How to Navigate the 2026 Gartner Data & Analytics Summit (Without Burning Out)
With nearly 300 sessions, the Gartner Data & Analytics Summit has something for everyone (and then some). That’s a feature, not a flaw. But it also makes putting together a game plan a job in itself. With so many topics and presenters to choose from, it can be easy to overstuff your calendar. On top of that, you can’t lose sight of what happens in between the sessions – the organic conversations with other attendees that expand not just your network, but also your perspective.
This guide is designed to help you navigate the Gartner Data & Analytics Summit with intent, not stress or FOMO.
You can find the complete session agenda here. But for the sake of your calendar – and your sanity – we’ve curated must-attend sessions through two lenses, based on how attendees actually experience Gartner summits. Our list is curated by Atlan Founder and Co-CEO Prukalpa Sankar, and Atlan Director of Analyst Relations TD Sarma:
- Prukalpa’s lens for CDAOs, Heads of AI, and governance leaders shaping the operating models, risk posture, and enterprise AI direction in their organizations.
- TD’s lens for data engineers, analytics engineers, BI & platform leads who put all of this work into practice.
Each session includes a simple “why it matters to you,” so you can prioritize what will move your experience forward.
Attending Gartner Summit Orlando? Don't miss the sessions that matter most to you
Build Personalized AgendaPrukalpa’s must-attend sessions
Permalink to “Prukalpa’s must-attend sessions”For CDAOs & Heads of AI and governance leaders
These sessions are about trust, operating models, and enterprise-scale AI transformation — not isolated tools.
Crossroads Debate: Data & Analytics Governance vs. AI Governance
Permalink to “Crossroads Debate: Data & Analytics Governance vs. AI Governance”Speakers: Andrew White vs. Lauren Kornutick
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 2:30–3:00 PM
What it is: A live debate on whether existing data and analytics governance can stretch to cover AI — or whether AI governance demands its own discipline.
Why it matters: The debate will help you develop a perspective on accountability, ownership, and operating models that you can bring back to your organization. Essential if you’re navigating internal debates about “yet another governance body.”
Build a Solid Foundation for Data and AI Success With Critical Data Management Technologies
Permalink to “Build a Solid Foundation for Data and AI Success With Critical Data Management Technologies”Speaker: Melody Chien
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 2:30–3:00 PM
What it is: A pragmatic view of which core data management capabilities – including data quality and observability – actually underpin BI and AI success, and why.
Why it matters: When AI is built on fragile foundations, it’s bound to fail in production. This session helps answer the hard question: “What do we fund first?” so that data and AI initiatives are set up for long-term success.
Using Active Metadata to Support Data Agents for AI
Permalink to “Using Active Metadata to Support Data Agents for AI”Speaker: Mark Beyer
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 4:30–5:00 PM
What it is: An in-depth look at how active metadata serves as the backbone for data agents and agentic AI, and the role of humans in maintaining it.
Why it matters: Metadata is moving away from being a hygiene project that primarily supports catalogs, and becoming a strategic enabler for automation, agents, and AI governance. For leaders looking to secure budget for AI, it’s useful ammunition for investment conversations.
How Is Agentic AI Impacting and Disrupting Your Data Management Discipline—Now?
Permalink to “How Is Agentic AI Impacting and Disrupting Your Data Management Discipline—Now?”Speaker: Ehtisham Zaidi
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 4:30–5:00 PM
What it is: A candid look at how agentic AI is changing architectures and tools, which new use cases will emerge for data management and engineering, and which skills will become in-demand – or obsolete.
Why it matters: There are a lot of questions about how AI will upend data management, but very few answers. If you’re stress-testing your AI roadmap—what becomes obsolete, where to modernize, and how to budget for orchestration, governance, and cost controls – this session is for you.
Signature Series: Top Trends in Data & Analytics for 2026
Permalink to “Signature Series: Top Trends in Data & Analytics for 2026”Speaker: Robert Thanaraj
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 4:30–5:00 PM
What it is: Gartner’s macro view on agentic data and analytics, semantics at the core, and D&A platformization.
Why it matters: Data and analytics is changing everyday, thanks in large part to AI. This session will lay out the narrative your board and ELT will latch onto. It’s a must-see for leaders focused on aligning governance and platform strategy.
