The AI Conference 2026

Overview

The AI Conference 2026 is a premier, multi‑day event in San Francisco designed to bring together builders, researchers, and leaders shaping the applied and practical sides of artificial intelligence. The event spans three days of keynote presentations, workshops, and five track programs focused on AGI, large language models, agentic AI, AI infrastructure, alignment, and real‑world AI deployments across industries. With a capacity of about 5,500 attendees, the conference aims to connect technical practitioners with product leaders, startups, and researchers to accelerate adoption and responsible innovation in AI. The venue is Pier 48, Shed A and B, a waterfront site in the Mission Rock district, offering convenient access from downtown, Caltrain, and major highways. The organizers emphasize hands‑on workshops, live demonstrations, and multi‑track sessions designed to accommodate engineers, architects, executives, and researchers alike.

Agenda

Day ZERO on Sept 29 functions as a high‑signal kickoff with focused workshops and a live AI Hack Day, intended for senior builders and leaders before the main conference begins. The main conference runs Sept 30 to Oct 1 with two full days of programming across five tracks, main stage keynotes, the Startup Showdown, and an Innovation Hub that showcases applied AI across industries. The schedule features a blend of hands‑on tracks (Technical and Leadership) and broader content (AI Strategy, Applied AI, and the AI Stack). A detailed day‑by‑day program covers registration, coffee, keynotes, sessions, breaks, lunch and networking, and evening activities including VIP events and Ignite Talks. There are also tracks and sessions dedicated to model design, training, distributed inference, MLOps, evaluation, and deployment patterns. In addition, attendees can expect a Startup Showdown where emerging AI companies present live, and an Innovation Hub that hosts demonstrations and partner content. A private Day ZERØ program provides additional early access for selected attendees, with special access to workshops and the Hack Day.

Format and Tracks

The conference employs a multi‑track format across five tracks: AGI and LLMs, agentic AI, AI infrastructure, alignment, and applied AI across industries. The program includes keynotes, technical and leadership tracks, hands‑on workshops, and guided discussions designed to translate research into production. There is an emphasis on practical takeaways, architectures, and patterns demonstrated by practitioners, with opportunities for networking and collaboration. The event also features a Startup Showdown for presenting early stage AI ventures and an Innovation Hub for deep dives into novel tools, platforms, and startups. Attendees can expect a mix of technical depth and strategic insight, with tracks designed to serve engineers, researchers, software architects, product managers, and executives.

Speakers and Leaders

Among the first confirmed speakers are notable AI researchers and industry leaders including Peter Norvig (Stanford HAI), Emmanuel Ameisen (Anthropic), Sarah Chieng (Cerebras), Ioannis Antonoglou (Reflection AI), Jaclyn Konzelmann (Google Labs), Marco Paglia (Musixmatch), Jon Pappas (Upwork), Yogiraj Awati (Instacart), Ryan Lopopolo (OpenAI), Pallavi Kinnera (Meta Reality Labs), Shuen Mei (Harbor Capital Advisors), Pratyusha Singaraju (Netflix), Julia Diament (Microsoft), Divya Mahajan (Amazon Alexa), Ruiyang Wang (Anthropic), and Vidya Meenakshi (Intuit). The full roster includes 120+ speakers covering a wide range of AI topics, from governance and ethics to practical engineering, deployment, and product strategy. The agenda signals a strong emphasis on real deployment stories, hands‑on learning, and candid knowledge sharing from both technical and business perspectives.

Attendee Focus

The event targets AI engineers, ML researchers, software architects, tech leads, product managers, applied scientists, executives, AI strategists, and founders who want concrete patterns, case studies, and actionable insights to advance AI in their organizations. A comprehensive set of sessions, workshops, and side events is designed to facilitate knowledge sharing, collaboration, and networking, with emphasis on responsible AI practices and practical outcomes that attendees can apply in production environments.

Location and Access

The AI Conference 2026 takes place at Pier 48 in San Francisco, CA 94158, on the waterfront near Mission Rock, with convenient access to public transit and major roadways. The event offers in‑person participation with options for general admission and team tickets, and it includes an Innovation Hub, sponsor interactions, and after‑hours activities for attendees. The content emphasizes tangible takeaways, practical patterns, and direct access to speakers and peers, making it highly relevant for AI practitioners seeking to translate research into impactful, production‑ready systems.