All 2026 Conference Sessions

Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo™ 2026 dives deep into key topics for CIOs and IT leaders around AI, executive leadership, cybersecurity, operating models and more to help you address your organization's mission-critical challenges.

2026 Conference Theme

Ignite Intelligence

AI is no longer a differentiator — it’s now part of the foundation. CIOs must take the artificial out of intelligence, combining human ingenuity with AI to unlock value, drive agility and navigate disruption. A human-centered approach is key to leading the intelligent enterprise. 

Explore our conference sessions below, all developed with this theme in mind.

Hear from a long-term Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo attendee on why he keeps coming back.
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Tuesday, October 20, 2026

03:45 PM - 04:15 PM EDT

Microsoft: Empowering AI Builders: Engineering in the Agentic Era on GitHub
Andrew Weiss, FIELD CTO, REGULATED INDUSTRIES, GitHub
The barrier to building with AI is gone. Developers delegate work to agents that plan, execute, and make changes. The constraint is no longer talent or tooling, but whether enterprises give builders a safe path from experiment to production. This session examines agentic engineering at scale: where agents deliver throughput, where they fail, and the guardrails - identity, scoped permissions, audit trails, and human review. ... Show More Show Less

03:45 PM - 04:15 PM EDT

Red Hat: The Speed of Risk: Protecting IT and the Business in the Era of AI
Chuck Dubuque, Senior Director, Product Marketing, Red Hat
Kaete Piccirilli, Director, Product Marketing - Ansible, Red Hat Inc.
IT leaders today face a dual challenge driven by the rapid pace of AI: accelerate adoption to stay competitive while strengthening defenses against increasingly agile threats. In this session, Red Hat presents practical methods to protect IT, deploy and govern autonomous AI agents securely, and architect an adaptable hybrid cloud model compliant with global standards—ensuring resilient security and agility. ... Show More Show Less

03:45 PM - 04:15 PM EDT

Rimini Street: AI-Last for Faster Innovation: Three Steps to Better Business Outcomes
Eric Helmer, EVP & GLOBAL CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, Rimini Street
As organizations rush to deploy AI, many are layering intelligence onto inefficient processes. This session introduces an AI-Last framework for ERP transformation: first optimize processes using native ERP capabilities, then automate where it delivers value, and finally apply agentic AI where it can drive meaningful outcomes. Learn how to maximize ROI, reduce complexity, and avoid turning AI into an expensive fix for broken processes. ... Show More Show Less

03:45 PM - 04:30 PM EDT

Roundtable: How IT Leaders Turn Agentic AI Into Operational Excellence, moderated by Five9
Tony Sorensen, Cio, FIVE9
Recent Five9 research found 99% of organizations increased AI investments this year, but proof it’s paying off hasn’t kept pace. Join this peer discussion to share what's working, what's not, and how you're measuring impact. This is a facilitated conversation, not a presentation; bring your experience and leave with fresh ideas from IT leaders navigating the same challenge. ... Show More Show Less

03:45 PM - 04:15 PM EDT

SAP LeanIX: Governing AI at Scale: Inside Dell's Enterprise Architecture Playbook
Michael Mejia, Dir, Business Architecture, Dell
Jack Moloney, Head of SAP LeanIX - Americas, SAP
AI adoption is accelerating, but governance must keep pace. You can’t govern what you can’t see. In this session, Michael Mejia, Director of Enterprise Architecture at Dell, shares how their approach to enterprise architecture, with SAP LeanIX at its core, is helping drive Dell’s AI strategy—from visibility across the IT ecosystem to governance of how AI is built, deployed, used, and managed. He’ll share key lessons. ... Show More Show Less

03:45 PM - 04:15 PM EDT

Salesforce: The True Cost of AI — And How to Control It
Desmond Wong, Product Marketing Director, Salesforce
AI spend doesn't stop at the model bill — it's agents running unchecked, data pipelines duplicating work, and teams each paying for their own stack in isolation. In this session, you'll learn how to gain visibility and control over AI costs across every layer: models, agents, data pipelines, and the teams running them. You'll see how to move from reactive spend management to proactive cost governance — so AI scales your business, not your bill. ... Show More Show Less

