Hannover Messe will kick off in April 2026 with a new thematic structure, optimized visitor guidance and new networking formats. Brazil is the 2026 Partner Country. The focus is on automation and digitalization.
More than 4,000 exhibiting companies from the electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, digital and energy sectors will come together at Hannover Messe to present products for competitive and sustainable industry. The main exhibition areas are Automation & Digitalization, Energy & Industrial Infrastructure and Research & Technology Transfer. The topic of artificial intelligence is a common thread through all exhibition areas.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a key emerging technology. Applying AI to manufacturing is changing company processes and business models. At the 2026 Hannover Messe, AI will be a recurring theme throughout all the halls and will play a central role on almost all stands. Tech companies such as AWS, Microsoft, SAP, Schneider Electric and Siemens, as well as automation providers such as Beckhoff Automation, Emerson/Aventics, Festo, Hiwin, ifm electronic, Harting, Lapp, Pepperl+Fuchs, Phoenix Contact, Pilz, Rittal, SEW-Eurodrive and Wittenstein will be showcasing their products.
"Automation and digitalization are moving closer together both physically and in terms of content. The trade fair is thus following a clear trend: there is increasing software and hardware convergence in the industry—from AI-driven robots to data-based manufacturing optimization and digitized supply chains," said Hubertus von Monschaw, global director, trade fair and product management, Hannover Messe, at Deutsche Messe. "The new hall structure makes apparent what has long been a reality in the factories."
The field of automation encompasses sensor technology, industrial communication, embedded controls, electric drive technology and motion control. These core areas form the backbone of Industry 4.0. One new feature is the Defense Production Area, looking to strengthen the European security and defense industry.
Defense Production Area
Production technologies are also in demand in the security and defense industry. There, reassessing defense capabilities is leading to increased investment and imposing high demands on industrial production, which must be scalable, flexible and reliable. The Defense Production Area is a new exhibition format at Hannover Messe, aimed at strengthening the European security and defense industry. The focus is on suppliers and providers of production technologies. In cooperation with DSEI Germany, Hannover Messe is for the first time offering a platform that shows how technologies can meet the requirements of security-related production.
Robotics applications for industry
The latest trends in robotics can be experienced at Hannover Messe, focusing on AI-based perception systems, autonomous mobile manipulators and humanoid robots. In the classic fields of automation such as automotive or electronics production, specialized industrial robots with greater accuracy, speed, payload and reliability continue to occupy the high ground. Many advances on the software side are also to be expected in the field of robotics. In addition to improved digital twins through data-driven methods, aspects such as simulation and virtual commissioning are becoming more prominent as a means for programming or teaching robots more quickly.