Trust as the New Currency: A Paradigm Shift in Governance
Permalink to “Trust as the New Currency: A Paradigm Shift in Governance”Speaker: Guido De Simoni
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 10:30–11:00 AM
What it is: An exploration of how trust models, risk management, and agentic AI are reshaping governance platforms and practices.
Why it matters: When done right, governance is an enabler – not a blocker. This session shows you how to move it from a checklist and committee exercise to an engine for trusted AI. If you’re reframing governance for the AI era, this sets the narrative around trust outcomes, not bureaucracy.
Atlan: Cargill’s Reusable Framework for Evaluating Active Metadata Platforms
Permalink to “Atlan: Cargill’s Reusable Framework for Evaluating Active Metadata Platforms”Speaker: Kirsten Walter
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 3:00–3:30 PM
What it is: An inside-look at how Cargill built a repeatable, board-friendly framework to evaluate and select an active metadata platform, scaling data ownership and trusted data delivery.
Why it matters: The market for metadata and governance solutions is crowded and inconsistent. This session cuts through the noise, providing practical guidance if you’re in (or approaching) a metadata or governance platform refresh that delivers consistency across teams and regions.
How to Build the Context Layer for Reliable AI Agents
Permalink to “How to Build the Context Layer for Reliable AI Agents”Speaker: Andrés García-Rodeja
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 11 | 10:30–11:00 AM
What it is: A blueprint for combining knowledge graphs, ontologies, and semantic layers with AI agents to deliver reliable, context-aware behavior.
Why it matters: If you’re being asked for an “AI agent strategy,” this explains the missing middle: a shared context layer every agent can plug into—rather than brittle, one-off solutions.
Panel: Evaluating Your Strategic Long-Term Data Management Platform Choices
Permalink to “Panel: Evaluating Your Strategic Long-Term Data Management Platform Choices”Speakers: Ehtisham Zaidi, Adam Ronthal, Robert Thanaraj, & Nina Showell
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 11 | 10:30–11:00 AM
What it is: A discussion on the future of data management platforms, and how to choose between cloud platforms, ISVs, SaaS applications, or a blended approach.
Why it matters: Platform management decisions made today will impact the tech stack and data initiatives for years to come. If you’re rethinking your core data platform for AI and governance, this session lays out real-world trade-offs—not vendor slides.
Bonus: Crossroads Debate: Will AI Kill BI?
Permalink to “Bonus: Crossroads Debate: Will AI Kill BI?”Speakers: Julian Sun & Kurt Schlegel
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 2:00–2:30 PM
Why it matters: As generative AI tools get smarter and more ubiquitous, this session will help cut through hype about the future of BI. Explore how BI, semantics, and AI assistants will coexist—useful for shaping an exec-ready stance on “AI-native BI.”
TD’s must-attend sessions
Permalink to “TD’s must-attend sessions”For data practitioners & platform teams
These sessions are for people tasked with building, operating, and scaling data analytics, AI, BI, and governance in today’s fast-moving data landscape.
AI-Ready Data: Lessons Learned Become Practices to Follow
Permalink to “AI-Ready Data: Lessons Learned Become Practices to Follow”Speaker: Roxane Edjlali
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 12:45–1:15 PM
What it is: A recap of how Gartner’s AI-ready data concepts and language have changed over the past four years, and the emerging practice of using AI data readiness as a foundation for production AI.
Why it matters: The market has undergone seismic shifts since Gartner codified its AI-ready data concepts in 2022. This session will provide a much-needed update, including concrete steps for moving from concept to production AI.
PPG’s Formula: Scaling Data Literacy With Atlan & AI
Permalink to “PPG’s Formula: Scaling Data Literacy With Atlan & AI”Speaker: Robert Howden & Austin Kronz
Date/Time: Monday, March 9 | 2:05–2:25 PM
What it is: A firsthand account of how PPG got its metadata supply problem under control, accelerating data discovery by 73% and impact analysis by 90%.
Why it matters: The role of data stewards is evolving as more teams adopt GenAI – but the impact of that can seem nebulous. This practitioner story explains how embedding context, documentation, and AI copilots directly into tools business users already use allows teams to move faster, with more confidence and less overhead.
