As we look ahead to the evolving business landscape and begin turning the corner toward 2026, understanding what’s next across industries has never been more important. To gain insight into what lies ahead, we invited members of the Bronze Valley founder community to share their early predictions—highlighting the trends, challenges, and opportunities they see shaping the industries they’re building in every day. Their perspectives offer a firsthand look at how innovation is unfolding on the ground and where momentum may be headed next.
Barbara Jones-Brown, CEO & Founder of Freeing Returns provides insights on the retail loss prevention and asset protection industry, “As we look toward 2026, Retail Loss Prevention (LP) and Asset Protection (AP) won't just use AI; they will be structurally reorganized because of AI. The core shift moves from reactive detection to proactive profit protection and preemptive compliance”
Rahmi Halaby, CEO of Ideate, shares his thoughts on the role of designers in a team and the development cycle, “In 2026, we will see more tech teams led by designers, as the gap between design and ship continues to close. The value of designers as the primary system organizers and problem solvers in the development cycle is going to rise quickly.”
Jordan Bradley, CEO and Co-Founder of Highnote, discusses AI's role in the music and audio industry, "Audio content will continue to proliferate as AI tools drive the barrier to creation effectively to zero. Consumers will gravitate toward product surfaces that help them generate and assess meaning and authenticity for themselves as the question of “who made this?” becomes more nuanced—especially in “fast-content” formats like songs, commentary, and other media created, shared, and remixed at high velocity."
Looking ahead at career insights, Kayla Wright-Jackson, CEO and Co-Founder of Transition, points out how AI's role in the healthcare field and training, “In 2026, AI will displace many white-collar roles, fueling a wave of interest in healthcare and skilled trades. At the same time, new government investment in short-term training programs is accelerating demand for non-traditional career pathways.”
The insights shared by our founders highlight both the challenges and the promise that lie ahead across industries. Bronze Valley continues to remain committed to supporting visionary entrepreneurs who are shaping the next chapter of innovation and economic growth as we near the year ahead.
