NVIDIA GTC: dates, who attends, and how founders get in
“NVIDIA GTC is the premier developer conference at the heart of AI.” GTC 2027 is hybrid, with in-person and virtual options.
- Next edition
- Mar 15–18, 2027 · NVIDIA GTC 2027 source
- Where
- San Jose McEnery Convention Center and venues throughout San Jose, San Jose, United States source
- Format
- hybrid · Four conference days (2026); the announced 2027 date span includes a pre-conference workshop day.
- Tickets
- $0–$2,525 (2026 published offerings: free virtual/student experiences at the low end and the regular four-day Conference pass at the high end). The four-day Conference pass was $2,172 early bird and $2,525 regular (2026). GTC 2027 ticket prices had not been published as of 2026-10-07. source
- Startup pass
- Free Inception membership (2026 programme description); it does not include GTC admission. source
- Startup and VC Pitches, presented by NVIDIA Inception (2026); not published as a judged competition.
- No prize published by NVIDIA for the GTC 2026 Inception pitch sessions; no 2027 prize published. source
- Cadence
- Annual flagship spring conference, held in March in recent editions.
AIRoboticsDeeptechHardwareHealth & biotechFintechPre-seedSeedSeries AGrowthPublicDevelopersResearchersFoundersInvestorsCorporatesStudents
Next edition
| Dates | Mar 15–18, 2027 source |
|---|---|
| Edition | NVIDIA GTC 2027 |
| Venue | San Jose McEnery Convention Center and venues throughout San Jose, San Jose, California, United States source |
| Theme | Agentic AI, AI infrastructure, AI for science, CUDA and libraries, cybersecurity and AI safety, data processing, industrial AI, physical AI and robotics |
| Timezone | America/Los_Angeles |
| Tickets | nvidia.com source |
Deadlines that matter to founders
- Feb 2, 2026 — Early bird: Conference — 4 Days (passed) · apply
Ticket tiers as published
| Tier | Price | Includes | Edition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conference — 4 Days source | $2,172 early bird through 2026-02-02; $2,525 regular through 2026-03-15 (2026). | Four-day Conference pass. NVIDIA's pricing page states keynote, GTC Live keynote pregame, and keynote watch-party access is exclusive to this pass and the Monday one-day Conference pass; the full inclusion matrix was not legible in the published text reviewed. | 2026 |
| Conference — 1 Day source | — | One-day Conference pass; the keynote, GTC Live keynote pregame, and keynote watch party are available only for the Monday, 2026-03-16 one-day pass, according to NVIDIA's pricing page. | 2026 |
| Exhibits Only — 4 Days source | — | The official pricing page lists an in-person Exhibits Only pass for four days; the exact inclusion details are not recoverable from its published text reviewed. | 2026 |
| Exhibits Only — Thursday (student offer) source | $30 for the student Thursday add-on, discounted from $110 (2026). | Thursday exhibits and Connect With the Experts sessions at the San Jose Convention Center. Student must first register for the Student Experience/watch party to qualify for the discounted pass. | 2026 |
| Full-Day Workshops — Sunday source | — | — | 2026 |
| Digital Only — 4 Days source | Free virtual access advertised by NVIDIA GTC (2026); the pricing page labels the tier Digital Only, 4 Days, but does not expose a price in its captured text. | Virtual access to GTC content (2026). | 2026 |
| Student Experience source | Free (2026). | Student Experience at San José State University: keynote watch party, interactive panel, exclusive gear, complimentary snacks, and a free virtual pass to GTC content. It is a student programme, not general in-person conference admission. | 2026 |
How founders get in
NVIDIA described a founder-facing programme of live startup and VC pitches, AI Day for VCs, and an Inception Startup Pavilion showcasing 55+ startups (2026). Its event pages also describe demonstrations and opportunities to connect with peers. NVIDIA's pre-event release projected more than 240 Inception startups showcasing technologies (2026); the post-event Pavilion figure refers specifically to startups in that Pavilion.
