Last updated: September 9, 2026. Event dates, venues and programs can change; check each official event website before booking travel.
December 2026 closes the year with major machine-learning research conferences and large technology events. NeurIPS is the headline research event, while GITEX brings a massive commercial AI audience to Dubai and ACML strengthens the Asia-Pacific research calendar.
AI Events 2026: September · October · November · December · Full 2026 event hub
Quick picks
- Best frontier research event: NeurIPS
- Best commercial tech + AI event: GITEX GLOBAL
- Best Asia-Pacific ML research event: ACML
- Best North Africa research event: INTIS
- Best quantum AI event: IEEE QAI
AI events in December 2026 at a glance
| Date | Event | Location | Best for | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 1–4, 2026 | ACML 2026 — Asian Conference on Machine Learning | Melbourne, Australia | Machine-learning research, trustworthy ML, RAG, foundation models and applied ML | In person |
| December 6–12, 2026 (Sydney main conference) | NeurIPS 2026 | Sydney, Australia; satellite events in Atlanta and Paris | Frontier AI and machine-learning research | In person / multi-site |
| December 7–11, 2026 | GITEX GLOBAL 2026 | Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo City Dubai, UAE | Enterprise AI, startups, government technology, infrastructure and commercial innovation | In person |
| December 10–12, 2026 | INTIS 2026 | Tangier, Morocco | AI, smart data, multimodal systems, blockchain and applied research | In person |
| December 13–16, 2026 | IEEE Quantum Artificial Intelligence (QAI) 2026 | Nottingham, United Kingdom | Quantum AI, research and emerging computing systems | In person |
1. ACML 2026 — Asian Conference on Machine Learning
Date: December 1–4, 2026
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Format: In person
Best for: Machine-learning research, trustworthy ML, RAG, foundation models and applied ML
ACML is a leading machine-learning research conference in the Asia-Pacific region. The 2026 scope includes core ML, trustworthy AI, foundation models, retrieval-augmented generation, AI safety and a wide range of applied ML topics.
Who should consider it? Researchers, academics, PhD students, ML scientists and advanced practitioners.
2. NeurIPS 2026
Date: December 6–12, 2026 (Sydney main conference)
Location: Sydney, Australia; satellite events in Atlanta and Paris
Format: In person / multi-site
Best for: Frontier AI and machine-learning research
NeurIPS is one of the most influential AI and machine-learning research conferences in the world. The 2026 main event runs in Sydney, with satellite programs in Atlanta and Paris. Expect research papers, tutorials, workshops, competitions and a dense concentration of the global ML research community.
Who should consider it? AI researchers, ML scientists, research engineers, labs, academics and companies tracking frontier research.
3. GITEX GLOBAL 2026
Date: December 7–11, 2026
Location: Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo City Dubai, UAE
Format: In person
Best for: Enterprise AI, startups, government technology, infrastructure and commercial innovation
GITEX GLOBAL is a massive technology and AI event connecting enterprises, governments, startups, investors and technology vendors. In 2026, the event moves to Dubai Exhibition Centre, with the GITEX Scale Summit on December 7 followed by the main expo from December 8–11.
Who should consider it? Enterprise buyers, founders, investors, government technology teams, AI vendors, infrastructure companies and regional business leaders.
4. INTIS 2026
Date: December 10–12, 2026
Location: Tangier, Morocco
Format: In person
Best for: AI, smart data, multimodal systems, blockchain and applied research
INTIS 2026 is the 14th International Conference on New Technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Smart Data. The conference brings together academic and applied work across AI, multimodal systems, smart data and digital ecosystems, with a strong regional relevance for North Africa.
Who should consider it? Researchers, academics, students, data scientists and applied AI teams in Morocco, Africa and Europe.
5. IEEE Quantum Artificial Intelligence (QAI) 2026
Date: December 13–16, 2026
Location: Nottingham, United Kingdom
Format: In person
Best for: Quantum AI, research and emerging computing systems
The IEEE 2nd International Conference on Quantum Artificial Intelligence focuses on the intersection of quantum computing and AI. It is a specialist research event for teams following emerging computational approaches beyond conventional AI infrastructure.
Who should consider it? Researchers, quantum-computing specialists, AI scientists, academics and advanced R&D teams.
How we selected these AI events
AI Finderz prioritizes events with a clear AI, machine-learning, developer, infrastructure, research or enterprise-AI focus. This is a curated list, not an exhaustive calendar. We favor official event information, practical relevance and events with enough published detail to help readers decide whether attending is worthwhile.
Which December AI event should you choose?
If your goal is technical depth, choose the event closest to your role: research conferences for new methods and papers, builder conferences for implementation, enterprise summits for deployment and strategy, and infrastructure events for compute and platform decisions. When travel is not practical, online or hybrid options can still provide useful technical sessions.
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