04:20 PM - 04:40 PM EDT

AWS: You Can't Agent Your Way Out of a Bad Process
Ryan Peterson, WW TECH LEADER, MODERNIZATION, AWS
Most AI projects fail because they optimize processes that should not exist in their current form. Organizations generating real value start with a blank slate, design from outcomes, then reintroduce constraints. This session shares the framework separating incremental deployment from genuine re-imagination: identify qualifying processes, design an agent-native target, and sequence what to build now versus what requires data investment first. ... Show More Show Less

04:20 PM - 04:40 PM EDT

Acceldata: The Lakehouse Bet Won't Survive The Autonomous Enterprise
Mahesh Kumar, Cmo, ACCELDATA
By 2030, autonomous operations will make decisions and run workflows faster than a human can review. That shift breaks an assumption behind every "consolidate onto one platform" strategy: that you can predict which data matters enough to move. Once machines decide what to ask, all data is in play. This session maps the shift ahead: a governed control plane spanning hybrid estates, where control reaches the data instead of the other way around. ... Show More Show Less

04:20 PM - 04:40 PM EDT

Miro: Building an architecture for AI governance
Jack Berglund, Head of AI Trust, Miro
Agents inherit a user's access, not their judgment — a gap most enterprises haven't closed.

In this session, Miro's Head of AI Trust Jack Berglund outlines a framework for AI governance: a floor of static rules and a ceiling of dynamic, contextual principles, drawn from governing agents on the shared surface where teams make high-stakes decisions. Leave with a governance model for how agents actually operate, ready to apply to your environment. ... Show More Show Less

04:20 PM - 04:40 PM EDT

SailPoint Technologies: One view of every identity: From visibility to protection
David Freeman, Principal Solution Consultant, SailPoint
Every identity—human, machine, & AI agent— shapes your risk. Yet most leaders can't see them in one place. Watch SailPoint surface every identity & its access on a single pane of glass, then turn that instant visibility into governance & protection across your enterprise. See SecOps Identity Intelligence translate one view into real-time, auditable action against active threats. This is clarity you can act on the moment it matters, demoed live. ... Show More Show Less

04:20 PM - 04:40 PM EDT

Workday: From HR to Finance to IT: Delivering Cross-Functional Value with Sana
Constantijn Lurvink, GTM Lead, Workday
Sana orchestrates HR, Finance, and IT agents end-to-end across multiple systems with real governance. One AI unites every agent, whether it's built by Workday, by your team, or by a partner, meeting people wherever they already work: Slack, Teams, Copilot, Gemini. Discover how the Agent System of Record gives you the guardrails to scale agentic AI safely, without inheriting new risk. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

3 Practices for Building a High Performing IT Strategic Planning Capability
Ian Cox, VP Analyst, Gartner
Developing and executing an IT strategy that delivers measurable business value is a core responsibility for CIOs. This session highlights three key practices leading CIOs use to modernize their strategic planning processes and leverage technology to strengthen strategic planning capability. Discover how to refine your approach and use digital tools to maximize the business impact of your IT strategy. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:05 PM EDT

Gartner Future Directions: Industrialization of AI Drives Powerful AI Networks Ahead
Jorge Lopez, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
The Industrialization of Space continues to rapidly develop as a means for meet the growing demands for AI. This presentation will show how the token costs are declining, the capacity of the AI infrastructure is growing as software, datacenter architecture, and chips grow in volume, and some strategies to insure the energy and cooling needs, including the topic of orbital datacenters. This will drive business models that saw massive growth in AI costs start to build a future that can keep up with AI. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

How to Unlock the Value of Unstructured Data for AI: Start With Governing It First
Mark Beyer, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
As AI shapes business decisions, making unstructured data AI-ready is a key governance priority. The quality, accessibility and security of unstructured data directly determine the performance of AI applications, particularly for GenAI. To unlock its value for AI initiatives, data and business leaders should evolve their governance strategies to effectively manage, protect and utilize unstructured data, ensuring it is AI-ready while meeting compliance and security requirements. Join this session to learn more. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Hype Cycle for Agentic AI 2026 (Inaugural Edition)
This session will introduce the innovation in AI agents and agentic AI using the inaugural Hype Cycle for Agentic AI. Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:05 PM EDT

