Smart City Networks, HIVE form AI partnership for convention venues

Smart City Networks and HIVE have partnered to help convention centers and event venues move from AI experimentation to organization-wide adoption. The collaboration pairs venue infrastructure and event technology with AI strategy, governance, training, and implementation support.

Why it matters: - Convention centers and event venues are under pressure to turn AI into day-to-day operational value, not just pilot projects. - The partnership is designed to help venues improve efficiency, support staff, and create better experiences for organizers, exhibitors, and attendees. - The effort also aims to connect technology investments with the people, workflows, and governance needed for long-term AI adoption.

What happened: - Smart City Networks entered a strategic partnership with HIVE to support human-centered AI adoption across the convention industry. - The companies plan to help venues move beyond isolated AI experimentation toward practical, organization-wide implementation. - Smart City Networks brings more than 40 years of experience in venue infrastructure, operations, and event technology. - HIVE brings enterprise AI strategy, organizational readiness, workforce enablement, governance, and implementation support.

The details: - The partnership will focus on leadership alignment, governance, workflows, and workforce skills needed to build repeatable AI capabilities. - Support may include enterprise AI readiness assessments, workflow redesign, high-value use case discovery, AI governance, leadership alignment, hands-on workforce enablement, implementation coaching, and continuous optimization. - Smart City Networks will apply its existing work in high-speed internet, Wi-Fi, telecommunications, high-density connectivity, network operations, and on-site support. - The companies said they will help venue teams transform operational data into AI-powered workflows that improve decision-making and efficiency. - Smart City Networks serves convention centers and event venues across the United States. - The company’s website is smartcitynetworks.com. - HIVE is a subsidiary of Mitchem Interactive Inc. and is led by co-founder and CEO Mitch Mitchem. - HIVE’s website is ahumanhive.com.

Between the lines: - The partnership reflects a shift from AI as a software purchase to AI as an operating model that depends on people and process changes. - Smart City Networks is extending its venue technology role into a broader enablement layer that includes strategy and governance. - HIVE is positioning human expertise as central to successful AI adoption, not secondary to automation.

What's next: - Smart City Networks and HIVE will offer an adaptable AI enablement model tailored to each venue’s needs. - Venue teams can expect support in building AI capability that can be sustained and expanded over time. - The companies are preparing convention venues for the next generation of event technology.

The bottom line: - The partnership aims to make AI practical for convention venues by pairing infrastructure with the training, governance, and workflow changes needed to use it well.