The next decade will be defined less by any single breakthrough than by how fast the pressures arrive — and whether our physical infrastructure is ready. Futurist Matthew Griffin examines the forces bearing down fastest on professionals: AI datacenters, the rise of orbital data centers and their backhaul, evolving telecoms, surging power demands, exponential data movement, and performance expectations that no longer tolerate compromise. The cabling and pathway decisions made today set tomorrow's limits — yet they can no longer be made in isolation. At the intersection of IT, OT, AV, security and wireless, smart buildings demand far tighter coordination between trades and systems. This is a convergence challenge, and it carries a warning that mirrors this year's theme. Innovation without alignment is risk: new technology deployed where standards, design, construction and operational readiness have drifted apart doesn't create value — it manufactures fragility. Keeping systems in sync is the precondition for powering the connected future.