Improve Your Data and AI Literacy to Boost Financial Performance
Permalink to “Improve Your Data and AI Literacy to Boost Financial Performance”Speaker: Alan D. Duncan
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 10:30–11:00 AM
What it is: An expert-led lesson on how to translate knowledge of data and AI systems into continuous maturity and business ROI.
Why it matters: The data teams that can show impact will win larger investments, more attention, and better outcomes. This session will give you language to connect training and literacy to revenue, margin, and risk—useful for budget, buy-in, and career growth.
Best Practices for Implementing and Maintaining a Data Catalog
Permalink to “Best Practices for Implementing and Maintaining a Data Catalog”Speaker: Thornton Craig
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 12:30–1:00 PM
What it is: Practical steps, common mistakes, and key factors for launching and managing a data catalog built for scale.
Why it matters: Every organization has different metadata requirements, goals, and workflows. This session will offer hard-won lessons on adoption, ownership, and scope—and a reminder that a catalog is necessary but not sufficient without a control plane around it.
Magic Quadrant Power Session: Data & Analytics Governance and Augmented Data Quality
Permalink to “Magic Quadrant Power Session: Data & Analytics Governance and Augmented Data Quality”Speakers: Guido De Simoni & Amy Bickel
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 2:00–2:30 PM
What it is: A look inside the Gartner Magic Quadrants for Data & Analytics Governance and Augmented Data Quality, including the top vendors, capabilities, and market trends to watch for.
Why it matters: The market for D&A and data quality solutions is evolving quickly. For data teams evaluating vendors, distinguishing good from great can be a full-time job. This session is essential context if you’re rationalizing DQ, observability, and governance tools, or aligning your stack with market direction.
How to Unlock the Value of Unstructured Data for AI: Start With Governing It First
Permalink to “How to Unlock the Value of Unstructured Data for AI: Start With Governing It First”Speaker: Melody Chien
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 11 | 10:30–11:00 AM
What it is: A look at how unstructured data’s quality, accessibility, and security directly affect the performance of AI applications, and how to govern it effectively.
Why it matters: Unstructured data is critical to the success of generative AI systems, but traditional governance frameworks struggle to adequately manage, protect, and utilize it. If you’re building RAG systems, search, or GenAI on top of SharePoint, S3, or GDrive, this session will provide a pattern for governed ingestion and enrichment—before things break in production.
Magic Quadrant Power Session: Data Integration Tools & Metadata Management Solutions
Permalink to “Magic Quadrant Power Session: Data Integration Tools & Metadata Management Solutions”Speaker: Andy Lee
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 11 | 1:15–1:45 PM
What it is: A deep-dive into the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Data Integration Tools, highlighting vendors, capabilities, and technologies that are shaping the market.
Why it matters: Without data integration tools, organizations struggle to access, process, move, and transform data. This session will help architects design platforms where integration, metadata, and automation work together—not as silos.
Bonus: From Data Debt to System of Context: Scaling Trusted Agentic AI
Permalink to “Bonus: From Data Debt to System of Context: Scaling Trusted Agentic AI”Speaker: Sushant Rai & Gurpreet Atwal
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 10 | 11:30 AM–12:00 PM
Why it matters: Organizations can only scale AI agents as fast as they can operationalize context. In this session, you’ll hear how Context Intelligence is fueling agentic processes, and how to build a system of context that scales and provides value fast.
Start planning for Gartner D&A Summit 2026 now
Permalink to “Start planning for Gartner D&A Summit 2026 now”You don’t need to attend everything. In fact, you shouldn’t. But prioritizing three to five sessions for your role will help you leave the Summit feeling more confident about what to do next.
One last tip: Don’t treat the Gartner Summit as just another series of sessions and keynotes. The real value comes from the conversations you have with other attendees — comparing notes, challenging assumptions, and realizing others are solving the same problems from different angles.
Make time to listen, ask questions, and learn what’s working (and what isn’t) in the real world. Those unplanned hallway discussions often become the most impactful part of the entire event. Show up, connect, and use the Summit to learn from each other in ways you can’t replicate anywhere else.
Heading to Orlando? Schedule time with us on-site, and come meet us at booth #313.
Share this article
Atlan is the next-generation platform for data and AI governance. It is a control plane that stitches together a business's disparate data infrastructure, cataloging and enriching data with business context and security.