at Darko continues to complement the broader retail landscape. While many retailers quite naturally focus on sales and foot-traffic data, the connected in-store platforms we build for brands contribute an additional layer of insight — unlocking impression and engagement data at the fixture level. It’s an area of measurement that physical retail is still evolving into, and that data largely doesn’t exist in physical retail today.
One forward-looking consumer research session reinforced this gap. It highlighted how, in the coming years, shoppers will increasingly prioritize sensory engagement, trust, and human connection over abstract digital personalization. In that environment, physical stores and connected displays are uniquely positioned to deliver both experience and evidence.
Modern retail may be fixated on screen-driven AI and online data. But the irreplaceable value of touch, context, and human response is exactly what our platforms measure and optimize — from impressions to engagement — in ways most retailers aren’t yet capturing.
Physical retail remains the largest driver of sales, and the moment of truth still happens in-store. That experience is inherently human. Connected displays finally give brands the tools to measure and improve it with the same rigor long applied to digital.
Lee Dydo, Dydomite
Retailers are watching AI and automation move quickly from novelty to expectation, particularly on the operational side of the business. On the NRF show floor, many of the most polished solutions were highly specific and clearly production-ready. In several cases, these capabilities were coming from vendors that either didn’t exist — or weren’t visible at this scale — just a year or two ago.
What stood out wasn’t simply how advanced the technology has become, but how quickly entire categories of functionality have matured. Capabilities that once required custom development or major platform commitments are now available as focused tools designed to solve one narrow problem well. That shift creates meaningful opportunity for retailers to assemble solutions more flexibly, rather than relying solely on large, monolithic systems.
At the same time, this evolution places greater responsibility on the buyer. As AI-driven capabilities become more accessible, the risk is less about falling behind and more about adopting tools without a clearly defined problem or thoughtful diligence. Retailers need clarity around their objectives, a practical understanding of how a solution integrates into existing operations, and confidence in the long-term viability and support model of the vendors they select.
The overall take away from NRF felt balanced. The pace of innovation is energizing and allows for faster experimentation than ever before. But as barriers to entry continue to fall, success increasingly depends on discipline, careful evaluation, and clarity of intent — not simply access to technology.
Top of Form
Conclusion
Taken together, the message from NRF and ISE is clear: the industry is moving beyond components and into cohesion.
The common thread across every conversation? Be simpler. Be smarter. Be more intentional.
If 2025 was about rapid innovation, 2026 is shaping up to be about refinement and execution. We’re grateful to be building alongside partners who see the bigger picture. And for the customers who are raising the bar for all of us.
The opportunity in front of us isn’t just to deploy smarter systems. It’s to build environments that are measurable, scalable, and human-centered at the same time.
We welcome the challenge knowing we are surrounded by a wonderful ecosystem who understand that experience and infrastructure must evolve together.