Looking ahead to 2026 with Richard Thompson, Smiths Detection

As part of an online miniseries, Richard Thompson, VP of Portfolio, Innovation and Digital for Smiths Detection discusses his industry predictions for 2026.

Can you tell me a bit about yourself, your job role and how long you have been at the company?

I’m Richard Thompson, VP of Portfolio, Innovation and Digital at Smiths Detection. I took on this role in July 2024 with responsibility for shaping our technology portfolio, driving innovation and advancing our digital strategy across the business.

I’ve been with Smiths Detection since 2016.

During that time, I’ve held several techno/commercial roles, including Aviation Industry Director and Regional Head, giving me broad exposure to both customer needs and operational delivery across the organisation.

Before joining Smiths Detection, I spent eight years in global general management roles within Honeywell’s process solutions division.

This background has strongly shaped my focus on innovation that delivers real operational value at scale.

What are some of the key trends and predictions you think we will see in the security industry in 2026?

In 2026 the security industry moves decisively from “watching and recording” to “understanding and anticipating”, driven by AI, new sensing physics such as X-ray diffraction (XRD) and deeply integrated, data-centric platforms across all domains.

The defining shift is that security systems will not just find objects; they will interpret context, risk indicators and material composition at scale, from airports and cities to ports, borders and defence installations.

Four cross-cutting trends sit underneath that shift:

1. AI becomes operational infrastructure

AI is moving from a feature to an operating layer. The focus is on measurable outcomes: higher decision consistency, fewer false alarms, stronger throughput and clearer prioritisation for operators.

In regulated screening environments, this also brings a practical discipline: Deployment is governed through certification, validation and controlled configuration.

Human factors will be central: reducing cognitive load, making information available at the moment it matters and strengthening training so operators remain accountable for final decisions.

• Open architecture becomes a procurement expectation

Operators are increasingly unwilling to accept closed, single-vendor silos. Across aviation, government and defence environments, customers want interoperable systems that integrate into existing infrastructure, work across mixed fleets and can be modernised in stages.

Open interfaces also support auditability, cyber resilience and increasingly, data sovereignty requirements.

• Integrated systems replace point solutions

Buying decisions will focus on how the whole security environment performs as a single workflow. That includes hardware, software, remote support, performance analytics, maintenance and operator procedures.

The language of success becomes network-level uptime, end-to-end flow and consistent outcomes across locations and shifts.

• Deeper sensing and material identification

Diffraction-based screening is part of a broader move beyond “how it looks” towards “what it is”.

By identifying substances through molecular structure, it can reduce ambiguity where different materials can appear similar on conventional imaging.

The operational value is fewer unnecessary secondary searches, faster alarm resolution and improved confidence on complex items such as powders and liquids.

Aviation

• Checkpoint modernisation continues, driven by passenger growth and the need for predictable flow. The focus shifts to whole-checkpoint design, not isolated upgrades
• AI-enabled decision support becomes more common, improving consistency and helping operators focus attention where it matters most
• Greater emphasis on material discrimination in hold baggage and cargo, including interest in sensing approaches that reduce ambiguity and speed resolution
• Remote collaboration, performance analytics and cyber resilience become more prominent, as security moves closer to a software-defined operating model

Urban Security

• Demand grows for flexible, fast-deploy screening for public venues and critical sites with consistent performance despite constrained footprints and changing threat levels
• AI supports high-tempo operations by improving clarity and reducing unnecessary secondary checks, while keeping human judgement central
• Interoperability becomes more important, especially where screening needs to sit cleanly within wider site security infrastructure and operating procedures

Ports and Borders

• Programmes continue to prioritise non-intrusive inspection at scale, particularly for cargo and vehicles. The operational challenge is volume, not just detection, so customers look for systems and workflows that keep trade moving while improving targeting and inspection outcomes
• AI-enabled object recognition supports faster analysis and helps inspection teams prioritise items for deeper inspection
• Customers also want layered capability: Primary screening, secondary inspection and specialist detection options with the ability to share data and images across sites and teams, including remote networked review when needed
• Open, interoperable architectures matter here because ports and borders are rarely greenfield. Modernisation needs to work across legacy infrastructure, multiple agencies and multi-vendor environments

Defence

• Defence customers place a premium on expeditionary reliability and secure integration. Screening and detection need to perform at entry control points, logistics nodes and deployed bases, often in challenging environments with limited support
• CBRN and hazardous material awareness remains a priority with emphasis on faster detection and identification, clearer decision support and integration into wider command and situational awareness systems
• Modularity and upgradeability are key Customers want systems that can be updated and integrated over time without lengthy requalification cycles, while still maintaining controlled change and operational assurance
• Human-machine teaming remains decisive: Training, procedures and clarity under pressure are what turn capability into consistent performance

What is one piece of advice you would give organisations and professionals as they head into 2026?

Make your priority in 2026 trust at scale.

That means designing security as an operating system, not a collection of devices. Invest in solutions that strengthen decisions in real conditions: AI that is governed and measurable, screening that reduces ambiguity and open, integrated architectures that can evolve without disruption.

Just as importantly, invest in people.

The most advanced technology only performs when operators are trained, information is delivered with clarity at the moment it matters and accountability is built into the workflow.

If an initiative improves security on paper but adds complexity in practice, it will not hold.

Build for performance, resilience and trust, every day, at full volume.