Education & Training

WorldSkills 2026

The WorldSkills Competition is the world's biggest international skills competition, bringing together young people, industry, education and government leaders from around the world to advance Technical and Vocational Education and Training. The 48th WorldSkills Competition will be held in Shanghai, China from September 22nd to September 27th, 2026.

Visit the official siteSponsorship open
12Speakers
31Sponsors
12On the bill · sessions
39Companies · in total
§I

Speakers

Programmed at WorldSkills, in alphabetical order.
Bettina Schaller
Senior Vice President and Head of Group Public Affairs; President of the World Employment Confederation · The Adecco Group
Christopher J. Nelson
President and CEO · DEWALT, a Stanley Black & Decker brand
Dana Morris Dixon
Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information · Government of Jamaica
Dion Smith
EVP Global Partner Ecosystem · Siemens
Government, international organization, and industry representatives
James Lawless
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science · Government of Ireland
Mario Nava
Director-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion · European Commission
Oliver Niese
Head of Digital Business and Board Member · Festo Didactic
Representatives from UNESCO-UNEVOC, ILO, OECD, European Training Foundation
Sebastian Beck
FESTO
Wen Tao
Neutech
Yi Guo
Vice President · BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings Asia Pacific
§II

Sponsors

The houses behind the program. Tiers as disclosed.
3MGlobal Industry Partner
American Welding SocietyGlobal Industry Partner
AutodeskGlobal Industry Partner
AWS EducateGlobal Industry Partner
Car-O-LinerGlobal Industry Partner
DHLGlobal Industry Partner
DMG MORIGlobal Industry Partner
FANUCGlobal Industry Partner
FestoGlobal Premium Partner
Fluke CorporationGlobal Industry Partner
FXBGlobal Industry Partner
GlasuritGlobal Industry Partner
IAPMOGlobal Industry Partner
INTAMSYSGlobal Industry Partner
ITAMSYSGlobal Industry Partner
Jiean Hi-techGlobal Industry Partner
John BeanGlobal Industry Partner
Lincoln ElectricGlobal Industry Partner
LIXILGlobal Industry Partner
MastercamGlobal Industry Partner
MitutoyoGlobal Industry Partner
NeusoftGlobal Premium Partner
PearsonGlobal Premium Partner
SamsungGlobal Premium Partner
SATAGlobal Industry Partner
Shining 3DGlobal Industry Partner
SiemensGlobal Industry Partner
Stanley Black & DeckerGlobal Premium Partner
StudicaGlobal Industry Partner
VCOMGlobal Industry Partner
ZhonghuiGlobal Industry Partner
§III

Agenda

Selected from 12 sessions on the bill.
  • 23 September

    Inclusive Excellence in TVET

    Session led by international education ministers exploring best practice in Public-Private Partnerships, and skills recognition and mobility. Commitment to government and instituti…

  • 23 September

    Opening Panel: Shaping a Skills-Driven Future

    Featuring senior Chinese and international leaders, the opening panel will set the scene for the Conference as a whole, opening the broader conversation about what a skills-driven …

  • 23 September

    Opening Panel: What does a skills-driven future mean in practice?

    Featuring senior Chinese and international leaders, the opening panel will set the scene for the Conference as a whole, opening the broader conversation about what a skills-driven …

  • 23 September

    Session: Inclusive Excellence in TVET

    Minister James Lawless explores best practice in inclusive excellence in TVET.

  • 23 September

    Session: Public-Private Partnerships in Skills

    Minister Dana Morris Dixon explores best practice in Public-Private Partnerships, and skills recognition and mobility.

  • 24 September

    Beyond the hype: AI’s real impact on tomorrow’s workforce

    A senior industry panel examines how AI is transforming workforce development, featuring expert leaders from the global skills sector.

  • 24 September

    Keynote: AI’s Real Impact on Tomorrow’s Workforce

    Christopher J. Nelson draws on recent research into the impact of Artificial Intelligence on trades, leading into an industry panel.

  • 24 September

    Keynote: Artificial Intelligence and the Trades

    Keynote address on the impact of Artificial Intelligence on the trades, drawing from new research into workforce transformation.

  • 24 September

    Panel: Beyond the hype: AI’s real impact on tomorrow’s workforce

    A senior industry panel examines how AI is transforming workforce development.

Intermission
Part the Second · For the Buyer

What does it mean when 39 companies show up, and 2 bet on three roles at once?

39 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
29Sponsoringsponsor only
8Companies Speakingspeaker only

The Triple-Threat

Festo·Siemens

Speakers by seniority

50% of the speakers carry senior titles: C-suite, Founder, VP, or Director-level.

  • C-suite18%
  • Founder / Owner18%
  • VP-level217%
  • Director / Head of217%
  • Other roles650%

Of 12 on the bill · classified by free-text title

Most-represented companies
  1. 01FestoSp·G1V
  2. 02SiemensSp·G1V
  3. 033MSp·G
  4. 04American Welding SocietySp·G
  5. 05AutodeskSp·G
  6. 06AWS EducateSp·G
  7. 07Car-O-LinerSp·G
  8. 08DHLSp·G
  9. 09DMG MORISp·G
  10. 10FANUCSp·G
  11. 11FlukeSp·G
  12. 12FXBSp·G
  13. 13GlasuritSp·G
  14. 14IAPMOSp·G
Sponsors by tier
global industry partner26
84% of 31
global premium partner5
16% of 31
At peer events but not here

These companies sponsored two or more peer events recently, but aren't on this program. For an organizer, that's a list of warm prospects.

Related events · by shared sponsors