The RFID industry continues to evolve quickly, and staying connected to the trends, standards, and real-world applications shaping the market has never been more important. That is why we wanted to bring the community together for RFID Community Connect, a two-day virtual event designed to deliver practical education, industry perspective, and valuable cross-sector insight.
The event takes place May 19–20 from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM EDT each day. We are pleased to be bringing together solution providers, end users, standards leaders, and industry stakeholders for a focused program of concise, high-value sessions. From adoption trends and interoperability to sector-specific use cases and implementation lessons, attendees will leave with a better understanding on how RFID is creating measurable impact across industries.
This year’s program features two standout keynote presentations. On Day 1, Mark Roberti, Founder of RFID Strategies, will open the event with “The State of RFID in 2026: Trends and Market Momentum,” offering a timely look at where RFID adoption is accelerating and the forces shaping the market. On Day 2, Brian Marflak of FedEx will present “Driving 99% Accuracy: How FedEx Leveraged RFID to Boost Productivity by 20%,” sharing a compelling real-world example of how RFID is delivering measurable operational results at scale.
Beyond the keynote presentations, RFID Community Connect will feature a strong lineup of sessions designed to give attendees practical insight into where RFID is delivering value today and where the technology is headed next. While the event agenda includes a wide range of conversations across the RFID ecosystem, here is a look at just a few of the sessions attendees can expect, with more highlights to be shared in the coming weeks. The full agenda is available on the event website.
One of the featured discussions will focus on RFID standards and interoperability, an important topic as adoption continues to expand across industries and use cases. Chuck Evanhoe, Chairman of AIM will moderate a panel featuring those in the know on standards in Chris Brown of TSC, Aileen Ryan of the RAIN Alliance, and Claude Tételin of GS1. They will explore how standards help create consistency across data, systems, and deployments, while supporting the scalability and reliability organizations need for long-term success. For attendees looking to better understand the broader framework that makes RFID deployments work across the ecosystem, this session will provide valuable context around how standards continue to enable adoption, alignment, and confidence in the technology.
Another standout session will be “How Embeddable RFID is Transforming Tire Traceability, Maintenance, and Circularity,” which will offer a unique look at one of the most innovative applications of RFID today. Randall Grein of Hana RFID and Peter Ramirez of Michelin will bring insights on how embeddable RFID is moving beyond traditional labels and into the tire itself, enabling persistent digital identities and full lifecycle traceability. From manufacturing through maintenance, retreading, and recycling, the session will highlight how connected tires can improve safety, support compliance, strengthen maintenance visibility, and advance circularity goals. It will also explore how digital twins are beginning to reshape operations for manufacturers, fleets, and service networks.
The program will also include “Spot-On Delivery: Baldor Specialty Foods, RFID and Precision in the Fresh Food Supply Chain,” featuring Avery Dennison’s Patrick Sheets in discussion with Suresh Palanisamy of Baldor Specialty Foods. This session will highlight how RFID is being applied in an environment where timing, accuracy, and product integrity are especially critical. Fresh food operations demand strong visibility and precision, and this discussion will provide attendees with a practical example of how RFID can support more accurate tracking, improved delivery confidence, and better execution across the supply chain. It is a strong example of RFID moving from concept to measurable operational value in a fast-moving and highly demanding sector.
Another session attendees will not want to miss is “Replace the Beep: How RFID Integrators Win Adoption Through Experience, Not Technology,” presented by John Wirthlin of Sonaria. This session will focus on an often-overlooked factor in successful RFID deployments: user experience. Rather than centering only on the technical capabilities of RFID, the discussion will examine driving stronger adoption by creating workflows and interactions that feel intuitive, practical, and easier to embrace than some traditional processes. As more organizations evaluate RFID as part of broader digital transformation and operational improvement strategies, this session will offer a useful perspective on what helps implementations gain traction in the real world.
The agenda will also feature “RFID in Challenging Packaging: Practical Lessons from Bottle Digitalization,” presented by Lou Parker of Checkpoint Systems and Paul Whitney of AsReader. RFID has long faced performance challenges when applied to liquid-filled and difficult-to-tag items, making bottle-level visibility a persistent hurdle across industries such as beverages, wine and spirits, cosmetics, health and beauty, and automotive. This session will explore approaches to bottle digitalization that are helping overcome those barriers and opening the door to more reliable item-level traceability for products that have historically been difficult to identify and track. Attendees will learn how specialized RFID tag designs for liquid products, including shrink-wrap form factors, can support improved readability, inventory accuracy, and end-to-end visibility from production through distribution and retail. The session will also highlight real-world examples involving automotive fluids, cosmetics, health and beauty products, and wine and spirits, while exploring how handheld, wearable, and mobile RFID readers can be used in practical workflows to capture data efficiently on these items.
Together, these sessions reflect what makes RFID Community Connect especially valuable; a program built around practical deployment stories, emerging use cases, and the broader technical and strategic conversations that continue to shape the RFID industry. This is just a preview of a few of the conversations planned for the event, and AIM will be highlighting additional sessions and speakers in the coming weeks. For the full agenda and registration details, visit the event website.
Register now for RFID Community Connect
A special thank you to the sponsors supporting RFID Community Connect. Their support helps make it possible to bring together education, expertise, and meaningful industry collaboration in a format that serves the RFID community at a time when connection and shared learning matter more than ever.
We look forward to seeing you online May 19–20!