- Optional startup-program route: Apply to NVIDIA Inception using the online application. Published criteria are at least one developer, a working website, official incorporation, and company age under 10 years (2026 program criteria). The application asks for business and product details; Inception has no application fees, deadlines, or cohorts. Membership is not a GTC admission pass.
- Register separately for GTC. In-person and virtual registration is required for GTC 2027; the FAQ said registration would open later in fall 2026. The main GTC page gives 2027-03-15–2027-03-18, while the FAQ separately lists 2027-03-14–2027-03-18. The most recently completed San Jose edition ran 2026-03-16–2026-03-19.
- Choose an available GTC pass and pay its published price. No separate Inception/startup admission pass is described. GTC 2026's official pricing page listed Conference, Exhibits Only, workshop, and Digital Only options, but the available page text does not expose every tier's price. The four-day Conference pass cost $2,172 early bird and $2,525 regular (2026).
- For investor exposure, Inception members may use Inception Capital Connect subject to eligibility and join curated networking. GTC 2026 also advertised Startup and VC Pitches and AI Day for VCs; the official pages do not describe an open application route for those stage sessions.
| Startup programme | NVIDIA Inception is the startup programme, not a GTC ticket. Apply online with company and product details; NVIDIA reviews the application. Inception has no application fee, deadline, or cohort (2026 programme description). GTC admission must be registered for separately. source |
|---|---|
| Startup price | Free Inception membership (2026 programme description); it does not include GTC admission. source |
| Includes | Developer tools and training, preferred pricing on selected NVIDIA hardware/software, partner offers, investor exposure, and—subject to eligibility—Inception Capital Connect and curated networking. GTC 2026 also had Inception startup pitches and a Startup Pavilion; membership does not guarantee a pavilion or pitch slot. |
| Eligibility | Published Inception criteria (2026): the company must employ at least one developer, maintain a working website, be officially incorporated, and be less than 10 years old. Any funding stage may apply; revenue is not required. Published exclusions include consulting and outsourced-development firms, cryptocurrency-associated companies, cloud service providers, resellers and distributors, and public companies. |
| Students | For the 2026 Student Experience at San José State University, the organizer offered a free Monday event with a keynote watch party, interactive panel, gear, snacks, and a free virtual GTC content pass. Registration used a student (.edu) email. Students who registered for the Student Experience/watch party could add a Thursday Exhibits Only pass for $30, discounted from $110 (2026); this was not a general founder pass. |
| Press | No media accreditation process or press-pass application was described on the official GTC San Jose pages reviewed. The official pages reviewed do not state that media can attend without regular registration. |
| Application required | No, tickets are purchased |
Startup and VC Pitches, presented by NVIDIA Inception (2026); not published as a judged competition.
| Prize | No prize published by NVIDIA for the GTC 2026 Inception pitch sessions; no 2027 prize published. source |
|---|---|
| Format | NVIDIA's published 2026 Startup and VC Pitches were pitch sessions for a live audience; the official GTC page does not describe rounds, judges, a winner, or a prize. No separate NVIDIA-organized GTC-wide judged startup competition was identified. |
| Eligibility | The official GTC session pages say Inception startups and VC firms pitch to a live audience, but do not state eligibility criteria or an application process for the pitch sessions. |
Meeting investors there
Founders can apply separately to Inception and, if eligible, access its investor network through Capital Connect and curated networking. At GTC 2026, NVIDIA also advertised startup and VC pitch sessions and AI Day for VCs. The organizer's pages do not describe guaranteed one-to-one meetings or an open application for the on-stage pitch sessions. source
| Matchmaking | No GTC event matchmaking app is named in the official material reviewed. Inception Capital Connect is the named investor-connection channel, subject to eligibility; it is not identified as an event app. source |
|---|---|
| Formats | Startup and VC Pitches, presented by NVIDIA Inception, with startups and VC firms pitching to a live audience (2026). · AI Day for VCs and NVentures engagement sessions (2026). · Curated Inception networking events bringing startups, top VCs, and NVIDIA executives together; access is programme-based (2026 programme information). · Inception Capital Connect investor exposure and introductions, subject to eligibility (2026 programme information). |
Investor firms the organiser lists (Most recent completed flagship spring San Jose edition: 2026. Next announced San Jose edition: 2027-03-15–2027-03-18 on the GTC homepage; the FAQ gives 2027-03-14–2027-03-18, and the poster page says the event schedule spans 2027-03-14–2027-03-18. No cancellation, postponement, city move, or conference name change is indicated in the cited official pages.)
