International. The AHR Expo took over Orlando for a week characterized by its agile pace of learning, reconnection, analysis and demonstration of all the novelties that are coming to the HVAC-R market.
Topics addressed by industry players included tariffs, regulation updates, A2L, AI, equipment design, and more.
"Orlando brought record numbers," said expo manager Mark Stevens. "There's a lot of movement in the industry: with business, regulations, administrative changes, equipment design, and more, professionals were eager to get together and discuss it all."
Networking opportunities
Monday morning saw a strong turnout, with 50,807 attendees showing up to interact with the 1,878 exhibitors distributed in the West Hall. Taking advantage of the 516,060 square meters of exhibit space at the booths, attendees had access to all the latest the industry has to offer, including new products, technology, skills learning and demonstrations.
The podcast pavilion, located on Concourse E, hosted a record 22 podcasters who conducted interviews with industry personalities and covered all the latest topics impacting the industry. The podcasts will be published on their own channels by each podcaster, during the next few weeks. In addition, manufacturers created extremely valuable experiences for traders, women, and industry influencers by hosting events, competitions, and meetings aimed at opening up interesting channels of content creation and networking opportunities.
"The expansion of the network with new and creative ways to connect is providing exceptional visibility and collaboration for professionals. Five years ago, the industry struggled with two-way communication channels, and now it exists in abundance among the field professionals and manufacturers who develop the products and technologies," said Nicole Bush, Chief Marketing Officer of AHR Expo. "In-person events like AHR Expo enhance social connections made online by enabling further networking, and this is proving to be incredibly valuable to our industry."
Where the industry connects
The 2025 Education Program offered more than 300 sessions. The week's themes addressed pain points, opportunities and methods to increase efficiency, business practice and cross-sectoral relationships. Of the sessions, 145 were new product presentations in New Product Theaters and seven panels in the AHR panel series.
"It is exciting to witness the growth of our educational program, both in terms of diversity of topics and the expertise brought to share valuable knowledge," said Kimberly Pires, Special Projects Manager. "There is a strong connection between the discussions taking place in our sessions and their real-world application at the fairgrounds, giving attendees a deeper, more practical understanding of the latest trends taking place in the industry."
In the 2025 State of the Industry Panel, topics of discussion included tariffs and their potential impact, A2L and a visionary look at A3L, as well as a look ahead at market changes in the year ahead. Participants included Dennis Knight, President of ASHRAE 2024-2025, Stephen Yurek, CEO of AHRI, Talbot Gee, CEO of HARDI, and Dominick Guarino, President and CEO of National Comfort Institute, Inc. Bryan Orr of HVAC School was the moderator.
Other popular sessions included topics such as transitioning to A2L; the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in industry; cybersecurity considerations; workforce development, including viable strategies for growing a team now; new regulations at the state, federal, and global levels, and more.
Product of the Year
The winner of the 2025 Product of the Year was announced at a ceremony held on Monday afternoon, February 10. PassiveLogic, from the Tools & Instruments category, took home the award for its PassiveLogic Sense Nano. The Sense Nano is the first truly wireless sensor: it communicates via a Bluetooth mesh and draws its operational energy from the surrounding environment.
AHR heads to Las Vegas in 2026
In 2026 the event will head to the West Coast, to Las Vegas, from February 2 to 4 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Hotel blocks are expected to open their reservations for attendees in late spring and registration will go live in early summer. Sign up for alerts and updates on www.ahrexpo.com.
