RainFocus releases 2026 B2B marketing forecast built on its event data

RainFocus released its 2026 B2B marketing forecast on December 30, 2025, which it describes as a compilation of trends drawn from proprietary RainFocus data and executive insights. The company characterizes 2025 as the year of experimentation and 2026 as the year of context-aware AI world models. It names four trends: the emergence of AI world models that understand interaction context rather than predicting the next word; autonomous portfolios of many small, repeatable events with central governance; a return to pre-pandemic registration patterns last seen in 2019; and attendees favoring connection and shorter interactive sessions over passive content. Three RainFocus executives provide commentary.

The details

• Trend one: AI world models, which RainFocus predicts will first emerge in 2026.
• Trend two: micro-event portfolios, which RainFocus ties to its Base Module.
• Trend three: registration patterns resembling 2019, which RainFocus says improve attendance and revenue forecasting.
• Trend four: shorter, interactive session formats and more emphasis on networking.
• Quoted: VP Marius Milcher, CEO JR Sherman and SVP Brian Gates.

Context

This forecast came two weeks after RainFocus launched its Base Module for small, repeatable events, which the release cites in its second trend. Three weeks later RainFocus announced Nexus, its AI agent system, at INSIGHT 2026. Later RainFocus items include MCP Profiles in July, the Sales Module launch on July 30 and a mid-year report in September 2026 on event teams hosting more meetings.

Not disclosed

• Data sample size or time range
• Methodology behind the registration pattern finding
• Which customers' events the data covers
• Number of executives consulted