2026 AI Summit at Avant South
Where Leaders Shape the Future of Applied AI
The 2026 AI Summit at Avant South will convene a select group of the nation’s leading AI executives, innovators, and investors for a day of strategic discussions focused on Applied AI developments and Atlanta’s growing leadership role in the future of Applied AI.
Hosted in Tech Square, one of Atlanta’s leading innovation districts, the Summit will serve as a catalyst for collaboration among Fortune 100/500 companies, emerging AI startups, world-class universities, government leaders, and investment firms.
Preview the agenda and conversations driving the future of Applied AI, and email avantsouth@gatech.edu for more information.
AI Summit Location
Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center
800 Spring Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30308
Who Will Be in the Room
Confirmed speakers include leaders from Atlanta Metro Chamber of Commerce, Drive Capital, The Duke Endowment, Fulcrum, Georgia Tech, Gunderson Dettmer, The Home Depot, OpenAI, Paladin Group, Truist, City of Atlanta, Inverness Graham, Raymond James, and The Coca-Cola Company.
The AI Summit is supported by organizations across Atlanta and the national technology ecosystem, including Amazon, BCG, BlackRock, Cisco, Cox Enterprises, Experian, Georgia Pacific, Georgia Research Alliance, Georgia Tech Foundation, Google Cloud, Google.org, Google Public Policy, Honeywell, Hyundai, JP Morgan, Kia, KPMG, Microsoft, NVIDIA, OpenAI, PwC, Qcells, Salesforce, Schneider Electric, Siemens Energy, Southern Company, Uber, UPS, and Wellstar.
If you are interested in learning more about the event, please email avantsouth@gatech.edu.
Thank You to Our AI Summit Diamond Sponsor!
AI Summit Agenda and Schedule
Monday, October 12, 2026
1 – 2 p.m. | Registration Open
Location: Georgia Tech Hotel 2nd Floor Break Area
2 – 3 p.m. | Atlanta Innovation Cup
The Atlanta Innovation Cup will bring together students from multiple institutions, forming interdisciplinary teams to compete in an eight-day innovation challenge culminating in a live showcase at Avant South.
Location: GT Hotel Salons I-III
3 – 3:30 p.m. | Fireside Chat: Powering What’s Possible
Nexus is now running at Georgia Tech — 400 petaflops of AI-focused computing power, built to accelerate research nationally. This conversation uses that machine as the real, physical starting point for a much bigger question: what does this level of compute actually unlock next, for research, for industry, and for Atlanta, and what has to be true to keep unlocking more of it?
Speakers include:
- Howard Wright — VP of Startup Ecosystem, NVIDIA
4 – 4:30 p.m. | AI Supercomputer Ribbon Cutting
The Nexus AI Supercomputer ribbon cutting is where the abstract promise of AI infrastructure becomes physically real for Atlanta — a $20 million, NSF-funded supercomputer opens up to researchers across the country.
Remarks:
- Srinivas Aluru — Associate Dean, College of Computing, Georgia Tech
- Irina Dolinskaya — Program Director, Division of Computer and Network Systems, National Science Foundation (NSF)
- Ángel Cabrera — President, Georgia Tech
- Charles Isbell — Chancellor, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Howard Wright — VP of Startup Ecosystems, NVIDIA
- Valerie Montgomery Rice — President, Morehouse School of Medicine
Location: Coda Breezeway | 756 W. Peachtree St.
4:30 – 5 p.m. | Tours of Supercomputer
Location: DataBank | 760 W. Peachtree St.
5 – 7 p.m. | Coda Rooftop VIP Reception
Tuesday, October 13, 2026
*All sessions occur in the Georgia Tech Hotel Salons 1, 2, 3
8 – 9 a.m. | AI Summit Registration & Check-in
Location: Georgia Tech Hotel 2nd Floor Break Area
9 – 9:15 a.m. | Welcome & Opening Remarks
Welcome
- Raghupathy “Siva” Sivakumar — Vice President of Commercialization, Georgia Tech
- John Yates — Partner, Gunderson Dettmer
Why Georgia, Why Now
- Chris Clark — President & CEO, Georgia Chamber
9:15 – 10:10 a.m. | Panel Session | Georgia’s AI Advantage: How Industry Leaders Are Deploying Applied AI
Atlanta’s largest companies are already putting AI to work inside operations that run the region’s economy. This conversation goes straight to the leaders responsible for that work, asking what’s actually live, what it took to get there, and what still isn’t solved. It’s a first look at what applied AI looks like when it has to operate at enterprise scale, not just in pilot form.
