Events
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 Announces Deep-Dive Breakout Sessions on AI, Fundraising, and Physical Computing
The conference reveals its packed agenda of intimate 50-minute workshops where founders and operators tackle pressing questions about building with AI agents, infrastructure economics, and scaling teams.
TechCrunch — AI
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is coming to Moscone West in San Francisco from October 13–15, gathering over 10,000 founders, investors, and tech leaders. Beyond the main stages, the event features breakout sessions designed to dig deeper into the challenges founders face right now.
What the Breakout Sessions Offer#
Unlike the headline presentations, breakout sessions give attendees 50 minutes with expert panelists plus live audience Q&A. Each room has limited capacity on a first-come, first-served basis, creating an opportunity to ask burning questions directly and dig into specific problems rather than absorbing stage-level insight. The format encourages real dialogue: participants can challenge assumptions, explore solutions, and leave with ideas they can implement.
Core Topics Shaping the 2026 Conversation#
This year's lineup reflects what's actually occupying founder and operator mindspace: AI agents and how to build with them, the shift from model training to inference economics, the emerging category of physical AI, and how founders scale teams and growth in an AI-accelerated world. Sessions also cover the evergreen challenge of fundraising — both how to run a round effectively and what pitfalls sink otherwise strong companies.
The Full Agenda at a Glance#
AI and Engineering:
- Outnumbered Either Way — Anthropic engineers share how they delegate real work to Claude agents, manage parallel agent workflows, and integrate agentic systems into daily practice.
- What Is Physical AI, Anyway? — SOSV HAX partners break down the emerging physical AI category, where machines must perceive and act in unpredictable environments, and why it requires different investment thesis than pure software.
- Physical AI Isn't a Model Problem. It's an Execution Problem — Investors and founders examine the gap between perception and action, and why companies that reliably close that loop may become the most valuable players in industrial AI.
- How to Build AI We Can Trust — Forum AI's co-founder explores how to scale expert evaluation across AI systems handling consequential decisions, moving beyond accuracy alone.
