Education & Training

THE World Academic Summit 2026

THE World Academic Summit 2026 brings together global leaders in higher education, research, and policy to Cape Town, South Africa, marking its first appearance on the African continent. The summit will explore how universities can harness intelligence - human, artificial, and collective - to shape fairer, more sustainable, and future-ready societies. Attend…

Visit the official siteSponsorship open
66Speakers
2Sponsors
73On the bill · sessions
50Companies · in total
§I

Speakers

Programmed at THE, in alphabetical order.
Adam Habib
Vice-Chancellor · SOAS University of London
Alberto José Cardelle
President · State University of New York
Anders Söderholm
Rector · KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Anicia Peters
Chief Executive Officer · National Commission on Research, Science and Technology
Anne Marie Kanstrup
Pro Rector for Education · Aalborg University
Bin Yang
Vice-Chancellor of the University Council · Tsinghua University
Bjørn Thomassen
Acting Pro Rector · Roskilde University
Brandon Collier-Reed
Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning · University of Cape Town
Carmen Lamagna
Academic Adviser and Member of the Board of Trustees · American International University – Bangladesh
Chris Havergal
Editor · Times Higher Education
Christian Wolfrum
Deputy President and Provost · Nanyang Technological University
Christophe Lerouge
President · IMT Atlantique
Dag Rune Olsen
Rector · UiT The Arctic University of Norway
David Garza
President · Tecnológico de Monterrey
Deog-seong Oh
Professor · Woosong University
Dr Manvi Arora
Chief Compliance Officer · GD Goenka University
Edgar Pieterse
Director and Professor, African Centre for Cities · University of Cape Town
Eesa Al Bastaki
President · University of Dubai
Elelwani Ramugondo
Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Transformation, Student Affairs and Social Responsiveness · University of Cape Town
Esther Dermott
Pro Vice Chancellor, Arts, Law and Social Sciences · University of Bristol
Evelyn Welch
President and Vice-Chancellor · University of Bristol
Folasade Ogunsola
Vice-Chancellor and Professor · University of Lagos
§II

Sponsors

The houses behind the program. Tiers as disclosed.
University of BristolCo-host
University of Cape TownHost partner
§III

Agenda

Selected from 73 sessions on the bill.
  • 10:05 AM - 10:45 AM GMT +2 / 4:05 AM - 4:45 AM Your local time(40 min)

    Higher education in the Intelligent Age: Purpose, people, pedagogy and planet

    The role and purpose of higher education has evolved in the past 20 years. Amid international competition, technological acceleration, geopolitical fragmentation and environmental …

  • 10:45 AM - 11:25 AM GMT +2 / 4:45 AM - 5:25 AM Your local time(40 min)

    From brain drain to knowledge circulation: African leadership in talent, innovation and mobility

    Africa has the youngest population in the world, with more than 400 million young people between 15 and 35. This presents higher education institutions with a profound opportunity …

  • 10:55 AM - 11:55 AM GMT +2 / 4:55 AM - 5:55 AM Your local time

    The presidential perspective: Driving societal impact through research

    This panel brings together four university presidents to explore how universities can reposition research as a driver of societal impact. Moving beyond traditional publication and …

  • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM GMT +2

    Reimagining the future of future universities in the AI era

    In the era of artificial intelligence, universities face unprecedented opportunities and challenges that necessitate a reimagining of their structures, curricula and roles within s…

  • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM GMT +2 / 5:00 AM - 6:00 AM Your local time

    Reimagining the future of future universities in the AI era

    In the era of artificial intelligence, universities face unprecedented opportunities and challenges that necessitate a reimagining of their structures, curricula and roles within s…

  • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM GMT +2 / 5:00 AM - 6:00 AM Your local time(1 hour)

    Reimagining the future of future universities in the AI era

    In the era of artificial intelligence, universities face unprecedented opportunities and challenges that necessitate a reimagining of their structures, curricula and roles within s…

  • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM GMT +2 / 5:00 AM - 6:00 AM Your local time(1 hour)

    The presidents’ perspective: Driving societal impact through research

    This panel brings together four university presidents to explore how universities can reposition research as a driver of societal impact. Moving beyond traditional publication and …

  • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM GMT +2 / 5:00 AM - 6:00 AM Your local time(1 hour)

    Reimagining the future of future universities in the AI era

    In the era of artificial intelligence, universities face unprecedented opportunities and challenges that necessitate a reimagining of their structures, curricula and roles within s…

  • 1:10 PM - 2:10 PM GMT +2 / 7:10 AM - 8:10 AM Your local time

    The rise of Chinese universities: What’s the world still missing?

    China’s universities have undergone significant transformation in recent decades, strengthening their contributions to research, innovation, talent development and international en…

Intermission
Part the Second · For the Buyer

What does it mean when 50 companies show up, and 2 bet on three roles at once?

50 companies. two are betting more than once.

The numbers below are derived from the speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors on this page, cross-referenced into one ledger. They are the only thing here that 10times.com cannot tell you.

Who's in the room
2All threespeak · spons · exh
0Sponsoringsponsor only
48Companies Speakingspeaker only

The Triple-Threat

University of Cape Town·University of Bristol

Speakers by seniority

15% of the speakers carry senior titles: C-suite, Founder, VP, or Director-level.

  • C-suite46%
  • Founder / Owner12%
  • Director / Head of58%
  • Manager / Lead35%
  • Product12%
  • Research / Science23%
  • Marketing / Brand12%
  • Other roles4974%

Of 66 on the bill · classified by free-text title

Most-represented companies
  1. 01University of Cape TownSp·H6V
  2. 02University of BristolSp·C5V
  3. 03Times Higher Education4V
  4. 04Adelaide University2V
  5. 05Elsevier2V
  6. 06University of Bath2V
  7. 07University of Tokyo2V
  8. 08Aalborg University1V
  9. 09American International University – Bangladesh1V
  10. 10Carleton University1V
  11. 11Centre Africain d’Etudes Supérieures en Gestion1V
  12. 12Chalmers University of Technology1V
  13. 13Chitkara University1V
  14. 14Chulalongkorn University1V
Sponsors by tier
co-host1
50% of 2
host partner1
50% of 2