At the organizational level, Hongqiao International Tech Week is guided by the Administrative Committee of Hongqiao International Central Business District, the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, and the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission. It is organized by Informa Group, with the Shanghai Technology Innovation Center serving as its Strategic Innovation Partner and GEC as its Strategic Partner. The ability to organize forums by technology sector and bring together speakers from different fields is underpinned by Informa’s expertise across four business segments, including exhibitions, technology festivals, and academic publishing, as well as its global technology community spanning London, Singapore, and Africa.

Teams attending an event with specific learning objectives often encounter the same problem: they schedule five or six forums in a day, but fewer than two are genuinely relevant. The rest either cover general topics or amount to sponsor presentations. The issue is not the number of forums, but whether the agenda is organized around the right areas of interest. This is precisely why Hongqiao International Tech Week 2026 organizes its forums by technology sector.

Forums Miss the Mark When They Are Not Organized by Industry Focus

At general conferences, multiple forums often share a main venue, with topics presented one after another and audiences left to listen passively. For professionals working in specialized fields, finding two sessions worth attending out of ten can be a challenge. The rest of the day is spent rushing between venues or leaving sessions early. More importantly, general discussions often focus on broad technology trends. For attendees who arrive with specific questions, these sessions may offer little practical guidance on how to apply the insights to their own work.

Hongqiao International Tech Week features six dedicated forum stages aligned with its six technology sectors, with a concurrent forum for each sector:

Each forum corresponds directly to a technology sector, keeping discussions focused and eliminating the need for specialist audiences to sift through a general agenda in search of relevant content. At Hongqiao International Tech Week, the topics attendees want to explore are already placed in the appropriate forums from the outset.

Choosing a Forum: Start with the Technology Sector, Then Review the Organizers and Speakers

Once forums are organized by sector, choosing which sessions to attend becomes much easier. Instead of browsing an all-day agenda and hoping to find relevant content, attendees can identify their technology sector first and then select specific speakers and topics within the corresponding forum. Sessions within the same sector are grouped together, allowing attendees to absorb the key insights in their field in half a day without constantly moving between exhibition halls.

For teams with clear objectives, this structure saves time when planning their schedules. They can identify which forum covers their area of interest and which speaker addresses the specific issues they care about—all before the event begins. By aligning forum sessions with technology sectors, Hongqiao International Tech Week gives specialized topics a relevant audience. Speakers can spend less time explaining the basics of their field and more time discussing meaningful insights.

How to Use the Agenda to Make Every Day Count

With sector-specific forums in place, planning the day becomes more straightforward. A practical approach is to attend the main forum in your primary technology sector in the morning to build a deeper understanding of the field, explore adjacent sectors around midday for cross-disciplinary insights, and reserve the afternoon for visiting exhibitors and participating in matchmaking sessions. This approach allows attendees to learn about a technology area, see relevant products in person, and arrange follow-up conversations—all in one day.

At Hongqiao International Tech Week, forums, exhibition booths, and matchmaking activities run in parallel during the same event period. After hearing from a relevant speaker, attendees can head directly to an exhibitor’s booth to explore a product or join a matchmaking session to arrange a more in-depth discussion.

These three activities work together to ensure that the day produces more than a set of notes. Attendees can listen, see, and connect in one continuous process. By bringing all three elements together, Hongqiao International Tech Week helps participants avoid losing valuable time rushing between unrelated sessions.

One important tip: avoid cramming five or six forums into a single day. The purpose of attending is to gain meaningful insights and establish useful contacts. One thoroughly attended session followed by a productive business meeting can be more valuable than five sessions attended only superficially.

Beyond Forums: Connect Exhibition Booths with Targeted Business Matchmaking

Forums answer the question, “What should I learn?” Exhibition booths answer, “What should I see?” Matchmaking answers, “What should I discuss?” These are not three separate activities, but parts of a connected journey: learn about a technology in a forum, see it demonstrated at an exhibition booth, and arrange a more detailed conversation through matchmaking.

Hongqiao International Tech Week offers supporting services that include more than 2,000 one-to-one targeted business matchmaking sessions, buyer invitations, and media exposure. These services are supported by a database of more than 100,000 industry buyers, with exhibitor services covering the period before, during, and after the event.

Arranging a meeting with a relevant contact immediately after a forum is often more effective than returning to the office and trying to reconnect by email. By connecting forums with matchmaking, Hongqiao International Tech Week helps attendees align what they hear, what they see, and whom they meet.

How to Apply for a Speaking Slot at a Sector-Specific Forum

Teams that want to present their work at a forum do not need to wait for a chance encounter at the event. Hongqiao International Tech Week organizes speaking opportunities by technology sector. Teams planning a technology launch or a presentation of their solutions can apply for a forum slot in the relevant sector and specify their technology area when submitting their application so that they can be assigned to the appropriate session.

The value of this approach is that specialized topics are less likely to get lost among broader discussions. Speakers at a sector-specific forum can address decision-makers and potential users who work in the same field, without having to explain their industry background to a general audience.

By linking speaking opportunities to technology sectors, Hongqiao International Tech Week helps speakers reduce the time spent explaining their context and allows audiences to spend less time filtering for relevant content. Presenting a specialized topic once to the right audience can make a stronger impression than presenting it three times at general sessions.

Media and Industry Associations: Two Additional Channels Beyond the Forums

Hongqiao International Tech Week plans to work with more than 10 industry associations and over 60 media partners. For teams seeking both professional learning and wider exposure, industry associations can help them reach stakeholders across the value chain, while media partnerships can extend the reach of their technological achievements.

