NAB Show 2022 had over 52,000 registered attendees from 155 countries, according to the National Association of Broadcasters. In comparison, the 2019 NAB Show—the last in-person NAB show prior to the COVID-19 pandemic—had a registered attendance over 91,000 from 160 countries.

“We are thrilled that our exhibitors, attendees, and partners from all corners of the world turned out in force this week in Las Vegas. The enthusiasm and engagement on the show floor, in sessions, and throughout the entire event have been invigorating,” said NAB president and CEO Curtis LeGeyt. “We thank the NAB Show community for making this year’s convention an incredible experience as we get back to doing business in person.”

So…what happened at this year’s show? A lot! In general, the educational sessions were well-attended and the show floor was crowded. There were plenty of after-hours events as well.

Virtual Production Front-and-Center at NAB Show 2022

As predicted, virtual production was large focus at the 2022 NAB Show.

On Sunday, April 24, Sam Nicholson, the virtual production designer from Stargate Studios and visual effects supervisor David Van Dyke shared the NAB Show Main Stage for a session titled “Merging Reality with Fantasy: Virtual Production & Visual Effects on HBO Max’s Our Flag Means Death”. During their chat, they shared how modern virtual tools and massive, high-resolution imagery brought the open ocean to life, and merged with visual effects techniques to create the exciting ships, worlds, and battles on screen.

Click here to read more virtual production stories from LAVNCH [CODE].

The show floor was filled with products well-suited for virtual production. Zero Density, for example, showcased its RealityEngine AMPERE. This real-time graphics hardware utilizes the latest generation AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro CPU and Nvidia RTX A6000 GPU; it is specifically designed to answer the needs of virtual studio and broadcast graphics applications and workflows, according to the company.

Mo-Sys featured multiple virtual production solutions at the 2022 show, including its StarTracker Studio. StarTracker Studio is a feature-rich, all-in-one, 4K virtual studio system that operates straight out of the box. It’s pre-configured and pre-calibrated, taking the complexity and risk out of deploying a virtual studio system, according to the company. It includes built-in scalability to go from the three cameras included in the system, up to 16 cameras, and can operate in live streaming or record modes.

Vū had a large virtual production presence at the 2022 NAB Show. One of the highlights was the Central Lobby’s Unreal Ride, powered by Mark Roberts Motion Control & Vū. Attendees were able to take a ride in this hyper-realistic simulation where they virtually rode on a motorcycle through a futuristic metropolis. Created in Unreal Engine, this experience utilized a Vū LED wall for visual display and a Bolt X Robot from Mark Roberts Motion Control for precise motion control.

In addition, Vū hosted the Official NAB Show Cocktail Party at its Las Vegas studio. Here, attendees were treated to a hands-on virtual production experience.

Watch the video below to get an inside look at the virtual production technology showcased during the Official NAB Show Cocktail Party at Vū Las Vegas.

Extended Reality at NAB Show 2022

Virtual production and extended reality go hand-in-hand, so it’s no surprise that extended reality (XR) solutions were also highly featured at the 2022 NAB Show.

One of the hottest XR products on the show floor was Sony’s Spatial Reality Display, which reproduces spatial images in three dimensions as if they were real and can be viewed by the naked eye without special glasses or headsets. Click here to see the Spatial Reality Display in action on the show floor.

Avatars and digital twins are a large part of XR and there were plenty of solutions to be found in the exhibit hall. Two standouts were Veritone and DeepBrain AI. At the show, Veritone debuted Veritone Avatar, part of its Veriverse product offerings. With Veritone Avatar, users can create avatars for a broad range of use cases, including advertising, recruiting, patient care, eLearning, and customer service.

DeepBrain AI showcased its AI Studios platform, which allows users to create insanely life-like digital twins. AI Studios is designed to eliminate the need for studios, lighting, microphones, camera, set-staff, and even actors. Just by typing the script, this enables AI Humans to naturally speak, use body language and gestures just like real presenters.

Watch the video below to see DeepBrain AI’s AI Studios.

2022 Product of the Year Awards

Live at the show, NAB announced its 2022 Products of the Year Award winners. To be eligible for an award, nominated products had to come from companies exhibiting at the 2022 NAB Show and are delivered within the 2022 calendar year; winners were selected by a panel of industry experts in 15 categories.

“The 2022 NAB Show Product of the Year Awards honor innovative breakthroughs that will change the way the media and entertainment industry creates, connects, and capitalizes content,” said NAB executive vice president of global connections and events Chris Brown. “This year’s winners can help storytellers at all stages of the content lifecycle meet the challenges of today and tomorrow and revolutionize the content industry.”

Notable winners include DeepBrain AI’s AI Studios, Planar’s CarbonLight CLI VX Series, Sony’s Spatial Reality Display, NETGEAR’s M4250 AV Line Switches, and Vizrt Group’s NDI5.

Click here to view the full list of winners.

See you at NAB Show 2023!

So what’s next for NAB? The team is already planning for the 2023 show, which will be held April 15 – 19 in Las Vegas. The 2023 NAB Show will include a centennial celebration; the first NAB Show was held in 1923 in New York.

For details on the 2023 show and future NAB events, visit nabshow.com.

To stay up-to-date with the latest show news, visit our NAB Show 2022 hub.