Updated on Jun 2026

We keep this list updated because it’s one of those things that’s genuinely annoying to compile yourself. Dates shift, new events get announced, and half the lists you find online are already stale.

This edition is updated as of June 2026 and includes gaming-specific events across Turkey and Vietnam, which have both become meaningful markets for mobile gaming publishers and studios.

A few notes before you get into it. Dates listed as TBD are events confirmed for 2026 but where specific dates haven’t been officially announced yet. Events are worth checking closer to the date. Also, several large events from the original list that have already passed (CES, MWC, IAB NewFronts, Advertising Week Europe) are included for reference but marked accordingly.

January 2026

CES 2026 | Las Vegas, USA (Jan 7-10)

Focus: Ad tech, AI, CTV, consumer data, emerging platforms

The year’s first major signal check for platform and technology trends. Good for catching early-stage product announcements across AI, connected TV, and data infrastructure before the rest of the year’s narrative solidifies.

ces.tech

Affiliate Summit West 2026 | Las Vegas, USA (Jan 26-28)

Focus: Affiliate marketing, performance advertising

Worth attending if performance acquisition is part of your growth model. Skews toward direct-response marketers but has useful overlap with app publishers running CPA-based user acquisition.

affiliatesummit.com/west

March 2026

Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2026 | Barcelona, Spain (Mar 2-5)

Focus: Mobile advertising, AI, data privacy, digital platforms

The main intersection of telecom, mobile, and advertising technology. Heavy on platform announcements and ecosystem-level conversations. More useful for understanding where the infrastructure is heading than for tactical sessions.

mwcbarcelona.com

IAB NewFronts 2026 | New York City, USA (Mar 23-26)

Focus: Digital video, streaming, CTV, AI-powered advertising

IAB moved NewFronts earlier in the year in 2026 to better align with annual media buying cycles. This is the world’s largest digital video content marketplace event. Invite-only for qualified brand marketers and agency professionals, but worth monitoring if you’re in the CTV or streaming monetization space.

iab.com/events/newfronts-2026

Advertising Week Europe 2026 | London, UK (Mar 24-26)

Focus: Global advertising strategy, brand and tech crossover

Strategy-heavy with senior speakers from across the advertising ecosystem. Less technical, more about where budgets and narratives are heading.

advertisingweek.com

d3con 2026 | Hamburg, Germany (Mar 17-18)

Focus: Programmatic, CTV, retail media

One of the more tactical European events for programmatic and monetization teams. Smaller attendance, higher signal-to-noise.

d3con.com

ad:tech New Delhi 2026 | New Delhi, India (Mar 18-19)

Focus: Digital marketing, ad tech, APAC growth

India’s largest digital marketing event, running since 2011. Useful for teams thinking about the South Asian market.

newdelhi.ad-tech.com

Digiday Media Buying Summit 2026 | Nashville, USA (Mar 2-4)

Focus: Media buying strategy, measurement, attribution

Focused sessions on performance, attribution, and budget efficiency. Smaller format, tends to draw more senior buyers than large trade shows.

digiday.com/events

April 2026

POSSIBLE 2026 | Miami, USA (Apr 27-29)

Focus: Marketing innovation, future of technology, brand strategy

A newer conference on the circuit, POSSIBLE brings together CMOs and senior marketing leaders for forward-looking conversations on AI, data, and marketing technology.

possibleevent.com

May 2026

MAU Vegas 2026 | Las Vegas, USA (May 19-21)

Focus: Mobile growth, monetization, retention

Performance-driven sessions with a strong product and growth angle. One of the better events for mobile publishers working on retention and monetization optimization.

mauvegas.com

Vietnam GameVerse 2026 | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (May 8)

Focus: Vietnamese gaming industry, developer-publisher connections, international expansion

Vietnam’s flagship gaming industry event, themed “Do local, go global” in 2026. Attracted around 60,000 participants and 300+ representatives from government, developers, publishers, and international stakeholders. Reflects how seriously Vietnam is taking its gaming sector as a digital economy driver.

Vietnam GameVerse

June 2026

Programmatic Pioneers Summit 2026 | London, UK (Jun 2-3)

Focus: Programmatic advertising, automation, AI

Practical content on automation and buying efficiency. Well-attended by publisher-side teams alongside the buy side.

programmatic.wbresearch.com

WN Conference Istanbul 2026 | Istanbul, Turkey (Jun 18-19)

Focus: Mobile gaming, publishing, user acquisition, monetization, regional growth (Turkey, MENA, global)

A focused B2B gaming event bringing together developers, publishers, investors, and service providers. The 2026 agenda covers mobile game growth strategies specific to Turkey and MENA, scaling export-first games, and how AI is being used to build and monetize games in the region. Strong for studio founders and growth leaders looking to build international connections from Istanbul.

wnconf.com

Mobidictum AI & Mobile Summit Istanbul 2026 | Istanbul, Turkey (Jun 11)

Focus: AI in mobile apps and gaming, growth, monetization

Free to attend but application-based due to limited capacity. Designed for founders, executives, and marketers working across AI, mobile apps, and gaming. Strong networking format with 1:1 meeting scheduling via the event platform.

mobidictum.com/events

Gaming Vietnam 2026 | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (Jun 24-26)

Focus: Gaming hardware, software, development, esports, VR/AR

Part of the ICTCOMM international ICT exhibition at SECC. Covers the full spectrum of Vietnam’s digital entertainment market across hardware, software, and services. Useful for companies looking to understand or enter Vietnam’s gaming hardware and development ecosystem.

