Friday, October 2, 2026

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Thursday, October 1, 2026

Can Your Next Hire Beat an AI Agent?

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Can Your Next Hire Beat an AI Agent?

A look at the weird tech shift coming for meetings teams.

David McMillin, Skift Meetings Head of Content

October 1st, 2026

At the start of the year, the concept of an AI agent sounded like something from a science fiction movie to me. That concept has moved from the big screen to the boardroom in just a few months. At Skift Meetings Forum, these autonomous beings dominated the conversation. Instead of the old-school chatbots that didn’t really manage to accomplish much, AI agents are already hard at work behind the scenes to scour through terabytes of data and deliver actionable insights for planners.

They’re getting so good, however, that senior-level meeting planners may need to prepare for a very different future where AI agents outnumber human employees. Peter Bordes, vice president of events and experiences at Circle, believes that version of the future is speeding toward us and will be here within the next three years. If/when it arrives, it will make securing sign-off to hire another person who will sit next to you in the office a lot more difficult. Head below to read more about what the next chapter of agentic-powered innovation looks like and more from our team this week. — David McMillin

ON DEMAND

Did you miss our debrief of all the action at Skift Meetings Forum? No worries. Sign up to access the recording here and unpack all the insights from New York.

Sponsored by Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Experience Kissimmee.

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FEATURED STORIES

Key Corporate Event Statistics: What the Data Shows

By Barbara Scofidio

Optimism is up, but budgets aren’t. With nearly half of corporate meeting budgets flat and attendee costs still rising into 2027, planners are being asked to do the same events with less.

GET THE STORY

What a Trade Show Looks Like When the Product Can’t Actually Be on the Floor

By Andrea Doyle

Cannabis trade shows face limits few other B2B events do: no sampling, no sales, and venues that may ban consumption anywhere on the property. MJ Unpacked, now three years into its Atlantic City run, shows how organizers design around those limits.

GET THE STORY

SITE and IRF Join Forces to Introduce Students to an Industry Many Don’t Know Exists

By Barbara Scofidio

An incentive travel career is often something people “fall into.” Members of the industry’s two major groups are reaching out to colleges and universities to change that.

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Can Your Next Human Hire Beat an AI Agent?

By David McMillin

If meeting planners start managing AI agents, the case for adding headcount is about to get harder to make.

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FREE REPORT

Our new research offers a look at how at corporate meeting planners are navigating the current landscape. Download it today to learn how 111 in-house corporate planners are dealing with geopolitical pressures, ROI expectations, AI, contracts, and more.

This report was produced in partnership with MPI and is sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and Convene.

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WORTH YOUR TIME

Five things worth your time today.

A simple idea for more audience engagement at your next meeting.
A warning about the increasingly sophisticated scams that are preying on planners.
A look at career advice to help you climb the ranks from planner to executive.
A roundup of six tools to track down a more creative venue.
A glimpse into why one meetings veteran decided to go back to school after more than 20 years in the industry.

SKIFT PICK: TRANSLATING TRAVEL TRENDS FOR MEETINGS

Your Next Net-Zero Venue Might Be 50 Years Old

Radisson Hotel Group just added four Scandinavian properties to its Verified Net Zero Hotels program. One of the additions is the Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel in Stockholm, which includes the Stockholm Waterfront Congress Centre. It holds up to 3,000 people and is the program’s first large event venue. Three of the new properties opened between 1973 and 1984, long before net-zero status was part of anyone’s vocabulary. Chief Sustainability and Security Officer Inge Huijbrechts told Skift the older hotels didn’t need any dedicated capital spending to get there. The owners had already paid for insulation, window sealing, smart room controls, LED lighting and renewable energy contracts over the past five to six years.

What does that mean for meetings? We can all stop assuming that the “green” option is the shiny new building opening next year. Instead, a property built before you were born with a patient owner may be able to compete with the glass tower rendering with seven different certifications listed in the marketing messaging.

Skift Meetings Toolkit

Great events are built on strategy, innovation, and the right resources. The Skift Meetings Toolkit is your go-to hub for best practices in managing meetings and events.

EXPLORE THE TOOLKIT

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