Europe’s biggest tech show is back, and it is going bigger than ever. VivaTech 2026 lands at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles from June 17 to 20, with a 10th anniversary edition that expects 180,000 visitors, 15,000 startups, and 4,000 investors from over 170 countries. Quantum machines, orbital ventures, and a free Champs-Élysées takeover will turn the French capital into a giant open lab.

A Decade Of Growth That Just Hit A New Peak

When VivaTech opened its doors in 2016, only 45,000 people showed up. Today, that number looks tiny.

For its 10th anniversary edition, VivaTech returns from June 17 to 20, 2026 at the Porte de Versailles and announces a scale-up. The event boasts 300% audience growth, rising from 45,000 to more than 180,000 visitors in 2025 from 171 countries, with startups tripling and investors multiplying twelvefold.

The 2026 edition moves into a new home inside Hall 7. The hall spreads across three floors, with 30% more exhibition space, over 20,000 m² added, and seated stage capacity more than doubled. Organisers promise 15,000 startups, over 1,500 demos, and twice as many world premieres as last year, along with 40% more C-level attendees, 4,000 investors, and over 4,200 partners and exhibitors across more than 30 sectors.

Co-Chairman Maurice Lévy framed the moment in a single line. He called it a change of dimension for VivaTech, reflecting a new era of AI, deeptech and a geopolitical reconfiguration in which Europe must fully assume its role.

VivaTech 2026 Paris 10th anniversary tech event

AI, Deeptech And The Big Themes On Stage

This year’s program is built around four pillars: AI and productivity, cybersecurity and defense, the energy transition, and frontier science. Each one answers a real question facing business leaders right now.

Trust in AI has crossed a tipping point inside boardrooms. According to the 2026 VivaTech Trust Barometer, 89% of executives now trust AI to guide their company’s decisions.

The headline demo will be hard to forget. Among the innovations unveiled are the real-time brain-machine interface by Unitree x HABS as a world exclusive, the first mass-market dual-vector exoskeleton by Sumbu, and the French conversational AI agent platform GetVocal AI.

On the deeptech side, IBM is bringing a centerpiece moment. Jerry Chow, IBM Fellow and CTO for Quantum-Centric Supercomputing, will present the “quantum chandelier”, a world exclusive demonstration of a system capable of computations that classical computers simply cannot perform, with applications in healthcare, telecommunications, and industrial optimization.

Space is also having a European moment. Helene Huby, Founder and CEO of The Exploration Company, represents a new generation of European private space ventures redefining what independent orbital infrastructure looks like.

Energy Transition Moves From Talk To Action

The climate track is the one most CEOs say they need answers from. Renewables, grid upgrades, and electric mobility are now business survival issues, not slideware.

Lei Zhang, CEO of Envision, one of the world’s leading renewable energy and smart energy companies, will be at VivaTech alongside Philippe Piron, CEO of Electrification at GE Vernova, the energy technology spin-off now at the center of the global grid modernization effort. François Provost, CEO of Renault, will represent the mobility side at a moment when the European automotive industry is navigating one of its most complex strategic pivots.

Smaller players will steal plenty of attention too. On the floor, startups like Nyobolt for ultra-fast charging, Bienesis for climate-resilient agriculture, and Tenaka for ocean regeneration as a world exclusive, will demonstrate that the energy transition is not a future story.

Speakers You Should Not Miss

Cybersecurity Becomes The Pressure Test

The Tech Leaders Summit is where the soft talk ends. CTOs, CISOs and CDOs will face the messy choices behind every AI rollout, from sovereignty to safety.

The numbers explain the stakes. In a context of surging cyberattacks of plus 75% in one year according to Accenture 2024, French startup Riot is one of many developing employee cybersecurity awareness programs, while Belgian startup Aikido makes AI-assisted tools to detect and fix vulnerabilities in developers’ code.

“VivaTech is no longer just a tech event, but a movement that wants to shape Europe’s future.”

Europe’s push for digital sovereignty runs through the whole summit. Germany is VivaTech’s 2026 Country of the Year, with the largest booth in VivaTech’s history at 800 m² and an unprecedented delegation: 200 startups, numerous federal and regional partners, 14 Länder, 12 government entities, and two federal ministers, Karsten Wildberger for Digital Transformation and Government Modernisation, and Dorothée Bar for Research, Technology and Space. At a time of growing global and technological fragmentation, this spotlight underscores Europe’s ambition to assert its sovereignty and lead in innovation.

India joins as AI Country Partner this year. Numerous speakers from India will attend, with the status a direct continuation of the AI Impact Summit in Delhi and the Franco-Indian Year of Innovation.

Two Public Firsts That Open Tech To Everyone

For the first time, VivaTech is stepping outside its halls. The party starts before the show even opens.

• June 14, Champs-Élysées Takeover: A free and immersive day centred on everyday tech including AI, robots, mobility, climate and health.
• June 17 to 19, Main Event: Business hours for founders, investors and corporate teams at Porte de Versailles.
• June 20, VivaTech Festival: The day will open tech up to 18-35 year-olds through AI and society content, the creator economy, the talents of tomorrow, and a Careers Festival.

Ticket prices reflect that wider audience strategy. Tickets start from the lower end of the €50 to €4,200 range, with early registration recommended to secure the best rates.

Ten years ago, VivaTech was a bet on the idea that Europe could host a tech event the world would fly in for. That bet has clearly paid off, and the 2026 edition feels less like a celebration and more like a starting gun for the next decade. Whether you are a founder hunting your first cheque, a CTO trying to read the room, or a curious Parisian walking the Champs-Élysées on a free Sunday, this June is shaping up to be the one to remember. What are you most excited to see at VivaTech 2026? Drop your thoughts in the comments and share this with a friend who lives for the future of tech.