The new global meeting place for AI is in France.
The World AI Cannes Festival returns for its 5th edition on 12 and 13 February 2026, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes.
In 2026, the World AI Cannes Festival (WAICF) will establish itself as the must-attend international event for artificial intelligence, bringing together decision-makers, innovators, experts and leaders from all sectors for two days of conferences, presentations, debates and business meetings in the heart of Cannes.
A global event dedicated to innovation
Organised by the EuropIA Institute, the City of Cannes and RX, the WAICF transforms the prestigious Palais des Festivals into the world capital of AI, with a clear ambition: to promote the adoption, impact and understanding of artificial intelligence in businesses, institutions and society.
A rich and structured programme
The 2026 programme covers a wide range of topics, presented by more than 320 international speakers, including leading figures from the professional, academic and institutional AI sectors: start-up founders, executives from major technology companies, researchers and policy makers.
The conferences and debates explore key topics such as:
- AI for Business: Implementation strategies and concrete use cases for AI in business.
- AI Governance: Issues of ethics, regulation and responsible governance.
- The Next AI Tech: Disruptive technological innovations (LLM, AI agents, robotics, quantum computing, etc.).
- Health AI Summit: The impact of AI on healthcare, from research to clinical practice.
In addition, there will be dedicated areas: Alan Turing Agora, Demo Sessions to discover the latest AI solutions, PublicTech Village for local authorities, as well as the WAICF Awards and an exclusive VIP evening promoting strategic networking.
A place for meetings and opportunities.
Expected to attract more than 10,000 participants, the event brings together 220 exhibitors and creates hundreds of business and collaboration opportunities between start-ups, large groups, public institutions and investors.
WAICF 2026 offers a unique platform to:
- understand the current and future challenges of AI,
- connect players in the global ecosystem,
- accelerate the digital transformation of organisations,
- inspire the decision-makers who are shaping the world of tomorrow.
Major new features of WAICF 2026
- Launch of the AI Summit for Elected Officials, supported by the Alpes Maritimes department, SICTIAM, MIA, ADF, and AMF, bringing together more than 150 elected officials and public decision-makers to discuss the challenges of AI in the service of local communities.
- Creation of the PublicTech Zone, a unique space dedicated to AI solutions for local authorities (case studies, demonstrations, feedback).
- An exclusive private evening event to promote strategic discussions and high-level networking.
- Exceptional keynote speeches will punctuate the event, with presentations by Yann LeCun, Jean-Michel Jarre and leading speakers from Meta, IBM, NVIDIA, Salesforce, Mastercard, Palo Alto Networks and the OECD, as well as the presence of Anne Le Hénanff, Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Technology.
In 2026, the World AI Cannes Festival (WAICF) will establish itself as the must-attend international event for artificial intelligence, bringing together decision-makers, innovators, experts and leaders from all sectors for two days of conferences, presentations, debates and business meetings in the heart of Cannes.
A global event dedicated to innovation
Organised by the EuropIA Institute, the City of Cannes and RX, the WAICF transforms the prestigious Palais des Festivals into the world capital of AI, with a clear ambition: to promote the adoption, impact and understanding of artificial intelligence in businesses, institutions and society.
A rich and structured programme
The 2026 programme covers a wide range of topics, presented by more than 320 international speakers, including leading figures from the professional, academic and institutional AI sectors: start-up founders, executives from major technology companies, researchers and policy makers.
The conferences and debates explore key topics such as:
- AI for Business: Implementation strategies and concrete use cases for AI in business.
- AI Governance: Issues of ethics, regulation and responsible governance.
- The Next AI Tech: Disruptive technological innovations (LLM, AI agents, robotics, quantum computing, etc.).
- Health AI Summit: The impact of AI on healthcare, from research to clinical practice.
In addition, there will be dedicated areas: Alan Turing Agora, Demo Sessions to discover the latest AI solutions, PublicTech Village for local authorities, as well as the WAICF Awards and an exclusive VIP evening promoting strategic networking.
A place for meetings and opportunities.
Expected to attract more than 10,000 participants, the event brings together 220 exhibitors and creates hundreds of business and collaboration opportunities between start-ups, large groups, public institutions and investors.
WAICF 2026 offers a unique platform to:
- understand the current and future challenges of AI,
- connect players in the global ecosystem,
- accelerate the digital transformation of organisations,
- inspire the decision-makers who are shaping the world of tomorrow.
Major new features of WAICF 2026
- Launch of the AI Summit for Elected Officials, supported by the Alpes Maritimes department, SICTIAM, MIA, ADF, and AMF, bringing together more than 150 elected officials and public decision-makers to discuss the challenges of AI in the service of local communities.
- Creation of the PublicTech Zone, a unique space dedicated to AI solutions for local authorities (case studies, demonstrations, feedback).
- An exclusive private evening event to promote strategic discussions and high-level networking.
- Exceptional keynote speeches will punctuate the event, with presentations by Yann LeCun, Jean-Michel Jarre and leading speakers from Meta, IBM, NVIDIA, Salesforce, Mastercard, Palo Alto Networks and the OECD, as well as the presence of Anne Le Hénanff, Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Technology.
Opening times
Opening times
From 12 February 2026 until 13 February 2026 - Open on thursday, on friday
Location
Location
Access
Access
- The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès de Cannes is only 27 km from Nice-Côte d'Azur airport, find all the information on the bus lines going there as well as the timetables and fares and book your ticket on line on the website : https://www.niceairportxpress.com/fr/accueil
Whether you are in Cannes or in one of the towns of the Pays de Lérins agglomeration : Cannes, le Cannet, Mandelieu-la-Napoule, Mougins or Théoule, easily reach the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès via the Palm Bus public transport network : https://www.palmbus.fr/
The SNCF train station is only 5 minutes walk from the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès de Cannes.
