IT Arena 2026 to Take Place in Lviv in an Updated Format: What’s Changing

In cooperation with relevant authorities, the IT Arena team is developing a new event model that accounts for current security risks. The conference will take place across several venues to avoid large crowds and ensure that all participants have access to shelters.

Based on recommendations from the Security Service of Ukraine, the event program has also been updated. This year, it will not include the Dual-Use Expo. The organizers will also limit attendance to 3,000 participants.

“Given the current security situation in Ukraine, we are strengthening our safety measures and have decided to distribute attendees across multiple venues. This will allow us to provide appropriate shelter capacity for everyone while maintaining a responsible balance between the event’s openness and the safety of all attendees. We are also working with the city and relevant authorities on additional security protocols. At the moment, we are developing an updated program model based on the new venue setup,’’ says Mykhailo Lemak, CEO of Lviv IT Cluster. 

Information about the venues for IT Arena 2026 will be provided to participants on the day of the event. This approach is part of the updated security model.

“This year, we are taking a new approach to how the event is organized, with a more flexible model and a return to a conference format that our audience already knows and values. Venue decisions are made only once we have confirmed that each location meets all relevant requirements,” says Sviatoslav Kavetskyi, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lviv IT Cluster. 

The team is moving ahead with preparations for IT Arena. More details about the event and the speaker lineup are available here.