The 2026 Call for Papers (CFP) is now open!

Join us October 19 & 20 in downtown Raleigh, NC for year #14! 

We are now seeking submissions from established technologists with many years of experience, technologists and community members that may be new to “open”, and everything in between. In addition, we are proudly seeking talks from traditionally underrepresented groups and organizations. In short, we’re seeking a diverse lineup as we firmly believe it delivers the most value to attendees.

*Please note all sessions will be delivered onsite in downtown Raleigh, NC USA with a limited number of those being recorded and possibly live streamed. Registration in 2025 was 6,500+ from 46 U.S. states and 75 countries. We hope / expect to grow these numbers in 2026 to 7,000+. 

• See a 2025 Conference Summary 
• 2025 Speakers 
• 2025 Keynote Speakers 
• Visit the 2026 event site

Talk Submission Timeframe / Milestones

Tuesday, February 17 – 2026 CFP Opens
Tuesday, March 31 – 2026 CFP Closes
Wednesday, April 1 – Initial communication from the ATO team
Monday, April 13 – Status updates and decision related emails will “be in full swing”

*Please note we may reach out before and/or after the above dates. We encourage questions and comments to be directed to the ATO team at info@allthingsopen.org anytime. We will respond quickly.

Conference Format

*Please note the overall event format for 2026 will change from past years. This was based on years of feedback from our community and partners.

All programming in 2026 will be delivered onsite at the Raleigh Convention Center in downtown Raleigh, NC USA.  There will be no virtual presentations unless circumstances and the current situation changes. If they do, we will notify our community right away. 

• Monday, October 19 – Co-located events (Community Leadership Summit, Inclusion & Diversity, Major League Hacking AI Roadshow/Hackathon), 5-8 minute Lightning Talks, and extended hands-on workshops.
• Tuesday, October 20 – Traditional conference day featuring Keynote and Featured Talks, and 30-minute session talks across 20+ tracks. 

*Note, the new format will make extended workshop session submissions more important than in past years.

Talk Formats

1. 10-minute keynote in front of a plenary audience.
2. 5-8 minute Lightning Talk
3. Traditional 30-minute session 
4. Two (2) hour extended, hands-on deep dive 
5. Four (4) hour extended, hands-on workshop 

Topics, Tracks, and Technologies – What We’re Looking For

Topics we’re looking to highlight, this year’s tracks to be featured, and technology examples for anyone interested can be found here.

Talk Topic Guidance

Why Speak at All Things Open 2026?

Since before 2010 we’ve hosted thousands of technologists and thought leaders from all over the world. Follow the link below for all the reasons why you should consider speaking at All Things Open.

Why Speak at All Things Open?

Travel Assistance for Speakers

The team at All Things Open considers all travel assistance requests from speakers on a case-by-case basis. We’re a small team/organization and proudly keep registration costs low to maximize accessibility. Because of this, our budget is limited. We do give priority consideration to independent and historically underrepresented individuals as inclusion and diversity remain important goals and have been from the beginning. If you have questions or would like to speak to us about our policy please contact us directly at info@allthingsopen.org.

Tips for Getting Your Talk Accepted

We wrote an article called “13 tips for getting your talk accepted at a tech conference”. We feel it includes a number of best practices that might be helpful. It’s a short read and can be found here.

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