ConvictionAtreides ManagementSequoia CapitalA16Z
Before you go: the hub's cold email to VCs playbook covers the pre-event outreach that fills a meeting calendar, and Causo matches your stage and thesis to the funds in its database so you know who to ask for a meeting.
Who speaks (Most recent completed flagship spring San Jose edition: 2026. Next announced San Jose edition: 2027-03-15–2027-03-18 on the GTC homepage; the FAQ gives 2027-03-14–2027-03-18, and the poster page says the event schedule spans 2027-03-14–2027-03-18. No cancellation, postponement, city move, or conference name change is indicated in the cited official pages.)
- Jensen Huang, Founder and CEO · NVIDIA
- Pras Velagapudi, CTO · Agility Robotics
- Mira Murati, Founder and CEO · Thinking Machines Lab
- Aman Sanger, CTO and Co-Founder · Cursor
- Jeff Dean, Chief Scientist · Google DeepMind and Google Research
- Dario Gil, Undersecretary for Science · U.S. Department of Energy
- Moritz Baecher, Director, Research Lab Zurich · Disney Research Imagineering
- Chelsea Finn, Assistant Professor; Co-Founder · Stanford University; Physical Intelligence
- Zhilin Yang, Founder and CEO · Kimi (Moonshot AI)
Full lineup: official speakers page.
Notable past speakers
- Jensen Huang, Founder and CEO · NVIDIA (2026)
- Pras Velagapudi, CTO · Agility Robotics (2026)
- Mira Murati, Founder and CEO · Thinking Machines Lab (2026)
- Aman Sanger, CTO and Co-Founder · Cursor (2026)
- Jeff Dean, Chief Scientist · Google DeepMind and Google Research (2026)
- Dario Gil, Undersecretary for Science · U.S. Department of Energy (2026)
- Moritz Baecher, Director, Research Lab Zurich · Disney Research Imagineering (2026)
- Chelsea Finn, Assistant Professor; Co-Founder · Stanford University; Physical Intelligence (2026)
- Zhilin Yang, Founder and CEO · Kimi (Moonshot AI) (2026)
Sponsors and partners
Elite 8
AWSCoreWeaveDell TechnologiesGoogle CloudHewlett Packard EnterpriseMicrosoft AzureNebiusOracle
Diamond 10
Domino Data LabGIGABYTEIBMInspurLenovoLockheed MartinRun:aiSupermicroVMwarexFusion
Platinum 8
ASUStek LTDCanonical Group LimitedDDNEquinixPNY TechnologiesPure StorageWorld Wide TechnologyZ by HP
Gold 26
ADLINKAetina CorporationASROCK RACK INC.AtosAVerMedia Technologies, Inc.CapgeminiCEACDeloitteDigital ChinaDS2EcotronFujitsuH3CIngram MicroInventecNetAppNettrixPenguin ComputingQuantiphiRAVE ComputerRed Hat, Inc.SoftServeVolcengineVultrWeights & BiasesWistron Corporation
Full list: official partners page.
