This is just me reading the room but the buzz behind 280AI in the last couple years has really picked up. It seems like every other day on this site someone is asking about the 280AI and another site I am on its pretty much everyday. It feels a lot like 2009-2011ish with the 6.5 Creedmoor and we know how that all turned out. I think in the next 5 years 280AI will be as common place on the shelves as 6.5CM, 308, etc. Of course, this is all obviously my opinion but to me at least the 280AI looks to be one of the next hot calibers on the market.
I would say similar, but different. The 6.5CM was marketed very well. Certain attributes where highlighted, and shortcomings weren't mentioned. It was new, it was easy to shoot, and it had a lot of long range potential without recoil. The time was right as the magnum concept was getting a little tired, and folks were ripe to be deviated from it. The low recoil appealed to the softer generation of millennial shooters. Credit spending was at an all-time high, and social media was an explosive new platform for sleek advertising.
The 280 AI has been around for a while. It had a lot to live up to when it was introduced, and I feel like it has long lived in the shadow of the 7mmRM. But while it's a skosh slower, it really is a significantly more efficient cartridge. For reloaders, it offers a marked advantage over 280 Rem. I think now that the a large portion of the shooting public is bored again, the 280 AI is getting a spotlight for what it does well, not where it falls short compared to its big brothers like it did when Magnums were the be all end all. It's getting a spotlight it couldn't at its inception.
And lets face it, unless your a die-hard short action fan, it's superior to the 6.5CM in just about every way!
