Tech Show Frankfurt 2026: A Programme Shaped by Governance, Infrastructure and Enterprise Execution
Written by Rebecca Uffindell Thu 12 Mar 2026
The Tech Show Frankfurt 2026 conference programme has been published, offering a structured view of the governance, infrastructure and organisational questions currently shaping enterprise technology strategy in the DACH region.
This year’s programme reflects a move away from speculative discussions about AI, cloud and cyber towards questions that are operational, regulatory, organisational and infrastructural in scope.
Across the sessions, there is a consistent emphasis on how organisations are recalibrating the role of technology within governance frameworks, energy constraints, risk management structures and workforce design.
The themes below illustrate this direction.
AI Governance Has Moved from Theory to Accountability
Two years into the EU AI Act, compliance is no longer abstract.
‘The AI Act Almost Two Years On’ brings that reality into sharp focus. With policy insight from Kai Zenner of the European Parliament, drawing on his work around audit cycles and high‑risk classifications, the session looks at what governance maturity means in practice. For CISOs, Heads of AI and compliance leads, this is less about awareness and more about documentation, oversight and measurable trust.
The regulatory dimension continues in ‘Europe’s Digital Future: Turning AI, Cloud and Regulation into Competitive Advantage’. Sergiu Petean of Innovation Sovereignty Advisors joins Marcin T. Zakrzewski, CTO at GEFA BANK GmbH, and Dr Anna Christmann of SAI Europe GmbH to examine sovereignty trade‑offs in financial and industrial contexts. The discussion suggests that regulation is no longer viewed simply as a brake on innovation, but as part of the competitive framework within which European organisations now operate.
A complementary perspective comes in ‘Culture of Caution vs Culture of Confidence’. Chaired by Dr Ofure Obazee of Merck Healthcare KGaA, with voices including Jean Amedee Boni of smainos – smart ai innovation solutions and Nico Baum of Berenberg, the discussion addresses a familiar DACH tension: how to balance prudence with pace. The EU AI Act’s risk categories are shaping investment decisions in real time.
For executive leaders, the broader implication is that AI deployment in Europe now sits firmly at the intersection of governance, capital allocation and public trust.
Cyber Security Is Being Reframed as a Cultural Question
Technical controls remain essential. But this year’s programme places notable emphasis on behaviour.
In ‘Dark Side of AI – How Hackers Use AI and Deepfakes’, crime and intelligence analyst Mark T. Hofmann explores how generative AI and deepfakes are reshaping social engineering. For security leaders, the takeaway is not only about tooling, but about anticipating new patterns of manipulation.
The conversation deepens in ‘Are Humans the Weakest Link or Cyber Security’s Strongest Defence?’ Chaired by Dr Bertie Müller of Swansea University, the panel includes Cesar Oliveira, CISO at CMS, and Alice Mini of Hyundai Motor Europe. The focus shifts from blaming employees to designing cultures of accountability and awareness. For organisations under pressure from both regulators and attackers, the human factor is no longer an afterthought.
Security, in this framing, becomes a question of organisational architecture as much as technical infrastructure.
Data Strategy Is Becoming a Structural Discipline
Across sectors, data leaders are moving from ambition to discipline.
‘Metadata Management & Data Lineage: The Hidden Hero Behind Data Quality’ features Pheline Binz of Aareal Bank AG. Her case study illustrates how automated lineage and metadata frameworks underpin both regulatory readiness and scalable AI adoption. In heavily regulated DACH markets, traceability is increasingly non‑negotiable.
In ‘Humanise to Realise: Turning Data Strategy into Human Strategy’, chaired by Tiankai Feng, the discussion broadens to include leaders from Mercedes‑Benz Group, Roche, and Douglas Group. The focus is skills, ethics and narrative. Technical platforms alone are not delivering adoption. Alignment and empathy matter.
The theme continues in ‘The Next Generation Data Team: Roles, Skills & Culture’. With perspectives from Artur Yatsenko, Semone Noel and Peter Mousaferiadis, the session explores how DataOps and MLOps are reshaping team structures. For Heads of Data and engineering directors, the challenge is as much organisational as it is technical.
