TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 will be held on October 13-15 at Moscone West in San Francisco. The event will bring together more than 10,000 people from the global startup and technology ecosystem. With six days to go before doors open, those who register online before October 13 can save up to $100 on a ticket; those who purchase a second ticket get a 50% discount. A $75 Expo+ Pass option is also available for those who have been laid off.
As part of the event, hundreds of startups and technology companies will showcase their new products and business models in the Expo Hall. More than 200 sessions, roundtables and workshops will be held across six stages; more than 250 technology leaders will address topics such as artificial intelligence, fundraising, fintech, robotics, infrastructure, product, hiring and scaling.
Speakers include:
- Mark Wahlberg, co-founder of Municipal
- Alexander Embiricos, OpenAI Dots product lead
- RJ Scaringe, founder and CEO of Rivian
- Alexa von Tobel, founder and managing partner of Inspired Capital
- Andrew Feldman, CEO of Cerebras Systems
- Cat de Jong from Anthropic
- Les Karpas from Nvidia
In the Startup Battlefield 200 competition, 20 finalists will compete live on the Disrupt stage for a $100,000 prize and the attention of investors, media and the global startup ecosystem. The competition aims to show those looking to grow their startups what investors look for in a winning pitch.
Why it matters
With its agenda, this event can be read as a summary of the technology world’s priorities: the fact that artificial intelligence, fundraising, fintech and robotics sit at the center of the program shows that capital and interest remain concentrated on these topics. Bringing executives from companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Nvidia and Rivian together on the same stages makes Disrupt not merely a showcase platform, but a venue where the industry’s direction and lines of competition can be observed. The offering of specially discounted tickets to laid-off employees shows that job losses in the technology sector have also factored into the organizers’ calculations. Startup Battlefield’s aim of showing what investors look for in a winning pitch means early-stage startups have an opportunity to observe funding criteria firsthand. The true measure of the event will be whether the connections made here turn into investments and partnerships in the months ahead.
Background
Disrupt is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 20 stories featuring this name in the last 90 days; the most recent is dated October 6, 2026.