Hype Cycle for Government Services, 2026
Rishi Sood, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
The government services Hype Cycle helps government CIOs evaluate, prioritize and anticipate technology investments in support of improved service delivery. CIOs can use it to determine suitability and appropriate timing for investments while assessing adoption risks. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Is Your Organization Wired to Resist AI?
Gabriela Vogel, VP Analyst, Gartner
Bad data, legacy systems and passive resistance aren’t just obstacles — they’re signals your organization is wired to resist AI-driven change. In this session, we’ll diagnose and address organizational entrenchment: the deep-rooted routines and mindsets holding back your AI transformation. Leave this session with practical strategies to break free and unlock real progress. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Physical AI: Your Next Blue Ocean Opportunity in the New AI Era
Erick Brethenoux, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
Physical AI refers to tangible AI systems that sense and act in the real world: where digital rubber meets the physical road, bringing intelligence out of software and into real-world environments. Bridging IT and OT through innovative AI capabilities, physical AI brings new business opportunities beyond asset-intensive industries. This session aims to guide CIOs in integrating off-the-shelf solutions into "repeatable engineered outcomes." ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Signature Series: AI, Sovereignty, the SaaSpocalypse and More: The CIOs Path Forward in 2027
Mary Mesaglio, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
This session leverages Gartner’s proprietary data to guide 2027 CIOs through six critical decisions. It outlines how to design an AI-shaped organization, deploy mature AI agents, capitalize on next-gen enterprise apps, and choose strategic investment postures. Crucially, it provides a clear roadmap to safely de-risk AI at scale while successfully navigating a volatile global landscape and strict digital sovereignty requirements. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Tapestry 2026: 7 Macrotrends to Drive Your Strategy Today
Marty Resnick, VP Analyst, Gartner
CIOs must adopt a futurist mindset to lead the multiversal organization. Build resilience against AI chaos and energy limits by adapting to 7 macrotrends — from geopatriation to TrustOps — to thrive in uncertainty. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

The CIO's New Opportunity: Becoming Disinformation Leader in Their Enterprise?
Dave Aron, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
The deluge of disinformation is already here and getting more challenging and common every day. Most enterprises are aware, but almost none are ready for it. They don't have clear, strong leadership of disinformation security. The CIO has a great opportunity to take the lead. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

Use ThreatIndexing to Sharpen Cyber Board Reporting
Paul Proctor, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner
Shift board conversations from vague risk descriptions to quantifiable, threat-informed, decision‑relevant insights by consolidating threat intelligence, control performance, business exposure and trend data into a single scoring model. Using baseline protection-levels and PLA-attainment scoring, CIOs can shape board reporting for effective oversight that drives priorities, investments and stakeholder defensibility. By 2030, measured protection-levels will replace subjective risk methodologies. ... Show More Show Less

04:45 PM - 05:15 PM EDT

What Does an AI Program Really Cost in 2026?
Nate Suda, VP Analyst, Gartner
AI investment is now material, not experimental. Yet few enterprises clearly understand total AI program economics. Join us to explore the full cost stack of enterprise AI in 2026: infrastructure, licensing, integration, governance, talent, model operations and run-cost volatility. We examine how agentic systems affect cost predictability and how hidden integration overhead can exceed model expenses. Using aggregated budget data and deployment case analysis, we provide benchmarks for AI program scale and cost distribution. We also explore how shifting from variable labor to semi-fixed technology is changing operating leverage. ... Show More Show Less

05:15 PM - 06:15 PM EDT

IT Xpo Networking Reception
Join us for the Networking Reception on the IT Xpo where you can engage with your peers, Gartner analysts, and exhibitors while enjoying delicious food and beverages. Evaluate industry offerings that can move your business forward. Attend a Stage session to see technology in action. ... Show More Show Less

05:25 PM - 05:45 PM EDT

Brasil IT+: Digibee: AI Floods Your Integration Backlog. Applied Right, It Also Drains It.
Jeyaram Deivachandran, Head of Forward Deployed Engineering, Digibee
AI isn’t reducing integration demand—it’s multiplying it: more deterministic workflows, new agentic ones and governed AI access to systems and data. Generic coding agents gave us plausible flows fast, but reliable ones rarely. What works? Give AI a spec, not a wish. Keep humans in the loop where consequences live. Always verify before approving. We’ll share what accelerated, what broke, what surprised us, and what we’re still solving in practice. ... Show More Show Less

