AI Festival, the international Festival on Artificial Intelligence powered by WMF – We Make Futurebrings innovative startups and SMEs to global markets with AI For Futurethe startup competition dedicated to entrepreneurial projects that develop applications, technologies and solutions based on Artificial Intelligence.
The Festival will return on11 and 12 February 2027 in Milanin the spaces of Superstudio Maxiand through AI For Future, now in its 4th edition, opens up the opportunities of the broader international network to innovative startups and SMEs WMF – We Make Futurethe global innovation platform that connects startups, investors, corporates, accelerators, institutions, research centers and international stakeholders.
Through the call, the selected startups and innovative SMEs have access to a path that goes beyond just participating in the final of AI Festival 2027 in Milan, joining an international system of opportunities promoted by the WMF ecosystem. Between San Francisco, Riyadh, Milan and Bolognathe projects will be able to enter into relationships with investors, corporates, innovation stakeholders and protagonists of global AI marketthrough pitches, exhibitions, B2B meetings, networking moments and opportunities for qualified visibility.
There first selection phase closes on 15 October 2026. From this phase, the startups that will be able to participate with WMF in the second edition of will also be identified AI For Future in Silicon Valleyscheduled for November 5, 2026 in San Franciscoan international stage designed to encourage comparison between high-potential AI projects, investors, corporates and protagonists of the US technological ecosystem.
“AI For Future is the call with which AI Festival, within the WMF ecosystem, intercepts and enhances innovative startups and SMEs that are developing AI solutions capable of generating impact on the market and on society”, says Cosmano Lombardo, Founder and CEO of Search On Media Group and creator of WMF and AI Festival. “Today, to grow, a startup needs access to markets, industrial relations, skills, visibility and opportunities for international comparison. With AI For Future we offer a path that connects entrepreneurial projects, investors, corporates and innovation stakeholders, accompanying startups in several strategic stages: from San Francisco to Riyadh, from Milan to the WMF in Bologna.”
The journey will then continue with AI Festival 2027a Milan on 11 and 12 February 2027, WMF – We Make Futurescheduled to BolognaFiere from 10 to 12 June 2027 and with Saudi Makes Future to Riyadh in 2027.
AI For Future therefore opens at opportunities of the WMF global networkan international ecosystem active between Europe, North America and Asia which connects startups, investors, corporates, accelerators and innovation stakeholders. A network that involves organizations capable of representing as a whole $1.5 billion in Total Portfolio Value, $304 billion in Assets Under Management, 72.8 billion dollars in deal participation and beyond 17,000 funding rounds.
AI Festival 2027, a strategic stage of the AI For Future journey
Among the opportunities provided by the call, a central moment will be the final of AI For Future on the occasion of AI Festival 2027scheduled for11 and 12 February in Milan, in the spaces of Superstudio Maxi.
The 6 finalist startups selected will bring their projects to the main stage of the Festival in front of investors, venture capital, businesses, professionals, Big Tech and stakeholders of the international AI market. During the two days they will also have access to business initiatives of the event, to B2B meetings with investors and corporate and the possibility of exhibiting in the area dedicated to the startup and innovation ecosystem.
Like the other startup initiatives promoted by WMF, too AI For Future selects entrepreneurial projects on the basis of 14 strategic industries and of Challenges of the Future identified by the WMF ecosystem, with the aim of intercepting high-potential solutions in sectors undergoing technological transformation: fromAI & Digital Business toIndustryTech & Roboticsfrom the FinTech & Digital Assets al CleanTech & Energyuntil Health & Life Sciences, Smart Cities & Mobility and other key areas for development in the coming years.
Not just finalists: the opportunities at WMF 2027
In addition to the finalists participating in AI Festival, another 30 startups selected from the call will have the opportunity to participate in WMF – We Make Future 2027 and the initiatives dedicated to startups, innovative SMEs and investors during the three days of BolognaFiere.
Among the opportunities provided: B2B meetings with investors and corporate, exposure in Startup Districtpitch sessions, networking side events and moments of discussion with funds, companies, accelerators and international stakeholders. Furthermore, among the opportunities that are renewed again this year, some startups selected from the call and participating in the WMF will be able to access the spaces of the DAMA Tecnopolo in Bologna through Land in Bothanks to the collaboration between WMF, Tecnopolo and Metropolitan City of Bologna. The selected startups will have equipped workspaces, dedicated services and direct access to one of the main European technology hubsi, which hosts strategic infrastructures such as the Leonard supercomputeroh and the AI Factory. In the last edition, this opportunity involved startups from the WMF network such as Caelus, Ginga and ReQurv.
In this framework, AI For Future it becomes a gateway to a broader path, built to connect capital, deal flow, industrial skills and international amplification capacity. An initiative designed to support innovative startups and SMEs along different growth phases, from pre-seed to scale-uppromoting qualified visibility, business relationships and access to international markets and communities.
AI Festival and the WMF for AI path
AI Festivalscheduled for11 and 12 February 2027 in Milan, it is the International Festival on Artificial Intelligence powered by WMF – We Make Future. The fourth edition will be dedicated to the theme “Orchestrating Intelligence – Where Humans & AI play in Symphony”with a focus on AI business, advanced training, governance, research, startups, open innovation and the social, ethical and legal impacts of Artificial Intelligence. The competition AI For Future falls within the path of WMF for AIthe set of initiatives promoted by WMF to spread culture, skills, awareness and opportunities on AI, connecting the Milan stage to the broader international network of WMF.
The first phase of the call AI For Future closes the October 15, 2026 but it will be possible to apply until April 2027.