Event Announcement

Bali – October 19, 2026 -- ICANN87, the first ICANN public meeting held in Indonesia, opened with more than 200 working sessions on DNS Abuse mitigation, Domain Name System security and the New gTLD Program.

The six-day meeting is co-hosted by the Indonesian Internet Domain Name Registry (PANDI). Indonesia's Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs and the Bali Provincial Government are supporting it. Attendees include government representatives, businesses, technical experts and civil society.

ICANN leadership pushes for tighter links between strategy and execution

ICANN President and CEO Kurtis Lindqvist said the organization must connect strategy, prioritization, budgeting and implementation more clearly. He said ICANN org "must turn those solutions into effective action" developed by the community.

Hangzhou – October 19, 2026 -- The 4th Liangzhu Forum opened on October 18 in Yuhang, Hangzhou, with hundreds of Chinese and foreign guests, after the event was written into the outline of China's 15th Five-Year Plan this year.

Forum becomes a permanent national-level dialogue mechanism

Launched in 2023, the forum has advanced civilizational dialogue between China and Belt and Road partner countries. Following three previous sessions, it has evolved into a permanent national-level mechanism for dialogues on civilizations. This year's theme is "Bridging the Past and Future: Safeguarding Cultural Heritage for Our Times."

The edition coincides with the 90th anniversary of the discovery of the Liangzhu Site. The Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2019.

Guangzhou – October 19, 2026 -- The 140th Canton Fair, which opened on October 15, is hosting more than 700 New Collection events, a 15% increase from the previous session. The fair runs in three phases.

Canton Fair opens first dedicated New Collection Gallery with three sections

The gallery debuts at the 140th edition and sits near the high-traffic platform connecting Area A and Area B. It is split into a product display area, a digital interactivity area and a business matching area.

Organizers say the layout combines product showcase with commercial matchmaking. It is meant to help buyers and exhibitors connect faster and to support on-site trade discussions and demand matching.

National Harbor, Maryland – October 18, 2026 -- Five Guys will award $100,000 to the winner of its Five Guys Games final on May 13 at The Theater at MGM National Harbor in Maryland, closing a six-month internal contest open to the chain's 50,000 employees.

Three timed events decide the $100,000 grand prize

Finalists compete in a potato race, a cheese stack race and a QC wrapping race. The Five Guys Training Team judges the events, watching and timing each competitor for speed and accuracy.

The Olympic-style contest began as an idea from the Murrell family to reward store crew members. Crew members, managers and general managers have competed through store, regional and semifinal rounds.

Boston – October 17, 2026 -- AdvaMed will host The MedTech Conference October 18–21 in Boston, with programming across more than seven stages and over 20 focus areas and a keynote panel of three medtech chief executives.

Three medtech CEOs headline the featured keynote discussion

The featured session, "Pulse of Medtech: Where the Industry Is Going Next," brings together Mick Farrell of Resmed, Mike Mahoney of Boston Scientific and Ashley McEvoy of Insulet. John Babitt of EY will moderate.

Attendee list preview shows registrants across the value chain

AdvaMed has published the first 2026 Attendee List Preview. It includes CEOs, senior executives and professionals in business development, strategy, regulatory affairs, policy, investment and innovation. Registrants span leading global companies, emerging innovators, investors, service providers and other medtech ecosystem organizations.

Boston – October 17, 2026 -- The MedTech Conference, running October 18–21 in Boston, will include 65 early- and mid-stage companies from the 2026 MedTech Innovator cohort, chosen from more than 1,800 applicants, alongside a program that makes digital health a core thread of the event, according to AdvaMed Digital Health Tech's new executive director.

Four policy areas drive the digital health agenda

AdvaMed Digital Health Tech's work spans regulation; payment and health care delivery; data access and stewardship; and cybersecurity. The executive director, whose background at AdvaMed is in coverage, payment and care delivery policy, said progress in each area depends on the other three.

Payment is a particular focus. AdvaMed is advocating for greater clarity and predictability around Medicare coverage and payment for software, AI and other digital health technologies.

Boston – October 17, 2026 -- AdvaMed is steering its more than 400 small and emerging medtech members toward The MedTech Conference, October 18–21 in Boston, where it expects over 4,000 attendees and 1,800 companies.

JC Scott, who has returned to the trade association as Chief Strategy Officer, also leads AdvaMed Accel as Executive Director. Accel is the association's dedicated division for emerging members, offering advocacy, access and community.

Partnering platform compresses investor outreach into days

Full Access attendees and Full Access exhibitors can use the Partnering platform to book one-on-one meetings with investors, collaborators, potential customers and strategic partners. Scott says conversations that might otherwise take months to arrange can happen over a few days. AdvaMed has published a 2026 investor list for preview.

Boston – October 17, 2026 -- The MedTech Conference (#MTC26) in Boston this October will host its first dedicated gathering for chief medical officers, open to CMOs at AdvaMed member companies, according to Bobby Patrick, AdvaMed's SVP of Government Affairs.

Patient Pavilion carries stories from 13 named medtech companies

The Patient Pavilion in the exhibit hall will anchor the patient programming throughout the week. Patients will share experiences with technologies from Abbott, BD, Dexcom, Edwards Lifesciences, Insulet, Medtronic, Philips, Resmed, Siemens Healthineers, Smith+Nephew, Stryker, Solventum, Vantive and other companies. Attendees can see Philips' portable MRI technology up close.

One featured story involves a patient named Brittany, whose severe sleep apnea diagnosis explained years of exhaustion. Treatment restored her energy, confidence and independence.

Boston – October 17, 2026 -- AdvaMed's The MedTech Conference, set for October 18–21, 2026, will host its largest Medtech Campus to date, with 185+ presenting companies and more than 500 speakers across Campus and education sessions. The trade body reports member participation at an all-time high and says nearly half of registered attendees are new to the event.

Keynote stage pairs device CEOs with a Wall Street analyst

Mick Farrell of Resmed, Mike Mahoney of Boston Scientific, Ashley McEvoy of Insulet and Robbie Marcus of J.P. Morgan will join a discussion moderated by John Babitt of EY. Johnson & Johnson MedTech and Operation Smile will add further perspectives.

Beijing – October 17, 2026 -- More than 200 domestic and international dignitaries attended the opening of the World Winter Sports Expo 2026 (WWSE 2026) in Beijing on October 15, a event aligned with the directives of China's 15th Five-Year Plan for the ice and snow industry.

The Expo is a legacy of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Its stated mission is to expand the ice and snow economy, cultivate new productive forces in the sector and deepen the integration of culture, sports and tourism. Organizers structured the program around three directions: upgrading the ice and snow industry, deepening culture-sports-tourism integration, and empowering the outdoor economy through technology. The format includes an opening ceremony, a main conference, parallel sessions and special thematic events.