- Growth figures underscore the event’s strong business relevance: 2,200 brands represented and roughly one in three visitors holding C-suite positions
- The World of Commerce is growing in every dimension: With around 30 percent more partners, diversity has reached a whole new level
- Eleven summits explored the industry’s key areas of future business – from commerce and new media models to brand management, creativity, and the creator economy
Cologne, September 25, 2026 – Taking place on September 23 and 24 with “Scaling Intelligence” as its motto, DMEXCO 2026 closed with record-breaking results in almost every respect: 700 partners – including 100 agencies – showcased their solutions to industry professionals across an exhibition space that was 10 percent larger than in the previous year. The following figures further highlight the relevance of the event: With 2,200 brands represented and about one-third of attendees in C-suite roles with decision-making authority, the event recorded significant growth. DMEXCO cemented its status as a platform for knowledge sharing by offering an extensive program across 17 stages, featuring approximately 1,000 speakers and delivering more than 230 hours of content.
The World of Commerce is growing in all dimensions – and beyond
This year’s World of Commerce was larger and more relevant than ever before. With roughly 30 percent more partners, more exhibition space, masterclasses, content, and networking opportunities, the event demonstrated that DMEXCO is synonymous with commerce. Exhibitors such as Awin, Bloomreach, Idealo, Klaviyo, and Pimcore returned to DMEXCO or significantly expanded their presence.
The two-day Commerce Summit drew on real-life examples to show how AI is transforming product search, customer advice, and purchasing decisions. Product search is increasingly taking place via intelligent systems, social media, creators, and retail and commerce media. Retailers and brands must respond by providing reliable product information and ensuring that their offerings can be found even in new digital environments. As a result, the boundaries between marketing, media, and sales are blurring.
Other areas, such as the World of Media, also underscored DMEXCO’s value as a platform for the digital economy, with major global broadcasters like Disney and Netflix significantly expanding their presence at this year’s event.
The eleven DMEXCO summits translated this year’s central theme, “Scaling Intelligence,” into the digital economy’s key areas of activity.
“I am truly impressed by the momentum that is generated at DMEXCO. The people and ideas that come together here not only influence the digital industry, but also actively shape the digital transformation of our entire economy and society. The growth figures recorded by this year’s event are further proof of its importance,” comments Gerald Böse, President and Chief Executive Officer of Koelnmesse GmbH.
“What an amazing DMEXCO! It truly buzzed with energy, ideas, and the thrill of new possibilities. The AI experimentation phase is over – we’re now seeing the emergence of practical applications and new business models. And at the same time, one thing has become clear: The more we automate, the more important creativity, trust, and a genuine exchange of ideas become. I think it’s precisely this interplay between people and technology that’s really at the heart of ‘Scaling Intelligence,’” comments Verena Gründel, Host and Brand & Communications Director at DMEXCO.
“DMEXCO 2026 has sent a strong signal from and for the digital economy. Its continued growth is a testament to the relevance and appeal of our flagship event. The motto ‘Scaling Intelligence’ in particular captures the key challenge we face today: How to create sustainable value by combining human and artificial intelligence. It’s an issue we have discussed in depth over the past two days. DMEXCO’s position as the leading platform for inspiration, dialogue, and – above all – business in the digital economy has thus been confirmed,” says Dirk Freytag, President of the German Association for the Digital Economy (BVDW e. V.).
DMEXCO’s importance for companies that operate globally is summed up by Julia Schörner, Vice President Disney Advertising GSA at the Walt Disney Company: “For us, DMEXCO is the biggest event at the best time of year for meeting all our customers and partners – and, of course, for gleaning new inspiration. There are so many valuable and interesting people gathered together at the event – that’s why we enjoy DMEXCO every year without fail.”
Scaling Intelligence: From concept to action
The Thought Leaders’ Summit demonstrated just how fundamentally AI is transforming the interface between companies, brands, and consumers. Search is becoming increasingly dialogue-oriented, with people asking more complex questions, comparing products and services with the help of AI, and using it to guide their decisions. As a result, brands are seeing changes all along the customer journey, from initial information gathering to purchase.