05:25 PM - 05:45 PM EDT

Camunda: The Great Re-Engineering: Reimagining Process Design for the Agentic Era
Peter Vaccarella, Vice President, Presales, Camunda
Enterprises are deploying AI agents faster than ever and deploying into processes never designed for them. The result: incremental gains from transformative technology. ProcessOS enables rapid re-engineering of core business processes for AI, compressing 9-to-12-month cycles into 12 weeks while maintaining governance and auditability. This session provides CIOs a concrete playbook for closing the gap between AI ambition and process reality. ... Show More Show Less

05:25 PM - 05:45 PM EDT

KPMG: Accelerating Legacy Modernization for AI Scale
Danielle Beringer, PRINCIPAL, ADVISORY, KPMG
Modernizing legacy systems remains a major roadblock to scaling AI. This session focuses on the acceleration of context-rich GenAI capabilities for data and application modernization and a contemporary operating model to support business & IT collaboration. KPMG will share a strategic blueprint & framework to modernize application architecture, enable trusted data products and prioritize high-value AI use cases to drive automated enterprise intelligence. ... Show More Show Less

05:25 PM - 05:45 PM EDT

NetBrain: The Network That Can't Go Down: Agentic Operations, Already in Production
Bernadette Nixon, CEO, NetBrain
Gartner's 2026 agenda calls for staged-autonomy roadmaps and governance by design. This session shows what that looks like when the network can't go down. NetBrain's CEO walks through a mission-critical network, using Agentic NetOps from ticket to evidence-backed root cause to resolution. She will discuss how AI agents earn delegation step by step: grounded in live network context, proven in production, and promoted only as trust is earned. ... Show More Show Less

05:25 PM - 05:45 PM EDT

Systal Technology Solutions: Network Connects - Security Protects - Systal Closes The Gap Between.
Deryck Mitchelson, CISO, SYSTAL TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS
John Bidgood, Chief Technology Officer, Systal Technology Services
The enterprise has already converged. Cloud, AI, network and security now operate as one connected estate, yet most organizations still manage them in silos. Drawing on real-world experience, this session explores how bringing network and security expertise together - amplified by automation and AI - can strengthen resilience, simplify complexity and enable faster, safer business transformation. ... Show More Show Less

06:30 PM - 07:30 PM EDT

Exclusive Member Special Event Bus Loading & Travel Time
Transportation to the event: For Exclusive Member early access to Disney’s Hollywood Studios® Theme Park, please board one of our buses departing from ALL Gartner hotels between 6:30 and 7:30 pm or take the walking path from the main campus.

Please note: Your conference badge is required for bus transportation.

For more event details, including transportation pick up points, park access, and more, please visit our [Special Event Page](https://www.gartner.com/en/attendees-navigator/na/sym36/special-event). ... Show More Show Less

07:40 PM - 08:40 PM EDT

Special Event Bus Loading & Travel Time
Main event shuttles will depart from ALL Gartner hotels from 7:40 - 8:40 pm or take the walking path from the main campus.

Please note: Your conference badge is required for bus transportation.

For more event details, including transportation pick-up points, park access, and more, please visit our [Special Event Page](https://www.gartner.com/en/attendees-navigator/na/sym36/special-event). ... Show More Show Less

08:00 PM - 11:00 PM EDT

Special Event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios® Theme Park!
Join us for our Special Event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios® Theme Park! From 8:00 to 11:00 pm, we're reserved the entire park for you to enjoy entertainment, thrilling rides, and delicious food. This is a celebration you won’t want to miss, reserved just for you!

Please arrive by taking a shuttle from any Gartner hotel or by using the walking path from the main campus.

For more event details, including transportation pick-up points, park access, and more, please visit our [Special Event Page](https://www.gartner.com/en/attendees-navigator/na/sym36/special-event).

Important Details:
Pack casual clothes and comfortable sneakers. All attendees must be 21 years of age, wear their conference badge, and carry a photo ID at all times to access the theme park. ... Show More Show Less

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"You have all of the CIOs in the world, all together. It’s a wealth of expertise and experience that I love to tap into and continue to stay connected with.”

Damon Frost
CIO, P&G Beauty, Proctor & Gamble

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