The Doha edition of the World Summit AI series, run with Qatar's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, held in 2024 and 2025; for 2026 the organiser says it is paused until further notice while 15 to 16 December remains listed on its calendar.
The Doha edition of World Summit AI, a global AI conference series that began in Amsterdam in 2017 and is produced by Inspired Minds Media Ltd (World Summit AI Ltd). It focuses on AI governance, responsible AI strategies, AI research, deployment and digital innovation for the Gulf Cooperation Council and wider MENA region, and is organised in partnership with Qatar's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. The Doha edition took place in 2024 (billed as the first in the region) and on 9 and 10 December 2025 (billed as the second). For 2026 it is not confirmed: the organiser's attendee information page says World Summit AI Doha will be paused in 2026 until further notice because of the conflict in the Middle East.
The organiser's Qatar home page calendar still lists 15 to 16 December 2026 in Doha (unverifiable information), but the same organiser's attendee information page states that World Summit AI Doha will be paused in 2026 until further notice, and the global World Summit AI site now lists Doha with no date. No 2026 ticket sale, programme or speaker line-up is published, so treat the dates as unconfirmed and check with the organiser before booking travel. The organiser's venue for its Qatar editions is the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC) in West Bay, Doha (Halls 4 and 5 in 2025); a 2026 venue is not confirmed (unverifiable information).
Inspired Minds Media Ltd, trading as World Summit AI and InspiredMinds, registered in England (4th Floor, St. James House, St. James Square, Cheltenham GL50 3PR, company number 09970194). The Qatar edition is organised in partnership with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT). The organiser describes itself as a global tech and science strategy group focused on AI for good, with a community of 200,000+ in 160+ countries (organiser figure) and 20 years of experience in large summits.
The database holds 1,000 expected attendees for the Qatar edition (unverifiable information): the organiser's Qatar page instead carries the global series line of 10,000+ AI leaders, and no Qatar-specific attendance figure for 2024 or 2025 was found. The target audience on record is enterprise leaders, researchers, policymakers, investors and startups. The organiser describes attendees as founders, C-suite executives, heads of AI, machine learning, data science and innovation, professors and students, government officials, policy makers and regulators, data scientists and developers.
None confirmed. The organiser's programme page says the next agenda has not been released, and the speakers page shows only a previous speaker line-up. The eight names below are the research record and the organiser's featured past speakers; they are not confirmed for 2026.
The previous line-up page also names further speakers from Cisco Splunk, Qatar University, Sidra Medicine, Qatar Computing Research Institute, SAP, Google, Scale AI, Swisscom and others.
The main change is status: the 2025 edition ran on 9 and 10 December 2025 at the DECC, and for 2026 the organiser says Doha is paused until further notice, with no new programme. Marketing pages for the investor club, start-up accelerator and MOU signings still carry 2026 wording, so the site is not consistent. The global series now lists Amsterdam on 6 to 7 October 2027, Montréal on 7 to 8 April 2027, San Francisco and Doha without dates.
No 2026 programme is published. The programme page says to sign up for updates for the next agenda. Themes on record for the edition are artificial intelligence, AI governance, AI research, AI deployment and digital innovation, with sector tags covering healthcare, transportation, food security, insurance and cybersecurity. The 2025 edition opened its main stage at 09:00 on 9 and 10 December 2025.
Main stage keynotes and panels, an AI start-up accelerator with branded pods and a pitch competition shortlist, a VIP investor club, official MOU signing ceremonies, a healthtech hackathon with Qatar University, and an AI event app with attendee list, networking matches and meeting scheduling. The organiser says only main stage videos are put on demand, subject to speaker consent. No awards programme is documented, and the research record flags business matchmaking as present.
MOU signing ceremonies (for example MCIT partnerships on GovAI in Qatar and national AI skills and initiatives, listed on the organiser's page), VIP dinners and networking events for investor club members, and the healthtech hackathon with Qatar University. A 2026 side event schedule is not published.
Not publicly disclosed. No 2026 ticket sale is open and no price list is published: the site offers a register interest form and a newsletter, and the research record notes that delegate pricing is available by registering interest through the official website. Two accelerator passes are bundled in the start-up accelerator package, with 20% off additional passes, but the package price is not published.
The organiser's speaker page has an Apply to speak enquiry form, and says the stage has a three year waiting list and receives thousands of submissions a year (organiser claim). Because the 2026 Doha edition is paused, an application is for the series and may not lead to a Doha slot. Start-ups can add a speaking slot to the accelerator package.
Through the Partner with us form on the organiser's site, which offers bespoke packages covering exhibition space, networking events, workshops, branding and thought leadership. Start-ups can apply to the accelerator in three bands: Pioneer (pre-investment or under GBP 1 million in funding), Impact (launched product, GBP 1 to 3 million) and Scale (GBP 3 million or more). Prices are not published.
