Game Industry Conference 2026 Reveals Nearly 100 Sessions for October Event in Poznan

Game Industry Conference 2026 is shaping up to be the event's biggest Poznan edition so far, with nearly 100 agenda sessions already announced ahead of its 21-24 October run. The programme remains unfinished, meaning further talks and contributors are still expected before the doors open.

Rather than centring on a single game or platform, GIC 2026 is positioning its schedule around the full development and business pipeline. Its announced programme spans design, production, technology, rendering, audio, legal questions, marketing, investment, live operations, management, artificial intelligence, and developer wellbeing. That broad approach is reflected in eight separate summits planned across the conference.

Speakers currently confirmed have backgrounds at companies and studios including Walt Disney Imagineering, Ubisoft, Activision, CD PROJEKT RED, Techland, Ten Square Games, 11 Bit Studios, Wargaming, Anshar Studios and AMD. The list brings together active developers, technical specialists, producers and veteran creators whose credits reach across several generations of games.

A wide-ranging speaker roster

Among the announced names is Nickole Li, Principal Systems Designer at Mojang. Li's prior work includes roles at Ubisoft and EA, alongside involvement with franchises and projects such as Ghost Recon, Battlefield, Star Wars Battlefront, and Minecraft. Her presence adds a systems-design perspective to a conference programme that is otherwise deliberately broad in scope.

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Jakub Kapuscinski-Bernatek, Senior Gameplay Designer at CD PROJEKT RED, is also scheduled to contribute. He is currently working on The Witcher IV. Before joining CD PROJEKT RED, he was Senior Technical Gameplay Designer at People Can Fly, with credits including Outriders: Worldslayer. That experience links practical gameplay design with the technical work required to make complex player-facing systems function reliably.

Ubisoft Mainz Executive Producer Stéphane Jankowski is another notable announced participant. Jankowski has spent 21 years in game production and currently serves as executive producer of the Anno franchise. His listed credits include Anno 117: Pax Romana, Anno 1800, The Crew, and Assassin's Creed Unity, covering both long-running strategy series and large-scale open-world development.

The technical side of the agenda will include Megan Friedenberg, a rendering engineer at Walt Disney Imagineering whose specialisms include real-time rendering, engines and animation tools. Friedenberg previously worked on Insomniac Games' Marvel's Spider-Man 2, making her one of the announced contributors with direct experience of modern high-end rendering workflows.

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Also confirmed is David King, formerly Senior Director of Technology at Electronic Arts. King spent 17 years at EA and worked across major properties including Battlefield, Star Wars Battlefront, Need for Speed, and Mirror's Edge: Catalyst. His experience offers a perspective shaped by long-term technology leadership on large game productions.

GIC 2026 will additionally welcome two figures with deep roots in the history of game design. Steven Meretzky has worked at Infocom, Activision, Legend Entertainment and King, with credits covering more than 30 games. Bob Bates, a game designer and co-founder of Legend Entertainment, has worked on titles including Unreal II: The Awakening, Spider-Man 3, and Eric the Unready. Their inclusion places veteran creative experience alongside the event's contemporary production and technology subjects.

Eight summits target distinct parts of the industry

The conference's main structure is built around eight themed summits. This format should make it easier for attendees to focus on a discipline, while still leaving room for crossover between creative, technical and commercial topics.

• CTRL + ALT + PROMOTE - Games Marketing Summit will cover publishing, marketing and growth.
• Legal Summit will examine regulatory changes and legal issues affecting games.
• GIC Audio Summit will focus on sound design, interactive music and audio implementation.
• The Management & Operations Summit will address operations, human resources and finance in game development.
• How to Multiplayer Summit will tackle multiplayer development, live operations and business strategies.
• GEEK Investment Forum will bring developers, investors and industry professionals together to exchange knowledge and opportunities.
• GEEK Startups Zone & Feedback battle royale will provide a startup showcase and a competitive format offering support and a cash prize.
• AI Beyond Gaming Summit will explore production-ready game tools, narrative agents and the broader implications of AI.

The mix is notable because it does not treat development as only a creative or programming discipline. A game can have compelling art, design and technology, but its path to release is also shaped by financing, recruitment, publishing arrangements, regulations, communication and post-launch support. By giving those areas dedicated space, the conference recognises the practical pressures facing both established studios and smaller teams.

AI, multiplayer and business realities on the agenda

The AI Beyond Gaming Summit arrives at a time when artificial intelligence remains one of the most debated subjects across creative industries. Its announced remit goes beyond general discussion of generative tools. The planned focus on production-ready game tools and narrative agents suggests sessions will consider how AI may be used in development workflows as well as how it could affect design, storytelling and the industry beyond games.

Multiplayer is another area where creative ambition intersects with sustained operational demands. The How to Multiplayer Summit is set to cover development, live operations and business strategies, three areas that must work together once a connected game reaches players. Multiplayer projects often need planning for community support, technical stability and ongoing content long before release, making it a suitable topic for both developers and business teams.

The Legal Summit likewise reflects an environment in which game makers must pay close attention to changing rules. Regulatory developments can affect everything from company operations and contracts to distribution and player-facing systems. Meanwhile, the Management & Operations Summit will turn attention inward, addressing HR, finance and the organisational work that supports teams during production.

For teams seeking funding or early external feedback, the GEEK Investment Forum and GEEK Startups Zone provide a different entry point. The investment forum is intended as a knowledge- and opportunity-sharing space for developers, investors and other professionals. The startup zone's Feedback battle royale adds a competitive component, with support and a cash prize available as part of the initiative.

Workshops, roundtables and wellbeing initiatives

The October programme is not limited to formal presentations. GIC 2026 will also include workshops and roundtables, formats that can create more direct discussion than a conventional stage session. Dedicated events are planned as well, including Women in Games Day.

The conference will continue its dedicated track on men's mental health, an initiative that began in 2025. It has already included multiple meetings in the form of roundtables, workshops and talks. Its return signals an ongoing effort to make wellbeing a visible part of an event otherwise focused heavily on production, technology and business.

That balance may be increasingly important for an industry in which the challenges of making games are rarely isolated. Technical decisions influence schedules, schedules influence team conditions, commercial planning shapes scope, and community demands can continue long after launch. A programme that pairs career and wellbeing discussions with production sessions gives attendees more routes into the event than a schedule aimed solely at senior developers or executives.

When and where GIC 2026 takes place

Game Industry Conference 2026 will be held in Poznan, Poland, from 21 to 24 October 2026. With nearly 100 sessions already public and additional announcements still to come, attendees can expect the final programme to develop further over the weeks leading into the event.

Tickets are available for the conference. For developers, students, studio leaders, technology specialists, publishers, investors and other professionals working around games, the announced agenda points to a four-day event designed to connect the creative craft of game making with the operational realities that determine how projects are funded, built, launched and supported.