Preparing Your AV Environment for AI Instrumentation: by Spencer Wise

In my first couple weeks at NetSpeek, I’ve had the opportunity to talk with prospective customers about their challenges with managing AV environments, how we’re building Lena (the Language Enabled Network Administrator for AV, UC, and digital signage) as the first generative AI based management platform for this industry, and to demo the solution in action. Not everyone immediately understands the implications of what they’re seeing, but once they do, the metaphorical light bulb shines over their heads.

Wow, this is a very different kind of management system, they say.

And then they ask: “How do we get ready to deploy an AI solution for managing AV?”

The short answer: put everything in your AV ecosystem on an IP network, even things you didn’t see value in connecting before.

Get Your Displays Networked

I’ve been hearing anecdotally that about 10% of commercial displays are on an IP network of any kind, and frankly it’s understandable why. The perceived value of the occasional firmware update to a display has not been a sufficient carrot to bother, but there’s a new carrot in town. Once customers understand what Lena can do with networked AV equipment she can keep an eye on, the value proposition dramatically changes. I suggest you start with the following to prepare:

• Audit your displays – You may already have displays, projectors, video walls, and digital signage players that have network connectivity available, but are not on your IP network because the installer didn’t think it was necessary to connect them, or because a cable wasn’t available, or because of some ambiguity at installation time.

• Consider network infrastructure – Some displays may have ethernet cable available nearby. Some parts of your AV estate may be short on switch ports, or WiFi access points, or your AV VLAN may need to make more IP addresses available for assignment. Lena’s bandwidth needs are minimal, but devices do need an IP address to be controllable.

• Budget network improvements now (if needed) – The era of AI control for AV systems is coming - if your network needs some additional switch ports or cable runs to get previously abandoned AV devices online, plan for it.

Consider API Functionality in AV Device Evaluation

Some older equipment, or some current consumer/pro-sumer equipment, may not have APIs available at all. NetSpeek is exploring methods of connecting to devices without APIs by relaying through connected devices that do have APIs, but the simplest answer is to just use gear with native APIs.

As a tangible example: if you haven’t been asking during the procurement process about whether the TVs you’re planning to mount in your conference rooms have API controls (at minimum the basics like powering on and off, volume and mute controls, and input selection), there’s no better time to start than now.

Beyond the presence or absence of APIs, you may also want to consider the specific scope or capabilities offered in any AV ecosystem vendor’s API, as all APIs are not created equally. Some questions to ask could include whether the API is read-only or offers full control, whether the system permits retrieving and parsing logs, if the vendor has a committed timeframe for releasing APIs after delivering new features in firmware, or if any of your other must-have capabilities are present in the API.

The Payoff

Taking these steps will help make your AV environment ready for AI-based monitoring, predictive maintenance, and performance optimization. The result? Improved equipment uptime, more efficient support teams, and an overall better experience for end users.

In short, AI instrumentation isn’t just a software upgrade — it’s a mindset shift. By building a network connected AV estate, you create the foundation on which AI can deliver its full value.