Earlier this February, AIM had the opportunity to attend Manifest 2026 in Las Vegas, one of the fastest-growing gatherings focused on supply chain and logistics innovation. Manifest continues to bring together a powerful cross-section of industry stakeholders, including technology developers, shippers, solution providers, venture capital firms, and enterprise end users. From my perspective, the event serves as a strong pulse check on where supply chain technology is heading and how Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) technologies continue to serve as a foundational layer enabling this transformation.
Walking the show floor and participating in sessions, it was clear that Manifest is intentionally designed to foster collaboration between innovators and the organizations deploying these solutions at scale. The agenda balanced strategic leadership discussions with deep technical insights, which mirrors the challenges many AIM members are working to solve every day. The event reinforced how critical accurate data capture, interoperability, and real-time visibility have become across global supply networks.
A Strong Emphasis on AI and Intelligent Automation
One of the most noticeable themes throughout the conference was the role artificial intelligence is already playing and will continue to play in supply chain operations. Across multiple sessions, speakers discussed how AI is moving beyond experimentation and into practical deployment.
Discussions centered around AI-driven predictive analytics, demand forecasting, exception management, and automated decision-making within warehouse and transportation operations. What stood out to me was how frequently these AI solutions depend on trusted, structured, and real-time data inputs. This reinforces a message AIM consistently advocates: advanced analytics and AI capabilities are only as strong as the quality and reliability of the data feeding them.
Many sessions highlighted how organizations are combining AI with sensor technologies, RFID, machine vision, and other AIDC solutions to create actionable intelligence. These integrated ecosystems are helping companies improve inventory accuracy, reduce operational disruptions, and gain end-to-end visibility across increasingly complex supply chains.
Supply Chain Visibility and Data Interoperability Remain Central
Another major takeaway was the continued focus on supply chain visibility and the importance of interoperable data sharing across partners. Conversations consistently returned to the challenge of connecting information from manufacturers, logistics providers, distributors, and retailers into unified, transparent data flows.
This is an area where AIM members continue to lead through standards development, technology innovation, and real-world deployment expertise. The emphasis on digital identifiers, connected packaging, and item-level tracking reinforced how critical AIDC technologies are in building scalable visibility platforms. Many presenters highlighted that supply chains are evolving from transactional processes into dynamic, data-driven ecosystems, which aligns closely with AIM’s mission of enabling accurate, available, and identifiable data.
Collaboration Across the Technology Ecosystem
The networking environment at Manifest was particularly strong and created opportunities to engage with existing AIM members as well as organizations exploring AIDC solutions for the first time. The mix of startups, established technology providers, and enterprise end users created productive discussions about emerging trends and practical implementation challenges.
Several conversations reinforced how organizations are increasingly looking for guidance on standards, interoperability, and best practices. These discussions highlight the growing importance of industry collaboration and education, areas where AIM continues to play a leadership role through committees, working groups, and educational programming.
Looking Ahead to 2027
From my perspective, Manifest provides valuable insight into how rapidly supply chain innovation is evolving and how essential AIM technologies are to enabling that progress. The event highlights real-world use cases, emerging regulatory drivers, and new business opportunities that directly impact our membership community. It also reinforces the importance of continuing to build partnerships with organizations and events that share our focus on advancing supply chain transparency, efficiency, and resilience.
AIM is excited to continue strengthening our partnership with Manifest as the event expands globally. I want to thank Manifest President Courtney Muller for meeting with AIM and seeing the benefits of this new collaboration. We look forward to supporting their first overseas event in Lisbon, Portugal in 2027 as well as the stateside show in Las Vegas next February. These collaborations help ensure AIM remains connected to emerging trends while continuing to advocate for the technologies and standards that power modern supply chains.
Manifest 2026 reinforced an important reality: as supply chains become smarter and more autonomous, the need for trusted identification, data capture, and interoperability will only grow. AIM and our members remain at the center of enabling that future.