IIT Alumni To Convene In California For Global Innovation Meet
LONG BEACH, CA – When thousands of Indian Institute of Technology alumni, entrepreneurs, and executives gather here next April, the agenda will extend well beyond networking and keynote speeches. For the organizers of the Global Pan-IIT Conference, the four-day event is intended as a statement about how a relatively small community of Indian-origin technologists has come to play an outsized role in shaping innovation, capital,and public life in both India and the United States.
The conference, scheduled for April 22–25, 2026, will be held under the theme “Innovate, Ignite and Thrive” and is expected to attract more than 2,500 participants from across the world. According to Shashi Tripathi, a venture capitalist and the chair of the 2026 gathering, the event aims to bring together “some of the world’s brightest minds and industry leaders” at a moment when technology, geopolitics, and economic power are being rapidly reshaped.
Attendance is projected at approximately 2,500.
The conference will be structured around themes that reflect both opportunity and anxiety in the global economy: artificial intelligence, health and sustainability, investment and venture capital, private equity and exit planning, and what organizers describe as “global connect geopolitical issues”.
Tripathi emphasized that the gathering is not intended to be exclusive. “Anyone can attend. You don’t need to be from IIT, you don’t need to be Indian,” he said. “We are very inclusive.”
For decades, IIT graduates have been synonymous with Silicon Valley engineering talent. Tripathi argued that the community has since expanded into healthcare, startups, venture capital and corporate leadership. “We are now moving beyond tech,” he said. “We are in healthcare. We are in businesses. We are into startups. We are creating the economy as part of this ecosystem.”
Beyond panels and policy discussions, the conference is designed to be immersive. Organizers are planning curated lunch discussions on careers and hiring, cultural programming in the evenings, morning yoga sessions,and workshops for children. Audience engagement will be encouraged through a conference app, allowing real-time questions and interaction.
The Pan-IIT conference series has previously featured global figures such as Narendra Modi, Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Satya Nadella,and Sundar Pichai. For Tripathi, the 2026 edition is less about celebrity than continuity — a reminder that a network forged in India’s engineering classrooms now straddles two economies, and increasingly, two futures. (IANS)