Gaming Vietnam

Cannes Lions 2026 | Cannes, France (Jun 22-26)

Focus: Advertising, creativity, data, technology

Where brand, creativity, and ad technology come together at the highest level. More useful for teams at the intersection of brand and performance than for pure ad-tech operators. Heavy on media and agency attendance.

canneslions.com

July 2026

MAD Fest London 2026 | London, UK (Jul 7-9)

Focus: Marketing, creativity, ad tech

A balanced mix of inspiration and execution-focused sessions. Increasingly relevant for publisher-side teams as ad tech content has grown.

madfestlondon.com

Vietnam Game Connect (VGC) 2026 | Hanoi, Vietnam (Jul 16)

Focus: Vietnamese game market, studio-publisher connections, networking

Designed specifically for game studios, publishers, platforms, and service providers connecting within the Vietnamese game market. Three core activities: exhibition, conference sessions, and structured networking. Hosted at Ascot Tay Ho by West Lake.

vietnamgameconnect.com

September 2026

GIST | Gaming Istanbul 2026 | Istanbul, Turkey (Sep 18-20)

Focus: Gaming (B2C and B2B), publishers, developers, investors, esports

One of the most significant gaming events in the region. GIST 2026 runs a combined B2C festival (all three days) alongside dedicated B2B conference stages (Sep 18-19), split into PC/Console and Mobile tracks. Brings together developers, publishers, investors, hardware brands, and gaming communities. For studios and publishers in Turkey and MENA, this is the local event that matters most.

gamingistanbul.com

DMEXCO 2026 | Cologne, Germany (Sep 23-24)

Focus: Digital marketing, programmatic, data

One of Europe’s largest digital marketing and ad tech events. Strong for European publisher and platform teams. Usually draws significant product announcements from major platforms.

dmexco.com

Programmatic I/O 2026 | New York City, USA (Sep 28-29)

Focus: Programmatic advertising, data, media buying strategy

AdExchanger’s flagship event. Consistently strong content for programmatic publishers, SSPs, and anyone working in data-driven advertising. One of the cleaner signals on where the US programmatic market is heading.

adexchanger.com/programmatic-io

IAB CreatorFronts 2026 | New York City, USA (Sep 15-17)

Focus: Creator economy, brand partnerships, digital video, podcasting, gaming content

New in 2026, this replaces IAB’s standalone Podcast Upfront and Gaming Advertising Upfront with a single unified marketplace event connecting brands with creator-led solutions across content formats.

iab.com/events

October 2026

Mobidictum Conference 2026 | Istanbul, Turkey (Oct 7-8)

Focus: Mobile gaming, apps industry, publishing, venture capital, user acquisition, monetization

The flagship gaming industry conference for Turkey, Europe, MENA, and Asia. The 2026 edition is the largest yet, with 2,500+ attendees expected from 65+ countries and a new dedicated Apps Industry stage alongside the existing Mobile and Business stages. Includes publisher and investor matchups, a Women in Games mixer, and an Indie Awards Show. For anyone in the region building or scaling a mobile game or app, this is the most relevant event on the calendar.

mobidictum.com

Advertising Week New York 2026 | New York City, USA (Oct 5-8)

Focus: Global advertising strategy, brand, and platform

Senior-level strategy conversations across brand, media, and technology. The US counterpart to Advertising Week Europe.

advertisingweek.com

AOP Publishing Tech Talk 2026 | London, UK (Oct 7-8 and Oct 14-15)

Focus: Publisher technology and monetization

Niche but highly relevant for publishing and media tech leaders. One of the few events built entirely around the publisher perspective rather than the buy side.

ukaop.org

November 2026

Web Summit Lisbon 2026 | Lisbon, Portugal (Nov 9-12)

Focus: Global tech, ad tech, SaaS

Cross-industry exposure with strong startup and platform presence. Useful for broad ecosystem awareness and meeting companies outside your immediate vertical.

websummit.com

Gamesforum Vietnam 2026 | Hanoi, Vietnam (Nov 25)

Focus: Mobile gaming UA, ad monetization, IAP strategy, Vietnamese gaming market

A conference specifically for mobile gaming professionals focused on user acquisition, ad monetization, and in-app purchase strategies. Sessions in both English and Vietnamese with live translation. Strong international presence and direct access to Vietnam’s growing publisher and studio community.

globalgamesforum.com

Quick reference by focus area

For programmatic and publisher monetization: d3con (Mar), Programmatic Pioneers Summit (Jun), Programmatic I/O (Sep), AOP Publishing Tech Talk (Oct)

For mobile gaming specifically: MAU Vegas (May), WN Conference Istanbul (Jun), Mobidictum AI Summit (Jun), GIST Istanbul (Sep), Mobidictum Conference (Oct), Gamesforum Vietnam (Nov)

For Vietnam gaming market: Vietnam GameVerse (May), Gaming Vietnam (Jun), Vietnam Game Connect (Jul), Gamesforum Vietnam (Nov)

For Turkey and MENA gaming market: WN Conference Istanbul (Jun), Mobidictum AI Summit (Jun), GIST Istanbul (Sep), Mobidictum Conference (Oct)

For brand and broad advertising strategy: Advertising Week Europe (Mar), Cannes Lions (Jun), Advertising Week New York (Oct), DMEXCO (Sep)

For CTV and video: IAB NewFronts (Mar), VideoWeek Roadmap (Oct), IAB CreatorFronts (Sep)

Spotted an event we missed? Email rashmita@undrads.com and we’ll add it.

Also worth reading: Ad Tech Glossary (A to Z) and 10 Ad Tech Podcasts to Follow in 2026

Ad Tech Events and Conferences in 2026: The Full Calendar

Lakshya Ankit