TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is expanding its single AI stage into two venues because the technology and its implications are developing too fast to fit in one space.
The main AI Stage will host the usual sessions and speakers. The new Real World AI Stage focuses on the intersection of digital and physical systems, where autonomous hardware moves beyond self-driving cars into public spaces, battlefields, homes, and potentially helps extinct species return to Earth.
The event runs October 13 to 15 at San Francisco’s Moscone West. Attendees who purchase tickets by 11:59 p.m. PT on August 7 receive an extra $100 discount via a provided link.
Real World AI Stage lineup
Building AI Systems When Failure Is Not an Option
With Nate Michael, CTO, Shield AI
When AI operates in the physical world, the consequences of failure change. A mistake could lead to a grounded aircraft, a vehicle crash, or a compromised mission.
Leaders building autonomous vehicles, defense technologies, and industrial systems will discuss how founders know when their system is ready for safe deployment. The session covers creating a safety culture, testing and validating AI, navigating regulatory hurdles, and building companies that earn trust when the stakes are high.
Can We Engineer Nature’s Comeback?
With Ben Lamm, CEO, Colossal Biosciences
Ben Lamm has built one of the most controversial companies in tech by turning de-extinction from science fiction into a billion-dollar business. In this fireside chat, the Colossal Biosciences CEO will discuss the technologies used to revive extinct species, the role AI plays in modern biology, and the growing debate over whether engineering nature is a conservation breakthrough or a distraction from protecting what is already here.
Operating at the Edge: How AI Works When the Cloud Doesn’t
With Dr. Ali Agha, CEO and founder of FieldAI; Michelle Lee, CEO and founder, Medra; and Aidan Madigan-Curtis, partner, Eclipse Ventures
The most valuable AI deployments operate where the cloud cannot reach. Building for them requires a different technological playbook.
Leaders from defense, space, and industrial AI will share how they tackle making AI work at the edge, where latency matters, connectivity is limited, and failure is not an option. The session covers architectural principles, design decisions, and trade-offs that make AI-centric systems work in the real world.
From Prototype to Production: Can it scale in reality?
With John Mackey, CEO, co-founder, MBRYONICS; Boris Sofman, co-founder and CEO, Bedrock Robotics; and Adrian Macneil, CEO, Foxglove
A prototype that works is not a product. A product that ships is not a scaled business. The gap between these stages is where most deep tech startups die. Founders might have the right team and tech, but they fail to understand what it takes to bring a prototype into production and eventually scale to higher, profitable volumes.
Founders who have crossed that gap in space hardware, humanoid robotics, and autonomous systems will share what they got wrong, what they would do earlier, and what the prototype-to-production journey looks like when supply chains and manufacturing realities replace lab conditions.
Other stages
Disrupt 2026 includes additional programming beyond the Real World AI Stage.
- The Disrupt Stage features top speakers from Replit, Amazon, Tether, and more.
- The AI Stage digs into the security gaps and business model shifts AI is forcing on every SaaS company.
- The Smart Money Stage covers stablecoins, instant payments, and AI’s role in financial trust.
- The Smart Systems Stage tackles the fusion breakthroughs and grid strain powering AI’s next decade.
- The Builders Stage is where founders and investors get tactical about raising, hiring, and scaling.
More than 10,000 startup, tech, and VC leaders gather in San Francisco from October 13 to 15 for three days of insights, Startup Battlefield, networking, and access to every stage and the exhibition floor.
