AI For Future Returns to San Francisco Highlighting European Startups
News related to:WMF – We Make Future · 3 min read
BOLOGNA, BOLOGNA, ITALY, November 3, 2026 /CourierPR/ -- AI For Future, an initiative launched in 2021 to connect markets, expertise, and capital, is returning to San Francisco for its second edition on November 5. The event will take place at Mind The Bridge and aims to foster connections among AI leaders, investors, and startup founders from Europe and the United States.
This year’s gathering will feature nine innovative startups from Europe and the U.S., including SupraOS, focused on enterprise AI; Mulan AI, applying AI to content creation and marketing; and Salute360, active in digital health. The startups will present their solutions in a competition that will determine the three winners, who will receive a dedicated desk at three international events: WMF, We Make Future 2027, AI Festival 2027, and Saudi Makes Future 2027.
The panel will feature Alicia Hanf, Head of Institutional Ecosystem Partnerships at LG NOVA, LG Electronics; Jerry Kaplan, an entrepreneur and expert in artificial intelligence; Angelo Del Priore, Founding Partner at HP Tech Ventures; Jeffrey Abbott, Founder of AI Salon and co-author of AI and the Art of Being Human; Jazz Samra, North American Commercialization and Business Development at Nium; and Alberto Acito, Managing Director at INNOVIT SF.
Alessandro Piva, Director of the European Digital Tech Watch (EDTW) at Politecnico di Milano, will address the relationship between startups and enterprises and the road to AI adoption. The event will also preview the new WMF Sports Innovation Track, presented by Alicia Hanf and Cosmano Lombardo, the Chairman of WMF, We Make Future and Founder and CEO of Search On Media Group.
Cosmano Lombardo emphasized the importance of international connections in driving innovation.
The event will be supported by ITA, Italian Trade Agency and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI). Partners for the 2026 edition include San Marino Innovation, POLIMI School of Management, and the Digital Innovation Observatories of Politecnico di Milano. Five Degrees and Durana Tech Park are event sponsors.
The 2026 edition of AI For Future, held in Bologna, Italy, welcomed more than 75,000 attendees from 90 countries, over 800 exhibitors, more than 1,000 speakers and guests from around the world, more than 3,000 startups and investors, and a combined investment portfolio of €1.5 trillion, more than €304 billion in AUM, over $72.8 billion in funded transactions, and more than 17,000 investment rounds managed, positioning WMF as an international reference point for the global innovation ecosystem.
AI For Future is part of the larger WMF, We Make Future, which is conceived, organized, and produced by Search On Media Group. The event aims to strengthen ties between the Italian innovation ecosystem and the Bay Area, fostering connections among companies, startups, and investors. The Consul General of Italy in San Francisco, Massimo Carnelos, highlighted the importance of the event in promoting economic and technological relations between Italy and the United States.
The event will also feature networking opportunities, with a networking aperitif bringing together startups, investors, companies, speakers, and international stakeholders. The second edition of AI For Future is expected to continue the international work of connecting innovation, capital, companies, startups, and institutions that defines the WMF International Roadshow.
WMF, We Make Future, the largest international trade fair and festival on artificial intelligence, technology, and digital innovation, will return to BolognaFiere in Bologna, Italy, on June 10-12, 2027. The event will explore the impact of AI on business, industry, society, and institutions through 14 strategic industries, aligning with Saudi Vision 2030.
Search On Media Group, founded in 2004, has worked to spread digital culture by building communities, supporting knowledge-sharing initiatives, and providing strategic and operational consulting through its Event Agency Business Unit, which organizes WMF as well as proprietary and client events.