Microsoft Ignite 2026 Preview: Dates, Keynote and AI Agent Sessions

Microsoft Ignite 2026, the company’s biggest annual conference for IT professionals, developers and business leaders, takes place from November 17 to 20 in San Francisco. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Judson Althoff will open the event with a two-hour keynote at Chase Center on November 17. With the session catalogue now published, AI agents, Copilot and security for AI are clearly the themes Microsoft wants customers to focus on.

When and where is Microsoft Ignite 2026?

Ignite 2026 runs from Tuesday, November 17, to Friday, November 20, 2026, in San Francisco. Redmondmag places the main conference at Moscone Center, while the opening keynote is being held at Chase Center, the arena in the city’s Mission Bay area.

Those who cannot travel can join online. Microsoft offers a digital option, and virtual attendance is free. The event’s registration site describes Ignite as a mix of major announcements, deep technical learning and direct access to the people building Microsoft’s products.

There is also an extra day for security teams. A Security Pre-Day takes place on Monday, November 16, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time. Attendees choose it when they register.

Who is speaking at the Ignite 2026 keynote?

The opening keynote, session code KEY01, is scheduled for Tuesday, November 17, from 10 a.m. to noon Pacific Time. According to Microsoft’s Security Blog, Nadella and Althoff are the named speakers. The keynote will be available in person and online and will be recorded.

Beyond the keynote, Microsoft has highlighted a long list of executives who will lead sessions. Among them are:

• Arun Ulag, executive vice president, Azure Data
• Nicole Herskowitz, corporate vice president, Microsoft 365 and Copilot
• Jared Spataro, chief marketing officer, AI at Work
• Mark Russinovich, CTO, deputy CISO and technical fellow, Microsoft Azure
• Vasu Jakkal, corporate vice president, security marketing
• Bryan Goode, corporate vice president, Business Applications
• Nitasha Chopra, vice president and chief operating officer, Copilot Studio

What will Ignite 2026 focus on?

Session areas cover Microsoft 365 and Copilot, AI experiences, cloud and AI infrastructure, security and business applications. The common thread is AI agents: software that can carry out tasks on its own rather than simply answering questions.

Security is one of the most detailed parts of the programme. Microsoft’s guide splits its security sessions into four tracks:

• Defend with AI: sessions on the “agentic SOC”, a security operations centre where AI agents handle much of the alert triage, plus autonomous protection and a hands-on lab.
• Secure AI: Microsoft Security for AI, using Agent 365 internally as “customer zero”, securing agents that run locally, and controlling what AI agents can access.
• Get ready for AI: identity, phishing-resistant sign-in and a Zero Trust for AI workshop.
• Secure data: Microsoft Purview sessions on data security for AI and Copilot deployments.

A Redmondmag shortlist of Ignite sessions, summarised by WindowsForum, picked out several on governing AI agents. They include a breakout on open frameworks and enterprise control for agents led by Mehrnoosh Sameki of Microsoft’s Responsible AI team, a session on using one policy for both people and AI agents, and a Zero Trust approach to protecting AI systems with Microsoft Defender against prompt injection and tool misuse. An expert-level lab aims to show how to lift an agent’s success rate from 60% to 90% using open-source tools and Microsoft Foundry, though Redmondmag noted that the figure describes the lab’s goal rather than a guaranteed result.

How do Ignite 2026 sessions work?

Microsoft lists five session formats:

Format	Length	Notes
Breakouts	45 minutes	Levels 200–400
Theatre sessions	25 minutes	Short demos and talks
Lightning talks	15 minutes	Quick single-topic sessions
Table talks	45 minutes	Small-group discussions
Hands-on labs	75 minutes	Instructor-led, RSVP required

Hands-on labs need a separate RSVP, so registering for Ignite does not guarantee a lab seat. Some labs are in person only and will not be recorded.

There are also community events, including Secure the Night on November 17, a Security and Agent 365 area at the Microsoft Hub all week, and demo stations from members of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association between November 17 and 19.

Why it matters

Ignite is where Microsoft usually sets out its enterprise plans for the year ahead, and the products it shows there shape how millions of companies use Copilot, Azure and Microsoft 365. This year’s focus on governing and securing AI agents reflects a wider shift: businesses are moving from testing chatbots to letting AI take actions inside their systems, and they want controls before they do.

What happens next?

The keynote on November 17 is the moment to watch for major product news. Ignite is one of several big tech events in the coming weeks: Amazon’s cloud conference follows soon after, as covered in our AWS re:Invent 2026 guide, and Europe’s startup scene gathers at Slush 2026 in Helsinki during the same week as Ignite.