2026 Wharton DC Innovation Summit:

Leading the Innovation Revolution in America & Beyond

• To help you adjust and LEVERAGE the resources of this region and beyond. Keynotes & other sessions to help you make progress in your career, business and life.

  • Highlights:

    • Four Hours of Keynotes / General Sessions (subject to updates and order may change)

      • Opening General Session / Panel: Does AI Need Guardrails?

      • 2nd Morning Session / Panel: The Future of Healthcare

      • Lunch Keynote / Panel: Innovating to Scale a $1 Billion+ Company: Lessons from Unicorn CEOs

      • Closing Keynote Panel: Fireside Chat with Top Entrepreneur

    • Networking Breaks Throughout the Day & at Closing Reception

    • 3 Tracks, Each Featuring 3 Breakout Panels + Workshop(s) relevant to all innovators, such as:

      • Healthcare / Life Sciences: Will AI Completely Transform Healthcare?; The Next Era of Primary Care; The Future of Food & Agtech

      • Funding & Fintech: e.g., The State of Funding; Startup Showcase, featuring several promising companies; AI and the Future of Fintech; Powerful Pitching Tools & Tips (possible workshop)
      • Transformative Technologies: The Latest Developments in Civilian & Defense Aerospace; The Outlook for Quantum Computing; AI and the Future of Work; Being the CEO of Your Career (potential workshop)  

    • Closing Reception at Refraction Innovation Hub: 

      • A curated hub of creativity, collaboration, and innovation that helps businesses build more dynamic teams and grow their company, on the 8th Floor of Valo Park North Tower

    • Embassy Reception at Japanese Embassy on Friday, October 2, 2026

• Click HERE to register at Super Early Bird Rates (through May 1, 2026)!

  • By registering for this event, I give permission for the DC Wharton Club to use any photographs or videos of me taken at the event on its website, social media or in promotional materials without compensation. I understand that the Wharton Club of DC or its members own the copyrights to all photographs and video taken at the event.

• And CLICK HERE to visit the Summit's special website

• To view all speakers (more being added!), CLICK HERE

About the 2026 Summit

• Join us at the forefront of innovation as the Wharton Club of DC proudly presents the 12th Annual Wharton DC Innovation Summit. With the support of our Sponsors and Strategic Partners, this landmark annual event is set to unfold at the modern Valo Park Conference Center in Tysons Corner, VA, on Thursday, October 1, 2026.
• All are welcome. Whether you attended Wharton or Penn, or elsewhere, everyone who wants to leverage the power of innovation should join us! Our Strategic Partners – top Ivy and other alumni clubs and business groups – are supporting the Summit to help their members move forward.
• Our theme, Leading the Innovation Revolution in America & Beyond, is based on the premise that “a rising tide raises all boats.” Despite global economic upheaval, rising interest rates, and geopolitical strains, our summit stands as a beacon for collective advancement. 
  • Worldwide Innovations, from our region and beyond, have the potential to do good - and help businesses and entrepreneurs do well - in our region, nation and world.

Don't miss out!

Click HERE to REGISTER NOW before rates rise

Key Elements of an Leading the Innovation Revolution: To Maximize YOUR Results

• At the heart of the Washington D.C. area, the Wharton Innovation Summit is more than just a conference – it’s a dynamic ecosystem designed to empower participants to take command of their futures and make a broader impact both locally and globally.
• Our ecosystem provides critical elements for innovative organizations to attract, retain, and grow such as:
  • Engage with Key Leaders & Stakeholders from established businesses, startups, universities, research institutions, government agencies, investor groups, and community organizations.
  • Access Funding and support from sources such as venture capital, angel investors, and other public and private sources for startups and innovators.
  • Provide Critical Infrastructure and essential resources to accelerate your growth.
  • Government Policy Benefits that offer supportive government policies and incentives that stimulate innovation.
  • Expand Knowledge and Skills through educational initiatives with top universities and organizations to cultivate the skills needed for today's competitive market.
  • Cultivate Culture within a community that values authenticity and supportiveness, enhancing the diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility of innovation ecosystems.

• CLICK HERE to visit the Summit's special website - showing our programs and speakers for the last several years, and learn the latest about Summit keynotes, other speakers and more news, including the full schedule. 

