AI Hype, Hope and Humanity 2026

Full event page & registration

Visit this page for the full programme and to register.

Festival dates: 30 September - 2 October

AI Hype, Hope and Humanity is an academic conference reshaped into an open, 3-day festival with various panels, workshops, and sessions around the responsible use of AI in our society, its challenges, and future perspectives.

Over three days, the festival moves through a deliberate arc:

• Societal challenges and current uses of AI across domains including work, health, education, media, food, safety, and defence.
• Transitions and concrete ways forward, including experimentation, implementation, and innovation.
• Skills, education, and long-term change asking what capacities are needed to shape responsible AI futures.

Who is this event for?

This event is designed as a festival, not a traditional academic conference. It brings together academics, practitioners, and policymakers working on AI, while opening up the conversation to students, creatives, families, and anyone curious about how AI is shaping society.

Researchers remain at the heart of the programme, but in a format that goes beyond presentations and papers, creating space for dialogue, interaction, and exchange with a wider audience.

Visitors can explore the programme in their own way, whether that’s through hands-on experiences, creative work, discussions, or more in-depth academic sessions. Alongside plenary sessions, paper presentations, workshops, and debates, the festival will feature demos, expo-style showcases, and a startup competition focused on responsible AI solutions, where finalists will pitch live.

Everyone is welcome, whether you engage with AI in your work or are simply interested in how it affects everyday life. No technical background or specific reason to attend is needed; if you’re interested, you’re invited.