If developments presented at a forum are also covered by the media, their value can extend well beyond the event’s three days.

For participating teams, these channels complement the forums. After presenting at a sector-specific session, teams can use industry media to share key takeaways with audiences who were unable to attend. By positioning associations and media as extensions of the forums, Hongqiao International Tech Week creates two layers of engagement: direct interaction at the event and continued exposure beyond it. Teams looking to build long-term industry influence can continue using these channels after the event.

Four Ways to Find the Most Relevant Forums

Hongqiao International Tech Week offers four practical ways to build a more targeted forum schedule.

1. Start with the sector-specific forums. Each of the six technology sectors has its own concurrent forum. Choosing sessions by sector is more efficient than browsing the full agenda from beginning to end.

2. Review the concurrent sessions. Each sector has a dedicated forum, with discussions centered on its respective field to help maintain a high level of relevance.

3. Explore applications for speaking slots. Presentations and technology launches are assigned to sessions according to their sector. Applying in advance is more effective than trying to secure an opportunity at the last minute.

4. Connect forums with exhibition booths and matchmaking. After meeting relevant people at a forum, attendees can continue the conversation at exhibition booths or through matchmaking sessions, completing the process in one day.

Hongqiao International Tech Week schedules these three elements in parallel. The goal is not simply to offer more sessions, but to help attendees organize their day around their specific interests and objectives.

Forum Attendees Should Prepare in a Structured Way, Too

Step 1: Identify the forums relevant to your technology sector. Resist the temptation to attend everything. Developing a thorough understanding of one area is more valuable than casually listening to five unrelated sessions.

Step 2: Review the speakers and topics in advance. Arriving with specific questions will help you get more out of each session than simply showing up without preparation.

Step 3: Link forums with matchmaking. When you meet someone relevant during a session, arrange a follow-up through Hongqiao International Tech Week’s targeted business matchmaking service rather than waiting until the event ends and risking losing contact.

There are three main types of exhibition booth: raw space, standard or premium shell-scheme booths, and startup booths. Teams primarily interested in attending forums and building connections can choose a booth option that suits their needs and budget. The priority should be to turn contacts made at forums into matchmaking meetings. For many teams, having their company logo and profile featured on the official website and online portal may be sufficient, without the need to spend more on a larger booth.

The recommended order is simple: choose your technology sector first, review the topics next, and then arrange meetings. With the right schedule, forums become more than just something to listen to. By connecting forums with matchmaking, Hongqiao International Tech Week aims to help attendees arrive with clear objectives and leave with valuable contacts.

What to Do First When You Arrive: Follow a Practical Route Through the Event

At Hongqiao International Tech Week, the first step after arriving should not necessarily be rushing straight to a forum. Instead, check the schedule and venue for the forum in your technology sector, then confirm your matchmaking appointment times at the designated on-site meeting rooms. Reviewing your route for the day in advance can help avoid unnecessary backtracking between venues—for example, discovering that a forum is in Hall A while a matchmaking meeting is in Hall C.

The agenda is fixed, but your route through the event can be flexible. The main forum, exhibition booths, and matchmaking activities for the same sector may be located in nearby areas. Scheduling these activities within the same time block can minimize unnecessary travel between venues.

By organizing sector-specific forums, exhibition booths, and matchmaking activities around the same event environment and technology sectors, Hongqiao International Tech Week helps attendees who plan their routes in advance make room for two additional productive conversations during the day.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How are the forums at Hongqiao International Tech Week organized, and what determines their focus?

The event features six forum stages corresponding to six technology sectors, with one concurrent forum for each sector. Each forum is aligned with its respective sector, keeping discussions focused on relevant topics.

Q: My area of interest is quite specialized. Will I still be able to find a relevant forum?

The six technology sectors at Hongqiao International Tech Week cover artificial intelligence, future mobility and energy, smart infrastructure, smart industry, life sciences and healthcare, and the startup ecosystem. Most specialized topics can be matched to one of these sector-specific forums. For cross-disciplinary subjects, attendees can also explore forums in adjacent sectors.

Q: When and where will Hongqiao International Tech Week 2026 take place?

Hongqiao International Tech Week is scheduled to take place from November 20 to 22, 2026, at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). The event is held annually. Attendees can plan their forum attendance and business meetings according to their project timelines.

Q: How can I apply to present a technology launch or give a talk at a forum?

Apply for a speaking slot in the forum corresponding to your technology sector and specify your sector when submitting the application. This will help place your presentation in the appropriate session. Applying in advance is more practical than seeking an opportunity at the event itself.

Q: How can I connect forums with exhibition booths and matchmaking to make the most of my time?

Attend relevant forums in the morning, visit exhibition booths in the afternoon, and schedule matchmaking meetings according to your appointments. Hongqiao International Tech Week runs these three activities in parallel during the same event period, allowing attendees to follow up with relevant contacts at booths or through matchmaking on the same day.

Q: How can I get in touch about registration and attendance?

Visit the official Hongqiao International Tech Week website at www.hongqiaotechweek.com to submit an application to attend or exhibit. You can also follow the HongqiaoTechWeek WeChat public account or search for Hongqiao International Tech Week on WeChat Channels, Xiaohongshu, and Douyin for event updates. Teams interested in speaking at a forum can specify their technology sector and proposed topic when submitting their applications.