Program
Along with inspiring keynotes and immersive hands-on workshops, the week will feature side events & special experiences unique to Boston and MIT, from innovation showcases and lab tours to creative performances and interactive events.
FAB CONFERENCE
The cornerstone of FABx events, the Fab Conference offers a dynamic mix of inspirational keynotes, symposiums, fast talks, and other exciting program formats, plus plenty of networking opportunities. We’re sticking with the traditional split-day format: mornings will bring everyone together in a large venue to inspire the future of technology, education, community impact, and much more.
FABx Afternoons
Each afternoon at FAB26 will offer a dynamic mix of theoretical and hands-on workshops, focus groups, and other engaging program formats. You’ll have the chance to connect with peers, dive deeper into topics you care about, and participate in sessions tailored to your interests. Whether you're looking to learn a new skill, explore emerging tools, or join thoughtful conversations, the afternoon program is designed to inspire and empower.
FAB Foos
Relaxed, welcoming spaces designed for meaningful 1-on-1 conversations, small-group meetups, or spontaneous collaboration. Whether you’re connecting with a speaker, meeting potential collaborators, or simply continuing a discussion sparked in a session, these lounges offer a comfortable environment to build relationships, exchange ideas, and deepen connections throughout FAB26.
Receptions
FAB26 includes evening receptions designed to bring the global FAB community together and explore the best of Boston and Cambridge. Join us at these social events to unwind, enjoy light refreshments, and connect with fellow participants. These gatherings offer the perfect setting to exchange ideas, spark new collaborations, and build relationships that will grow throughout the week.
FAB FESTIVAL
AUG 1st, 2026 - Open to the Public
Experience the energy of the global Fab Lab community at the FAB26 Festival, taking place across New England! Explore hands-on activities, interactive exhibits, and maker showcases that bring innovation into the heart of the region. Open to all ages, the festival celebrates creativity, community, and the future of making.
SIDE EVENTS
Regenerative Futures: Innovation Challenge
Boston, MA
April and July
🎭 Challenge
Hosted by the MIT pK-12 Initiative and the Fab Foundation, we invite high school aged students and their teachers or mentors around the world to participate in our regenerative challenge – to develop creative solutions to our most pressing environmental issues. We will support 15 teams in transforming their bold ideas into tangible solutions for the future of the planet. Through hands-on, iterative, team-based design and fabrication, combined with mentorship from the fab lab and maker community, participants will develop and prototype solutions to these challenges. All finalists will be announced at MIT’s Day of Climate conference in April, and all prototypes will be presented at FAB26 Boston in July.
Fab Educators Summit at FAB26
E-15 Building 6th Floor
Sunday, July 26, 2026 - 1:30PM
🎭 Summit
The Fab Educators Summit is a focused, in-person gathering for K–12 teachers, Fab Lab educators, and education leaders interested in how digital fabrication and makerspaces are used in schools around the world. Building on the success of the virtual Fab Educators Summit, this eduFAB-organized event invites FAB26 attendees to explore the education side of the Fab ecosystem through an interactive project gallery, lightning talks, and global perspectives from K–12 classrooms. Whether you work directly in education or are interested in the role Fab Labs play in schools, this summit brings together a global community to connect, share ideas, and learn from real K–12 classroom experiences.
TOURS
Center for Bits and Atoms
75 Amherst St, Cambridge, MA
July 27-31, 2026
🕠 5-6PM each day
👥 Capacity 20
MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms is an interdisciplinary initiative exploring the boundary between computer science and physical science. CBA studies how to turn data into things, and things into data.
MIT Glass Lab
77 Massachusetts Ave, Building 4, Room 003, Cambridge, MA
July 27 & 28
🕠 5-6PM each day
👥 Capacity 20
We are a hands-on lab, sponsored by DMSE, that teaches extracurricular classes in glass blowing to students across the Institute.
MIT Sea Grant Towing Tank
12 Emily Street, Building NW98, Room 100, Cambridge, MA
July 28
🕠 5-6PM
👥 Capacity 25
High precision towing tank with robotic gantry capable of conducting automated scientific search.
MIT.nano
Lisa T. Su Building, 60 Vassar Street, Bldg 12, Cambridge, MA
July 27 & July 28
🕠 5-6PM
👥 Capacity 15
MIT.nano is MIT's shared facility for nanoscale research and innovation. During a guided tour, you'll learn how MIT.nano supports more than 1,500 researchers across disciplines through various focus facilities including our fabrication lab, characterization, and the immersion lab.
Wright Brothers Wind Tunnel
76 Vassar St, Building 17, Cambridge MA
July 27
🕠 5-6PM
👥 Capacity 12
The Wright Brothers Wind Tunnel is a modern subsonic, continuous-flow, closed-return tunnel with a state-of-the-art test section and custom data collection — the most advanced wind tunnel in U.S. academia.
LIGO
185 Albany St, NW22 & NW17, Cambridge MA
July 27 to July 30
🕠 5-6PM
👥 Capacity 20
The LIGO group is part of the LIGO Laboratory, which, with Caltech, designs and operates two 4 kilometer-scale interferometers that detect gravitational waves originating from various cataclysmic cosmic events such as colliding black holes. The group is engaged in research and development aimed at improving the sensitivity of these detectors.
Autodesk Technology Center, Boston
23 Drydock Ave, The Innovation and Design Building (IDB), Boston, MA
July 27 to July 31
🕠 3-4PM
👥 Capacity 12
The Autodesk Technology Center in Boston is a research and development workspace where Autodesk invites startups, colleges and universities, and industry experts to explore ways to advance the building industry. The Technology Center in Boston focuses on industrialized construction, digital fabrication, automation and robotics in construction, and other ideas that are transforming the built world, including architecture and engineering. Located in Boston’s Seaport Innovation District, the space provides access to large-format fabrication equipment, a wide range of robotics, ample project space, as well as training and expertise from Autodesk personnel.
Ginkgo Bioworks
27 Drydock Avenue, Boston, MA
July 27 to July 31
🕠 5-6PM
👥 Upon Request
The world's largest autonomous biology lab.
