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Strategic IT outlook: Tech conferences and events calendar
Tech conferences are a vital way for CIOs and IT leaders to keep abreast of trends and make real-life connections in a fast-changing business climate.
In today's climate of uncertainty and rapidly evolving technologies, the cost for CIOs of falling behind is higher than ever.
Technology industry conferences and events offer the best opportunities for CIOs to stay ahead of the curve and gain a deeper understanding of how to align emerging innovations with business value.
While there's a wealth of technical information you can gather at a quality technology conference, there are other good reasons to attend. Conferences provide opportunities to engage directly with peers, industry experts, potential vendors and other technology and business leaders to discuss similar challenges, build best practices and compare strategies.
Here are some conferences and events that CIOs will want to put on their calendars.
If you have a tech conference or event that you would like to appear in this calendar, email [email protected]. Check in frequently for conference calendar updates.
Nvidia GTC AI Conference
When: March 16-19, 2026
Where: San Jose, Calif.
Cost: Early bird conference access $2,172.
Topics include the next wave of AI -- including AI factories, reasoning AI, physical AI, agentic AI and AI inference.
Keynote from Jensen Huang -- founder and CEO of Nvidia. Full lineup to be announced.
Extras: networking, training, certifications and developer hackathons.
Register for the Nvidia GTC AI Conference here.
Gartner CIO Leadership Forum -- West
When: Feb. 23-24, 2026
Where: Phoenix
Cost: $4,725, standard.
Topics include scaling AI, culture and change, cybersecurity and risk management, digital business transformation, innovation, executive influence, and strategic planning and execution.
Conference speakers include Brandon Germer -- Gartner senior director and analyst; Mbula Schoen -- Gartner senior director and analyst; and Peter Skyttengarrd -- Gartner vice president and analyst.
Extras: sunrise yoga, meetups and a Southwest soiree.
Register for the Gartner CIO Leadership Forum here.
Gartner CIO Leadership Forum -- East
When: March 30-31, 2026
Where: Hollywood, Fla.
Cost: $4,300 early bird; $4,900, standard; $3,875 public sector.
Topics covered include leadership; AI ROI; operational and business resilience; emerging technologies; workplace culture; and workforce strategy.
Conference speakers include Mandi Bishop -- distinguished vice president and analyst at Gartner; Gene Alvarez -- distinguished vice president and analyst at Gartner; Brander Germer -- senior director and analyst at Gartner; and Christie Struckman -- distinguished vice president and analyst at Gartner.
Extras: one-on-one meetings with Gartner analysts; roundtables; workshops; sunrise yoga.
Register for Gartner CIO Leadership Forum 2026 -- East here.
HumanX
When: April 6-9, 2026
Where: San Francisco
Cost: $2,650, all-access.
Topics covered include AI leadership; AI ROI; AI transformation; CIO-, CFO- and COO-specific sessions.
Speakers include Matt Garman -- CEO, AWS; Katrin Lehman -- CIO, Mercedes-Benz; Ali Ghodsi -- CEO and co-founder, Databricks; Andrew Ng -- founder, DeepLearning.AI; and Adam Evans -- executive vice president and general manager, Salesforce AI.
Find out more about how to register for HumanX here.
Google Cloud Next
When: April 22-24, 2026
Where: Las Vegas, Nev.
Cost: TBA.
Topics covered include AI and cloud technology; application development; cloud and data security; infrastructure modernization.
Speakers have not yet been announced, but it is expected that there will be executive keynotes from Google Cloud leaders.
Find out more about how to register for Google Cloud Next here.
MIT Sloan CIO Symposium
When: May 19, 2026
Where: Cambridge, Mass.
Cost: $1,349, standard.
Topics covered include agentic AI; leadership; transformation; efficiency; and resilience.
Speakers have not yet been announced, but it is expected that the agenda will include CIOs from around the world and academic thought leaders.
Extras: CIO Leadership Award dinner; cocktail reception; roundtables.
Find out more about how to register for MIT Sloan CIO Symposium here.
American CIO and Cyber Security Summit
When: June 9-10, 2026
Where: San Francisco, Calif.
Topics covered include cybersecurity; AI; digital transformation; and data management.
Conference speakers include AJ Debole -- field CISO at Oracle; Lee Parrish -- CISO at Newell Brands; Roy Luongo -- CISO for U.S. Secret Service; and Jennifer Zmuda -- CIO at UnitedHealth Group.
Register for American CIO and Cyber Security Summit here.
Securing New Ground
When: Oct. 20-21, 2026
Where: New York City
Cost: TBA
Topics covered include security megatrends, private equity’s impact on the industry, and the economics and trends shaping the CISO landscape.
Conference speakers include Ewa Pigna -- chief technology officer, Honeywell; Cheryl Steele -- chief security officer, Starbucks; Mark T. Esper -- former U.S. Secretary of Defense; and Michael Normyle -- U.S. economist at Nasdaq.
Extras: networking breaks and receptions.
Find out more about Securing New Ground here.
Oracle AI World
When: Oct. 26-29, 2026
Where: Las Vegas
Topics covered at this event include Oracle vision and strategy, AI development in Oracle applications, and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure development.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Extras: networking breaks and receptions.
Find out more about Oracle AI World here.
Dreamforce
When: Sept. 15-17, 2026
Where: San Francisco
Cost: TBA
Topics covered include agentic AI development with Agentforce; AI development for the contact center, customer experience and field service management; Data Cloud; and Tableau analytics and insights.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Save the date for Dreamforce here.
Gartner IT Symposium/Expo
When: Oct. 19-22, 2026
Where: Orlando, Fla.
Cost: $8,200, standard; $5,925, public sector.
Topics covered include top technology trends for 2026; overcoming resistance and building enthusiasm for AI adoption; and leading CIOs through uncertainty.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Find out more about Gartner IT Symposium/Expo here.
Gartner HR Symposium/Expo
When: Oct. 26-28, 2026
Where: Orlando, Fla.
Cost: $4,875, early bird; $5,475, standard; $4.440, public sector.
Topics covered include HR's new domain in the AI era; navigating the multi-generational workplace; and building a growth-ready workforce in the AI era.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Extras: networking receptions.
Register for Gartner HR Symposium/Expo here.
InfoSec World
When: Oct. 12-14, 2026
Where: Kissimmee, Fla.
Cost: $3,395, early bird; $4,195, standard.
Topics covered include AI regulation, bad actors, AI and the c-suite, AI security threats, and AI privacy and security.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Register for InfoSec World here.
The Studio
When: Oct. 26-28, 2026
Where: TBA
Cost: free, but via approved application only.
Agenda and conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Apply to attend The Studio here.
ICMI Contact Center Expo
When: Oct. 26-29, 2026
Where: Orlando, Fla.
Cost: TBA
This is a contact center-focused event, with practitioner-led case studies and tours of contact centers. Agenda and conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Find out more about ICMI Contact Center Expo here.
GitHub Universe
When: Oct. 28-29, 2026
Where: San Francisco
Cost: TBA
Agenda and conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Find out more about GitHub Universe here.
Microsoft Ignite
When: Nov. 17-20, 2026
Where: San Francisco
Cost: TBA
Agenda and conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Find out more about Microsoft Ignite here.
AWS Re:Invent
When: Nov. 30-Dec. 4, 2026
Where: Las Vegas
Cost: TBA
Topics covered include AWS cloud innovation strategy and roadmap; AWS cloud architecture; and AWS AI tools and agents.
Conference speakers have not yet been announced.
Subscribe to updates for AWS Re:Invent here.
