About the Event

The Gartner IT Infrastructure, Operations & Cloud Strategies Conference is the premier annual event for infrastructure, operations, and cloud (I&O) leaders in North America, produced by Gartner and held annually in Las Vegas in December. The 2026 edition takes place December 8-10, continuing the event's established slot at the close of the calendar year. The 2025 edition was held at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas and drew approximately 5,000 attendees, with 60+ Gartner experts, 120+ breakout sessions, and 40+ interactive sessions across 17 comprehensive content tracks. The conference combines Gartner's analyst-led research programming with an Exhibit Showcase running during daily receptions, where solution providers demonstrate products to the attending I&O leadership audience. The event is part of Gartner's global IOCS series, with parallel editions in London (November), Sydney (May), Mumbai (June), and Tokyo (December).

Audience & Attendees

The conference serves I&O executives, heads of IT infrastructure, IT operations leaders, cloud strategy and architecture leaders, data centre managers, sourcing and procurement executives, and vendor management leaders from large enterprises and midsize organisations. The Senior Leadership Circle Programme - an application-required executive track - provides senior I&O leaders with targeted sessions, curated peer discussions, and dedicated networking throughout the event. A midsize enterprise track addresses the specific scale and resource constraints of smaller organisations. New-to-Role sessions help recently appointed I&O leaders accelerate their strategic orientation. CPE credits are available through ISACA and other providers for select sessions. Both Gartner clients and non-clients attend with full access to all programming.

Programme Structure

The three-day programme delivers plenary keynotes on the main stage from Gartner analysts and prominent guest speakers, a multi-track breakout session programme covering 17 specialist content areas, pre-registerable interactive formats including roundtables and workshops, peer Meetups, and structured networking. Daily receptions in the Exhibit Showcase provide dedicated time with solution providers. Private 30-minute one-on-one analyst meetings are bookable in advance through the Conference Navigator app and are available exclusively to full conference pass holders. The 2025 opening keynote "Navigating the Hype: Strategic Roadmap to I&O Success" was delivered by Paul Delory and Autumn Stanish of Gartner - the analysts expected to reprise this role in 2026. A full 2026 agenda and speaker list had not been published at the time of entry creation.

Main Topics

The 2026 programme builds on the confirmed top I&O trends identified at the 2025 edition: hybrid computing and hybrid cloud strategy; energy-efficient computing; agentic AI - autonomous agents demanding new I&O operational paradigms; disinformation security; AI governance; and geopatriation of data and infrastructure. Content tracks address: AI, GenAI, and agentic AI in reshaping IT operations; hybrid cloud integration, resilience, and cost optimisation; I&O operating model transformation - shifting from service provider to platform provider identity; data centre colocation, storage, and server strategy including power and cooling for AI workloads; sourcing, procurement, and vendor management; cost and value optimisation including FinOps for AI; platform engineering and developer platforms; talent development and skills-based workforce strategy; and cybersecurity embedded in infrastructure and endpoint security.

Closing Session

The conference concludes on December 10. Session materials and analyst documentation are made available to attendees through the Gartner Conference Navigator app following the event.

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