Startups there
55+ Inception startups in the Startup Pavilion (2026) · official startup directory
Programme
| Tracks | 2026: Developer and Research Tracks, including technical deep dives, CUDA sessions, and infrastructure workshops. · 2026: Sessions on AI factories, large-scale inference, robotics, digital twins, scientific computing, quantum computing, and enterprise AI deployments. · 2027 key themes: Agentic AI; AI Infrastructure; AI for Science; Content Creation/Rendering; CUDA and Libraries; Cybersecurity and AI Safety; Data Processing; Industrial AI; Physical AI and Robotics. source |
|---|---|
| Side events | The official 2026 programme included AI Day for VCs on 2026-03-17, a Day and Night Market at Cesar Chavez Park, All-In Podcast interviews from the show floor on 2026-03-18, and Student and Community Day on 2026-03-19. The student programme also listed an on-campus hackathon on 2026-03-16. No 2027 San Jose side-event schedule was published in the reviewed pages. |
| Hackathon | A hackathon was listed as part of the 2026 Student Experience at San José State University on 2026-03-16, scheduled for 3–7 p.m. No 2027 hackathon was published in the reviewed material. |
| Call for speakers | No speaker call for proposals was found in the official material reviewed. A separate GTC 2027 technical poster call was published: submissions were due 2026-11-10. Posters must present original technical or research work; promotional and business-use-case submissions are excluded. This is a poster call, not a speaker CFP. |
| Official app | NVIDIA GTC |
| Hashtag | #NVIDIAGTC |
Past editions, as published
| Edition | Dates | Attendees | Investors | Startups | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 · San Jose, California source | Mar 16–19, 2026 | 30,000+ attendees announced before the event (2026); this is not a published final attendance count. | Converge VC; BGV; DG Daiwa Ventures (firms featured in a GTC 2026 VC-pitches session). | 55+ Inception startups showcased in the Startup Pavilion (2026); NVIDIA Inception serves 30,000+ global technology startups (2026). | recap · report · video |
| 2025 · San Jose, California source | Mar 17–21, 2025 | 25,000 in-person and 300,000 virtual attendees announced before the event (2025); final totals not stated here. | — | — | recap · video |
| 2024 · San Jose, California source | Mar 18–21, 2024 | 300,000+ people expected to register in person or virtually (2024; pre-event announcement). | — | 150+ NVIDIA Inception members announced as GTC participants (2024; pre-event announcement). | |
| 2023 source | Mar 20, 2023 | 250,000+ expected registrations announced before the event (2023). | — | — | |
| 2022 source | Mar 21–24, 2022 | — | — | — | |
| 2021 source | Apr 12–16, 2021 | — | — | — | |
| 2020 source | — | — | — | — |
Cities: San Jose, California (inaugural edition 2009; 2010 edition; flagship in-person editions 2024–2026; 2027 announced)
Formerly: GPU Technology Conference
Who attends
| Geography | Over 190 countries expected (2026; pre-event announcement; final tally not stated). source |
|---|---|
| Roles | Developers, Researchers, Founders, Investors, Corporates, Students |
| Stages | Pre-seed, Seed, Series A, Growth, Public |
Official links and socials
Apply
Travel & apps
In the press
- Nvidia to focus on competition-beating AI advances at megaconference — Reuters (2026)
- Nvidia GTC painting downtown San Jose green this week — The Mercury News (2026)
- Everything Nvidia announced at its annual developer conference GTC — Reuters (2025)
- Everything Just Revealed at Nvidia's GTC AI Conference — CNET (2024)
Prepare for it
- How to cold email VCs — book the meetings before you land.
- The 12-slide seed deck — what to have ready when a partner says "send me the deck".
- Pitch Deck Roaster — a slide-by-slide pass before you submit to Startup and VC Pitches, presented by NVIDIA Inception (2026); not published as a judged competition..
- Accelerator deadlines — the application windows that open around the event.