Nidhi Ghai, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Advertising Global Ad Sales, therefore focused on ways in which companies will be able to turn being “found” into being “chosen” in the future: “Increasingly, we expect people to ask AI not just to recommend a purchase, but to help complete it. Brands need to be ready for both: customers who want to explore and customers who want agents to do it for them. That’s what building your brand to be chosen means.”
Conversational AI is another technology that’s opening up new touchpoints. Dave Dugan, Global Head of Ads Solutions at OpenAI, showed how it is changing the relationship between brands and consumers as well. “In terms of the decision journey, we think about where people ask questions: researching, comparing, evaluating. So we step in the middle of the funnel.”
“It’s more than a technology shift. It’s about thinking about how consumers are now approaching a purchase journey in a much broader wa,” says Dan Taylor, Vice President, Global Ads at Google.
Technology scales – relevance remains human
On the second day of the event, the CMO Summit looked at the consequences of the technological transformation for brands and marketing managers. The discussions covered topics such as how companies are leveraging AI and data while simultaneously laying the foundations for long-term brand building, trust, and growth. One point emerged clearly from these sessions: As the technological possibilities increase, so does the importance of clear decisions on how and where they create genuine added value for companies, brands, and customers.
Jennifer Treiber-Ruckenbrod, Global CMO for MINI at the BMW Group, emphasizes how important it is to be forward-looking and bold because “AI won’t tell us which path will be right for our brand in the future.”
In addition to the considerable efficiency gains, Patrick Müller, CDO & CMO of Decathlon Germany, sees many opportunities for leadership positions: “AI gives us more time for human interaction and that is what I value about leadership. We are now entering a new stage in our society, one in which we are placing greater emphasis on human-centred leadership once again.”
“One of the interesting parts of the conversations we are having here at DMEXCO is understanding how AI is changing the strategic direction of CMOs and Marketing teams and how AI visibility is part of that strategy,” says Ben Porter, Regional Field Marketing and Sales Campaigns at Profound.
Media between automation, competition, and diversity
The AdTech Summit, MarTech Summit, DOOH Summit, and the Future TV Stage not only showed how the planning, creation, delivery, and measurement of advertising are changing; they also underscored how absolutely essential the open web is as an advertising platform and how important it is for building trust. Agentic media buying, new identity solutions, automated marketing, data-driven creation, and cross-channel full-funnel approaches were some of the focus topics at these summits, but they also addressed the question of what the digital advertising business needs to grow sustainably as a diverse sector.
“The quality of AI is always also a question about the quality of its data – that’s why a reliable data foundation, trust, and transparency are crucial prerequisites for more value creation through automation. The open web has enormous potential in this context with its strong publishers, high-quality environments, and valuable first-party data – and we collectively need to make better use of it. For me, formats such as the BVDW Masterclasses and DMEXCO are important forums for discussing precisely these kinds of topics with other market players and driving solutions forward together,” says Rasmus Giese, CEO of United Internet Media.
The media market is becoming less structured around individual channels. Instead, integrating data, technology, creation, and distribution is emerging as the crucial factor. Connected TV, digital out-of-home, retail and commerce media, search, social media, and creator services are evolving into a networked media ecosystem.
DMEXCO 2026 underscored how far-reaching the impact of the digital transformation now is: AI is becoming strategically relevant where it is transforming business models or paving the way for new ones. At the same time, strong brands, creativity, trust, personal business relationships, and functioning digital ecosystems remain crucial for competitiveness and digital sovereignty. “Scaling Intelligence” therefore means translating technology responsibly into economic and social impact without losing the human connection.
The next edition of DMEXCO will take place in Cologne on September 22 and 23, 2027. Companies can register for DMEXCO 2027 now – and take advantage of repeat booking offers.
On the international stage, the eCommerce Expo x DMEXCO ASIA will be hosted at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, on April 7 and 8, 2027. The event sets trends in the Southeast Asian and Pacific markets and provides a platform for the Asian digital economy.
Image material relating to DMEXCO 2026 is available online at https://go.dmexco.com/de/press-downloads-dmexco.
