QCon 2026: Senior Software Engineering Conference

QCon San Francisco 2026 is where senior software practitioners gather to explore what's working in AI, architecture, leadership, and culture—straight from the teams already implementing these solutions in production. Taking place November 16-20, 2026 at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco, this five-day event combines three days of conference sessions (Nov 16-18) with two days of hands-on training (Nov 19-20), giving you both strategic insight and practical skills to bring back to your team. ## Why Senior Engineers Attend QCon For over 20 years, QCon has been the trusted source for engineering leaders at companies like Amazon, Meta, Netflix, Google, Uber, and Goldman Sachs. This isn't another vendor-driven conference—it's a practitioner-led event where 60+ senior engineers share real-world implementation stories, architectural decisions, and lessons learned from building systems at scale. You'll hear from people who have already solved the problems you're facing, with candid discussions about what worked, what didn't, and why. ## What You'll Learn The conference focuses on four critical areas shaping modern software development: AI in Production — Move beyond the hype and learn how teams are actually deploying AI systems, managing model operations, and integrating machine learning into existing architectures. Discover practical approaches to AI governance, testing strategies for non-deterministic systems, and how to build teams that can ship AI features reliably. Software Architecture Evolution — Explore how leading engineering organizations are evolving their architectures to meet modern demands. From microservices patterns to platform engineering, from data mesh implementations to API design at scale, you'll see how architecture decisions impact velocity, reliability, and team productivity. Engineering Leadership — Learn how senior engineers are navigating the shift from individual contributor to technical leader. Topics include building high-performing teams, making technical decisions with imperfect information, balancing innovation with stability, and creating cultures where engineers can do their best work. Modern Development Practices — Discover emerging patterns in software delivery, from platform engineering approaches to developer experience optimization, observability strategies, and how teams are adapting their practices for AI-assisted development. ## Conference Format