•    The 2026 Wharton DC Innovation Summit explored the impact of key shifts and challenges, including:

• How innovators and entrepreneurs are positioning to take advantage of them
• The actions entrepreneurs are taking to meet capital, HR, market, and other needs in the face of global economic headwinds and sustainability/energy issues
• How innovators are getting private and public funding
• What new attributes and tactics are required for successful innovation leadership and enterprise transformation to ride above the tidal wave of local and global challenges, instead of being swept under  
• The 2026 Summit will do even more, updated to current trends and challenges, from AI, global conflicts, energy, personal and national security issues, and much more
•  Click HERE to register.

Who should attend:

In brief, everyone whose career, business or life could benefit from an infusion of inspiration, innovation and connections, such as:

• Entrepreneurs in businesses from startups to emerging growth companies.
• Executives in larger businesses looking for new ideas and contacts.
• Everyone who feels their career needs to move forward.
• Leaders in the public and private sectors who want to enhance their organization and legacy.
• Each person, regardless of age, gender, or background, who wants to create a better future for themselves and others.
• You, if you can dedicate a day to learning from engaged thought leaders and achievers in vital aspects of the economy, business opportunities and more - and to connecting with them and other ambitious people
  • With the steadfast support of our Sponsors and Strategic Partners, the 2026 Wharton DC Innovation Summit promises to be a catalyst for transformation, delivering unparalleled opportunities for networking, learning, and growth.
  • Secure your place and be part of a movement that elevates every participant. We invite everyone who is eager to learn, network, and help shape the future to attend the upcoming Summit. Together, we rise.

Click HERE to register.

• Sponsors -  

Platinum Sponsor

Bronze Sponsor

• Strategic Partners expected to again include a wide array of elite alumni and business groups. We already have these new Strategic Partners, plus one major returning one for their sixth year - FCEDA (and we would welcome discussing having your nonprofit as a Strategic Partner, too):
  • Oxford University Society of DC
  • Harvard Club
  • Cornell Club of MD
  • French-American Chamber of Commerce 

• Record of Success: The 2026 Innovation Summit builds upon 11 successful past summits, each of which received rave reviews from speakers, attendees and sponsors. Prior Summits cumulatively had thousands of attendees representing 400+ companies (from startups to Fortune 500 companies) and other organizations and featured 400+ diverse speakers in over 200 sessions. 

• Click HERE to view the URLs and themes for the past 11 Innovation Summits. 

• Typical reviews:

  • “The Summit is fantastic.  I’ve had a lot of great conversations with individuals here. There are many new perspectives, innovative ideas, and great opportunities to collaborate.  We’ve had numerous informal sessions with much dialogue.” – Ruth Ann Hudson, IBM
  • “What’s exciting about the Summit is that we have entrepreneurs and innovators coming together in the Nation’s Capital, finding ways entrepreneurs and innovators can help the big problems over the next decade.  I’m excited about being here because the talent gathered here can together be part of the solution for our Nation’s ills.”  – Aneesh Chopra, first White House Chief Technology Officer

Click HERE to register. Super Early Bird rates now.

The earlier you register, the lower your rate.

All rates are for FULL ACCESS pass the day or the Summit and include: Your choice of sessions, all meals, networking breaks, the fabulous Closing Reception on the evening of the Summit.

Now through May 1:

• Everyone who registers gets a 30-day Money Back Guarantee (time for you to review the program and see if it meets your needs. If not, easy to request and receive a full refund!)
• Gets to attend the probable Embassy Reception - now being organized at Japanese Embassy - on Friday, October 2, 2026, at no added fee
• Members: Wharton Club & Strategic Partner Members: Super Early Bird rates - Just 195/person for the whole Summit (must name Partner in "Special Instructions" when you register)
• Public: Just 395/person for all session in-person access, including reception
  • EVERYONE: Consider, please, if you will, making a contribution, to the Wharton Club of DC, to help support this Summit and other programs. You can choose a tax-deductible contribution of $100 to $2,500 and select which of several innovators you'd like on an Innovator certificate customized for you - and suitable for framing: Franklin, Edison, Curie, Carver, Lamarr (Hedy), Einstein, or Tesla. (NOTE: This is in addition to admission fee for amounts below 250/person)
  • Your choice! Like most alumni groups, we get no financial support from any university. Thank you.
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