Sources
Every fact above was read from one of these official pages on Oct 7, 2026:
- apps.apple.com/us/app/nvidia-gtc/id1354302590
- blogs.nvidia.com/blog/gtc-2026-news
- investor.nvidia.com/news/press-release-details/2024/See-the-Future-at-GTC-2024-NVIDIAs-Jensen-Huang-to-Unveil-Latest-Breakthroughs-in-Accelerated-Computing-Generative-AIand-Robotics/default.aspx
- investor.nvidia.com/news/press-release-details/2025/NVIDIA-CEO-Jensen-Huang-and-Industry-Visionaries-to-Unveil-Whats-Next-in-AI-at-GTC-2025/default.aspx
- investor.nvidia.com/news/press-release-details/2026/NVIDIA-CEO-Jensen-Huang-and-Global-Technology-Leaders-to-Showcase-Age-of-AI-at-GTC-2026/default.aspx
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-announces-gtc-2020-keynote-with-ceo-jensen-huang-set-for-may-14
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-ceo-jensen-huang-and-global-technology-leaders-to-showcase-age-of-ai-at-gtc-2026
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-ceo-jensen-huang-to-host-ai-pioneers-yoshua-bengio-geoffrey-hinton-and-yann-lecun-and-others-at-gtc21
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-gtc-2022-to-feature-keynote-from-ceo-jensen-huang-new-products-900+-sessions-from-industry-and-ai-leaders
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-gtc-2023-to-feature-latest-advances-in-ai-computing-systems-generative-ai-industrial-metaverse-robotics-keynote-by-jensen-huang-talks-by-openai-deepmind-founders
- nvidianews.nvidia.com/online-press-kit/gtc-2026-news
- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nvidia.gtcapp
- facebook.com/NVIDIAGTC
- instagram.com/nvidia
- linkedin.com/company/nvidia
- nvidia.com/en-us/on-demand/session/gtc26-ex82248
- nvidia.com/en-us/startups/venture-capital
- nvidia.com/gtc
- nvidia.com/gtc/bring-your-team
- nvidia.com/gtc/conference-schedule
- nvidia.com/gtc/events
- nvidia.com/gtc/exhibitors
- nvidia.com/gtc/exhibits
- nvidia.com/gtc/exhibits
- nvidia.com/gtc/faq
- nvidia.com/gtc/keynote
- nvidia.com/gtc/pricing
- nvidia.com/gtc/speakers
- nvidia.com/gtc/startups
- nvidia.com/gtc/student-experience
- nvidia.com/gtc/travel-and-venue
- youtube.com/watch?v=DiGB5uAYKAg
- x.com/NVIDIAGTC
NVIDIA GTC: frequently asked
When is NVIDIA GTC 2027?
NVIDIA GTC 2027 runs Mar 15–18, 2027 at San Jose McEnery Convention Center and venues throughout San Jose, San Jose, according to the organiser's published dates.
How much does NVIDIA GTC cost?
Published ticket prices run $0–$2,525 (2026 published offerings: free virtual/student experiences at the low end and the regular four-day Conference pass at the high end). The four-day Conference pass was $2,172 early bird and $2,525 regular (2026). GTC 2027 ticket prices had not been published as of 2026-10-07.. Startups: NVIDIA Inception is the startup programme, not a GTC ticket. Apply online with company and product details; NVIDIA reviews the application. Inception has no application fee, deadline, or cohort (2026 programme description). GTC admission must be registered for separately. (Free Inception membership (2026 programme description); it does not include GTC admission.).
How do startups get into NVIDIA GTC?
NVIDIA Inception is the startup programme, not a GTC ticket. Apply online with company and product details; NVIDIA reviews the application. Inception has no application fee, deadline, or cohort (2026 programme description). GTC admission must be registered for separately. Eligibility as published: Published Inception criteria (2026): the company must employ at least one developer, maintain a working website, be officially incorporated, and be less than 10 years old. Any funding stage may apply; revenue is not required. Published exclusions include consulting and outsourced-development firms, cryptocurrency-associated companies, cloud service providers, resellers and distributors, and public companies.
What is Startup and VC Pitches, presented by NVIDIA Inception (2026); not published as a judged competition.?
NVIDIA GTC's pitch competition. Prize as published: No prize published by NVIDIA for the GTC 2026 Inception pitch sessions; no 2027 prize published.. Eligibility: The official GTC session pages say Inception startups and VC firms pitch to a live audience, but do not state eligibility criteria or an application process for the pitch sessions.
How big is NVIDIA GTC?
More than 30,000 attendees expected (2026; NVIDIA pre-event estimate; final attendance not stated). attendees, 55+ NVIDIA Inception startups showcased in the pavilion (2026); NVIDIA's pre-event announcement said more than 240 Inception startups would showcase technologies (2026). startups, from Over 190 countries expected (2026; NVIDIA pre-event announcement; final tally not stated). countries, per the organiser.