WMF 2026 draws 75,000 attendees in Bologna

WMF – We Make Future says its 2026 edition in Bologna drew more than 75,000 people from 90 countries and set new records across business, education and cultural programming. The three-day event underscored how AI and innovation are increasingly shaping investment, labor, public policy and international collaboration.

Why it matters: - WMF 2026 positioned Bologna as a global meeting point for AI, technology, business, education and culture. - The event’s scale signals growing demand for cross-sector forums that connect startups, investors, institutions and researchers in one place. - The program also linked innovation to labor rights, democracy, public safety and economic development, broadening the conversation beyond product launches.

What happened: - WMF – We Make Future closed its largest edition to date from June 24 to 26 at BolognaFiere. - Search On Media Group organized the event. - More than 75,000 attendees from 90 countries took part. - The event covered more than 70,000 square meters and used nine halls and 90 stages. - More than 1,000 speakers, over 800 exhibitors and sponsors, 3,000 startups, SMEs and open innovation stakeholders, more than 50 international delegations, 20 country pavilions, over 40 side events and more than 3,000 organized B2B meetings were part of the program.

The details: - WMF 2026 brought participants from Europe, North America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. - The event was structured around 14 strategic sectors designed to connect industries that are increasingly interdependent. - Companies, institutions, Big Tech organizations, SMEs, startups, investors, professionals and research centers all used the platform for business and collaboration. - Organizations represented included Dell Technologies, Intel, Philip Morris International, Generative Bionics, LG NOVA, Billboard Italia, Google, Microsoft, the European Space Agency, CINECA, the Italian Institute of Technology, AMD, Fincantieri, Rai Pubblicità, eToro, Klarna, OpenAI, Chora, Will Media and the Clust-ER Innovate, Build, Tourism and Agritech networks. - The event generated opportunities for partnership development, business matching, internationalization, startup scouting, open innovation, institutional dialogue, professional education and cross-cultural exchange. - The startup and open innovation track brought together 3,000 startups, SMEs and investors. - The WMF International Startup Competition, now in its 13th edition, named TerraSpark as Jury Award winner, MaestroHub as Audience Award winner, Brainfood Intelligent Media Cloud as Global Impact Challenge Award winner and WealthRyse as Saudi Makes Future Award winner. - WMF’s investor, corporate, media and startup support network spans Europe, North America and Asia and covers the startup life cycle from pre-seed to scale-up. - The network is described as representing $304 billion in assets under management, $1.5 billion in portfolio value and more than 17,000 investment rounds managed. - On the Mainstage, guests included Henna Virkkunen, Michiel Scheffer, Lucia Borgonzoni, Roberto Saviano, Brunello Cucinelli, Mathew Knowles, Alberto Sangiovanni Vincentelli, Francesca Albanese, Nicola Gratteri, Veronica La Regina, Francesco Ubertini, Stefano Massini, Chris Smalls, Pierpaolo Bombardieri, Giuseppe Lombardo, Enrico Mentana, Corrado Formigli, Giulia Lamarca, Camihawke, Awed, Guglielmo Scilla, Gabriele Vagnato, Veronica Maffei and Karma B. - Discussions covered European technological sovereignty, AI, supercomputing, semiconductors, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, employment, rights, public safety, journalism, geopolitics, sustainability, organized crime and Big Tech surveillance. - The event also featured concerts by Dardust, Ditonellapiaga and other artists. - ICARUS, a project supported by tech creator Jakidale, set a Guinness World Record for the world’s largest paper airplane. - ONIL, Italy’s first independent observatory dedicated to the impact of artificial intelligence on employment, was announced from the WMF Mainstage and formally established during UIL’s 19th National Congress. - The observatory was created through an agreement signed by UIL General Secretary Pierpaolo Bombardieri and Cosmano Lombardo. - The initiative builds on a 2021 joint effort that included a proposal for Italy’s first collective labor agreement for the AI and digital technology sector. - More than 90 stages hosted learning tracks, workshops, case studies, tools and strategic insights for AI, digital and innovation professionals. - The education program covered artificial intelligence, digital marketing, advertising, data and analytics, cybersecurity, machine learning, e-commerce, tourism, vibe coding, social media, work and human resources, smart cities, open innovation and fundraising. - Several stages offered interpretation in English, Italian, Spanish and Arabic.

Between the lines: - WMF is evolving from a conference into a broad ecosystem platform that blends commercial networking, policy debate, cultural programming and workforce questions. - The creation of ONIL suggests artificial intelligence and employment are becoming a more formal policy issue in Italy. - The mix of global companies, institutions and startups shows that AI and digital transformation are now being treated as shared infrastructure questions, not just technology topics. - The event’s emphasis on cross-border participation and multilingual programming points to an effort to compete as an international innovation hub.

What’s next: - WMF’s global program continues on November 5, 2026, in San Francisco with AI For Future. - Saudi Makes Future follows in Riyadh from December 14 to 16. - WMF will return to CES in Las Vegas and present AI Festival 2027 in Milan on February 11 and 12. - WMF 2027 is scheduled for June 10 to 12 at BolognaFiere. - The event is held under the patronage of the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Emilia-Romagna Region and the City of Bologna. - It is supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Trade Agency and the Emilia-Romagna Region, in partnership with Visit Emilia-Romagna and in collaboration with BolognaFiere, CINECA and the European Space Agency. - The 2026 main sponsors were Philip Morris, Dell Technologies and Intel. - Additional sponsors and exhibitors included Amazon Web Services, the European Space Agency, the Italian Ministry of Culture, Data Reply, Blue Reply, Cognita Reply, ALTEN, the Italian Institute of Technology, Eni, eToro, Credem Banca, Chateau d’Ax, Legacoop, Interprefy, Michelin Inflatable Solutions, Tesla, BNP Paribas, Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center, Invitalia, the Calabria Region with Fincalabra, the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy with the Case del Made in Italy network, Netval, DEVPUNKS and Rattix.

The bottom line: - WMF 2026 used record attendance and a dense mix of business, policy and culture programming to reinforce its role as a global innovation platform.