No 2026 sponsor roster is published. The research record names the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology as the event's partner and sponsor. The organiser's 2025 roster:
Not established for 2026. The 2025 partner roster and past speakers point to a mix of global technology and consulting firms (Cisco, Accenture, NVIDIA, SAP), Qatari institutions (Qatar University, Qatar Computing Research Institute, Sidra Medicine, Qatar Insurance Company, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology) and international bodies (the United Nations, the Digital Cooperation Organization), but no delegate company breakdown is published.
The organiser's Media Zone page has an Apply for a Press Pass link, a media kit link and a contact form. The page is written for the global series, and with the 2026 Doha edition paused, accreditation for 2026 is not open. Enquiries: enquiries@inspired-minds.co.uk.
The organiser's Media Zone lists coverage for 2025 (Qatar Tribune, The Peninsula, Qatar News Agency, Gulf Times, Al Jazeera, Alaraby) and 2024 (EU Reporter, The Peninsula, Doha News, Gulf Times, Economy Middle East), including coverage of the launches of the Fanar Arabic AI project in 2024 and of Qai and Fanar 2.0 in 2025. No coverage of a 2026 edition exists.
Mixed. The coverage list is curated by the organiser. Alaraby belongs to the group of the organiser's 2025 strategic media partners (Fadaat Media (media partner), al-Araby al-Jadeed (media partner)), so its coverage is placed, not independent. Other outlets on the list (Qatar Tribune, The Peninsula, Gulf Times, Qatar News Agency, Al Jazeera, Doha News, EU Reporter) are independent of the partner list, but several are Qatar-based reports of government announcements made at the event.
Anyone who needs a confirmed 2026 event: with the Doha edition paused and no tickets on sale, planning around 15 to 16 December 2026 is risky. Also anyone who needs a published programme or speaker list before committing, and attendees outside the Gulf whose interest is the global series, who are better served by Amsterdam, Montréal or San Francisco.
Normally it is the December Gulf stop of the World Summit AI series, after Amsterdam in October. In 2026 that slot is unconfirmed. No sourced comparison with other regional AI events is available.
Doha is the Qatar edition itself; the series has other cities. The organiser's global calendar lists Amsterdam (6 to 7 October 2027, with a 2026 edition on 7 to 8 October 2026), Montréal (7 to 8 April 2027) and San Francisco (no date). Past Doha editions were held in 2024 and in December 2025.
English, according to the research record, and the site and event app are in English. No translation service is mentioned.
The 2025 edition was in person. The organiser's terms describe digital events in general but no digital pass was listed for Doha. After the 2025 event, speaker presentations, photos and main stage videos were uploaded to the event app, with video availability subject to speaker consent. No 2026 arrangement is published.
Under the organiser's terms, tickets are non-refundable. A registration can be cancelled within 7 days of booking for a refund less a 10% administration charge (plus VAT if any); later cancellations are not refundable. Names can be changed up to 30 days before the event. If the organiser cancels an event for any reason, the buyer receives a credit for 100% of the fee, usable for another Inspired Minds event within one year; the same applies if the organiser postpones and the delegate cannot attend the new date. These terms are dated 2018 and 2020 and are not specific to the Doha event.
Not publicly disclosed. The organiser's terms only ask attendees to advise special access requirements when confirming a booking for a physical event. The DECC venue accessibility is not documented by the organiser.
The DECC is in West Bay, Doha; for 2025 the summit used Halls 4 and 5, with badge collection at Gate 5 (Gate 4 for VIP ticket holders). The organiser points to the DECC wayfinding map and visitor information for public transport, driving and parking. Visitors are responsible for their own visa and entry checks, and the organiser recommends mandatory health insurance for Qatar visits. Venue details for 2026 are not confirmed (unverifiable information).
Because the organiser's own pages disagree. The attendee information page says Doha is paused in 2026 until further notice, the home page calendar still prints 15 to 16 December 2026, the investor and accelerator pages still use 2026 wording, and the global series page now lists Doha with no date. No 2026 programme, speakers or ticket sales exist, and the details on the attendee page are explicitly for the 2025 summit. Until the organiser removes the notice or confirms a date, the dates should not be used for travel or budget decisions.
Because it is the series' Gulf stop and it carries a government partner: the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, whose announcements (national AI skills programmes, GovAI, the Fanar Arabic AI project and Qai) appear in the organiser's list of MOU signings and press coverage. For anyone tracking Qatari AI policy or selling into the public sector, the event is where those announcements were made in 2024 and 2025, which is why the paused status matters more than the usual listing.
Official site: https://qatar.worldsummit.ai/ (live; matches the organiser Inspired Minds Media Ltd; checked 16 October 2026). The notice about the 2026 pause is on https://qatar.worldsummit.ai/plan-your-trip/, not on the home page. Global series: https://worldsummit.ai/ and https://worldsummit.ai/all-events/. Terms: https://qatar.worldsummit.ai/terms-and-conditions/. Contact: enquiries@inspired-minds.co.uk. Instagram: @worldsummitai. RSS: https://qatar.worldsummit.ai/feed.