Speakers include:
- Sophia Velastegui, AI executive and technology leader (moderator)
- Angie Brown, EVP & CIO, The Home Depot
- Patricia Florissi, Technical Director Office of the CTO Google Cloud
- Lo Li, Chief Technology, Data, Operations Officer, Truist
- Brent Stubbs, Chief Administrative Officer, Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America
10:30 – 11:45 a.m. | Applied AI Roundtables: Turning Insight Into Action
Small-group roundtables bring together leaders from industry, academia, and investment to exchange perspectives on research and innovation, investment, real-world application, and teaching and learning. Participants will identify what’s working across Atlanta today and where greater collaboration can accelerate Applied AI across the region.
12:15 – 1 p.m. | Lunch Panel | The First Yes: How Atlanta Ideas Get Funded
Atlanta has the research, ideas, entrepreneurs, and industry problems capable of producing significant AI companies. This conversation explores what investors need to see before the proof exists, and what founders need from Atlanta’s capital ecosystem to get from idea to implementation.
Speakers include :
- John Yates, Partner, Gunderson Dettmer (moderator)
- Avoilan Bingham, General Manager, Drive Capital
- Kenneth Pentimonti, Managing Director, Paladin Capital
- Gorkem Sevinc, Co-Founder and CEO, Qualytics
1:15 – 2:35 p.m. | Applied AI Roundtables: Turning Insight Into Action (continued)
Small-group roundtables bring together leaders from industry, academia, and investment to exchange perspectives on research and innovation, investment, real-world application, and teaching and learning. Participants will identify what’s working across Atlanta today and where greater collaboration can accelerate Applied AI across the region.
2:55 – 3:25 p.m. | Panel Session | Proof at Scale: From Capital to Capability
Getting funded is only the beginning. This conversation examines the capital, talent, customers, infrastructure, and business environment required to turn promising AI investments into proof points Atlanta can point to nationally — picking up right where “The First Yes” ends.
Speakers include:
- Donnie Beamer, Senior Technology Advisor, City of Atlanta (moderator)
- Leslie Ann Brooks, Head of AI Enablement, Raymond James
- Kevin Kiley, CEO, Airia
- Philip Lewis, Partner, Fulcrum Equity Partner
- Usha Talasila, Principal, Head of AI, Inverness Graham
3:25 – 4:10 p.m. | Panel Session: Applied AI in ATL: Building America’s Center of Excellence
Atlanta has all of the ingredients to become the nation’s leading hub for applied AI — from world-class research and enterprise adoption to startups, investment, talent, and public-private collaboration. This conversation asks what it will take to bring those assets together, distinguish Atlanta nationally, and seize this opportunity.
Speakers include:
- Ana Lenoir Minter, Principal, RSM Consulting (moderator)
- Ronnie Chatterji, Chief Economist, OpenAI
- Tim Lieuwen, Executive Vice President for Research, Georgia Tech
- Dr. Jerry Parrish, Economist, Metro Atlanta Chamber
4:10 – 4:40 p.m. | Roundtable Trends Analysis Report Readouts
Speakers include:
- Sonia Alvarez-Robinson, Associate Vice President, Georgia Tech Strategic Consulting
- Juana Cunningham, Sr. Director, Georgia Tech Strategic Consulting
5:30 – 7 p.m. | Tech Talks Business
Speakers include:
- Ronnie Chatterji, Chief Economist, OpenAI
- Anuj Mehrotra, Dean, Scheller College of Business
Location: Scheller Tower | 55 Fifth St.