The broader pattern is subtle but important. Data capability is increasingly treated as a question of governance and people, rather than simply of tooling.
Energy, Regulation and the Physical Limits of AI Infrastructure
No discussion of enterprise technology in Germany is complete without energy.
‘The EnEfG Impact: How Germany’s New Energy Efficiency Act Redefines Data Centres’ brings legal and operational expertise together. Pascal Wagenführ of Latham & Watkins examines what compliance means for operators, investors and suppliers. Renewable sourcing and heat reuse are not future ambitions. They are regulatory expectations.
Energy optimisation continues in ‘Smart Energy Meets Smarter AI’. Delivered in partnership with the German Data Center Association, the panel explores how AI‑driven orchestration and digital twins are improving resilience and efficiency across cooling and capacity allocation.
In ‘How to Optimise AI Infrastructure for Heat Reuse & Decarbonisation,’ Stefan Frenzel and David Gyulnazaryan examine liquid cooling and district heating integration. The framing is pragmatic: AI clusters are scaling, energy intensity is rising, and infrastructure design must respond accordingly.
For operators, facilities directors and infrastructure leaders, this part of the programme reflects immediate constraints rather than long‑term aspiration.
Leadership and Inclusion as Strategic Infrastructure
Alongside governance and infrastructure, the programme gives space to leadership and culture.
In ‘Beyond Productivity: Wie Künstliche Intelligenz unsere Wirtschaft transformiert’, Prof. Dr Holger Schmidt of Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (F.A.Z.) / TU Darmstadt, addresses how AI is reshaping business models and labour structures. The emphasis is economic and societal, not purely technical.
‘Leading Digital Transformation Like a Team Sport’ brings together digital leaders from Borussia VfL 1900 Mönchengladbach GmbH, Sevilla FC and Eintracht Frankfurt. The analogy to sport frames transformation as coordination, resilience and shared accountability.
Empowered: Inclusion as Enterprise Capability
The Women in Tech initiative, now positioned under the banner Empowered at Tech Show Frankfurt, has evolved since 2023 into a structured element of the programme rather than a peripheral add‑on.
Framed as ‘A New Era of Inclusion’, the initiative convenes senior leaders, emerging talent and allies to address gender equity in practical terms. The emphasis is on structural questions: progression, hiring practice, pay equity, mentorship and how new technologies may widen or narrow opportunity.
The 2025 panel, marking the evolution of the initiative into “Empowered”, featured Natalie Halimi (Booking.com), Katarzyna Stoltmann (AstraZeneca), Maja Sdrakas (Deutsche Börse Group), Tana Dubel (Logitech), Amy Roberge (Zoom) and Mirella Cerutti (SAS). Discussion focused on confidence, sponsorship networks, inclusive hiring language, balanced interview panels and the need to value collaboration and communication alongside technical depth.
This year’s programme continues in that direction, combining panel discussion, an interactive workshop led by Women in DevOps and a dedicated networking space. For organisations concerned with long‑term talent resilience and leadership diversity, these sessions are framed as part of enterprise capability rather than peripheral activity.
A Programme That Reflects Operational Reality
Taken together, the 2026 programme points to a more grounded phase in enterprise technology conversations.
• AI is being governed, not just piloted.
• Cybersecurity is cultural as well as technical.
• Data teams are being redesigned around accountability.
• Energy policy is shaping infrastructure strategy.
• Leadership and inclusion are treated as structural issues.
For CIOs, CTOs, CISOs, Heads of Data, infrastructure operators and transformation leaders across the DACH region, these are not abstract conversations.
These are the kinds of questions increasingly shaping boardroom agendas across the region.
For those working through these questions in practice, the Frankfurt programme offers an opportunity to test assumptions, compare approaches and engage directly with peers facing similar constraints.
The full agenda is available via Tech Show Frankfurt for review and planning.
Written by Rebecca Uffindell Thu 12 Mar 2026