DevFest is back

Google has announced that DevFest 2026 will take place from October 1 through December 31, 2026, with nearly one million developers and builders expected to participate. The announcement names Justyna Politanska-Pyszko as DevFest Lead and Natalie McHugh as Program Manager.

The events are hosted worldwide by Google Developer Groups (GDGs). Though backed by Google, each GDG curates its own agenda and tailors the event to its local tech ecosystem, with the aim of creating an inclusive environment where participants collaborate and build skills together.

This year's theme is "Build, Secure, Scale: Developers and Builders in the Agentic Era." The organizers say the season prioritizes hands-on experimentation at every event. Attendees will work directly with tools across Google's stack, including Gemini, Google AI Studio, Google Antigravity, Google Cloud, Firebase, Android, Flutter, Angular, and Web MCP, through live codelabs, workshops, and agent-athons.

The program is organized around three stated themes. First, that it has never been easier to build, as new tools let more people and teams prototype and deploy faster. Second, that what is built should be safe and secure, requiring focus on secure deployment, data privacy, and responsible AI guardrails. Third, that builders can work with production-ready infrastructure, which Google describes as top-of-class models for scaling reliably from day one.

The season covers more than 800 events planned across 115 countries. Developers can find a local event through the DevFest Event Directory and follow the conversation using the #DevFest hashtag on social channels.

Why it matters: Developers and product teams get a schedule of community-run events in 115 countries where they can try Google's AI and development tools hands-on, with local agendas set by each GDG rather than a single global program.