The Event

GITEX Europe 2026Berlin · 30 Jun - 1 Jul 2026

GITEX Europe 2026, staged as GITEX AI Europe 2026, brought AI, cybersecurity, quantum computing, and digital infrastructure exhibitors and startups to Messe Berlin over a shortened two-day, three-hall run. This was the second and final Berlin edition: organizers have confirmed the show will not return to the city after a decline in attendance against original targets and a city partnership that did not materialize.

For a US or UK ecommerce brand planning EU entry, this was a broad enterprise technology expo rather than an ecommerce-specific event, and that breadth is exactly the value. It is worth reading for the wider EU digital-infrastructure and policy signal, the kind of context that helps a growing business understand the fuller scale of what operating across Europe eventually involves.

View event site → What this means for EU expansion

The Room

Who was in the room atGITEX Europe 2026

The floor skewed toward enterprise technology buyers, AI and cybersecurity vendors, and early-stage tech founders chasing venture capital, spread across the show's AI Everything, North Star, GISEC, and Quantum Expo sub-events. It was a technology-industry crowd first, with limited representation from consumer brands or retail operators.

AI and infrastructure vendorsCybersecurity buyersStartup founders and VCs

For a growing brand seeking the next step up, was GITEX Europe 2026 a good fit?

Yes, as a wider-lens read on the EU digital landscape. This was a broad enterprise AI, cybersecurity, and deep-tech expo, and that scale of coverage, spanning AI Everything, North Star, GISEC, and the Quantum Expo, gives a useful sense of the digital infrastructure and policy environment any brand eventually operates within once it is doing business across Europe. A brand ready to prioritize a single events budget line will still get more direct value from a marketplace or ecommerce-focused show, but the wider context here is worth having.

AI and infrastructure vendors

Companies selling compute, AI tooling, and infrastructure services to enterprise buyers across Europe.

Cybersecurity buyers

Security teams and procurement leads evaluating vendors through the GISEC Europe track.

Programme

What GITEX Europe 2026 told us

Five stage tracks and four co-located sub-events framed the two-day program, with the throughline being Europe's push to build out AI and secure digital infrastructure at scale.

The AI infrastructure build-out dominated the floor

The Compute & AI Stack track and the AI Everything Europe/Germany sub-event anchored the program, with vendors and enterprise buyers focused on the hardware, cloud, and tooling layers needed to run AI at scale in Europe. This was a supplier-to-enterprise conversation, not a brand-facing one.

Cybersecurity and critical infrastructure carried real weight

GISEC Europe and the Secure Infra & Cyber Power track brought a dedicated cybersecurity audience, reflecting how central digital infrastructure security has become to EU policy conversations, particularly around supply chain and critical infrastructure resilience.

Startup and capital tracks stayed niche but active

GITEX North Star Europe and the Capital & Scale-up Engine track kept a startup and venture capital audience engaged, though this remained a small slice of a much larger enterprise-focused event.

Policy featured, but from a tech-regulation angle

The Policy to Production track addressed how AI and digital infrastructure rules are shaping deployment across Europe, useful context for anyone tracking EU digital policy generally, but not framed around product compliance or consumer goods regulation.

Live Intelligence

What's being said about GITEX Europe 2026

The most notable story coming out of this edition was not a session or an exhibitor, it was the event's own future: Berlin's exit and the reported move east.

Berlin confirms this was the final edition

BERLINER ZEITUNG · JUL 2026

A Berlin city spokesperson confirmed the show will not return, citing attendance that fell short of original targets across both Berlin editions. A planned joint venture between the city and organizer Kaoun International did not come about, removing the local backing the event needed to continue.

The show scaled down before it scaled out

EVENT FOOTPRINT COMPARISON · 2025 VS 2026

The 2026 edition ran two days across three halls, down from three days and six halls in the 2025 debut, and organizers did not release final attendance or exhibitor figures. A shrinking footprint ahead of a confirmed exit reads as a clear wind-down pattern, not a one-off scheduling change.

Kaoun International is reportedly redirecting to Belgrade and possibly Rome

INDUSTRY PRESS REPORTS · 2026

Reports point to a new GITEX AI Serbia edition launching in Belgrade around May 2027, timed to EXPO 2027 Belgrade, with a possible Rome addition mentioned in a single press report. Neither date is confirmed on an official GITEX channel yet, so this should be treated as directional, not booked.

Organizer structure shifted mid-cycle

ORGANIZER STRUCTURE · 2026

Earlier in 2026, Dubai World Trade Centre folded its trade fair operations into a new joint venture called inD with UK organizer Informa, which then ran the 2026 Berlin edition. That kind of organizer-level restructuring alongside a city exit and a market relocation suggests a broader repositioning of the GITEX AI brand across Europe, not just a Berlin-specific decision.

Expandly perspective

A tech expo's exit is a reminder to plan for the market, not the venue

GITEX Europe's Berlin run ending after two editions is a useful lesson that has nothing to do with AI or cybersecurity. Even a well-funded, globally branded event can misjudge a city, a timeline, or a local partnership, and pull out. Brands building an EU go-to-market plan around a single event, city, or partner carry the same risk. The market fundamentals matter more than any one show's calendar.

Event footprints can shrink fast: three days and six halls in 2025 became two days and three halls in 2026, before the exit was confirmed.
A single missing local partnership was enough to end a two-year run in one of Europe's largest exhibition cities.
Where an event relocates next (Belgrade, possibly Rome) is not yet fixed even for organizers with global reach and backing.
None of this changes the underlying EU compliance, tax, and fulfillment requirements a brand faces when entering the market, event calendar aside.

Expandly's approach does not depend on any single event, city, or vendor relationship. The Global Expansion Pathway (GEP™) is built to work the same way whether a brand's next EU market is Germany, France, or anywhere else on the roadmap.

Two editions, then done

GITEX Europe ran in Berlin for two years before organizers confirmed the city exit, following attendance below target and a local partnership that fell through.

2 Berlin editions before discontinuation

Footprint shrank before the exit

The 2026 edition contracted to three halls and two days, down from six halls and three days in 2025, with final 2026 attendance figures not disclosed.

3 halls down from 6 halls in 2025

One partner, not a stack of vendors

EU entry usually means stitching together a VAT agent, a 3PL, a compliance advisor, and a marketplace consultant. Expandly runs all of it as one operation, using the Global Expansion Pathway (GEP™), so the coordination burden never lands on your team.

GEP™ one method, compliance to fulfillment

Good to Know

Questions about GITEX Europe 2026

What did GITEX Europe 2026 in Berlin actually cover?

GITEX Europe 2026, branded GITEX AI Europe 2026, ran 30 June to 1 July at Messe Berlin, built around AI, cybersecurity, quantum computing, and digital infrastructure. It brought together several co-located sub-events, including AI Everything Europe/Germany, GITEX North Star Europe for startups and venture capital, GISEC Europe for cybersecurity, and the GITEX Quantum Expo. The 2026 edition ran a shortened two-day format across three halls, down from three days and six halls in the 2025 debut, and organizers did not disclose final visitor or exhibitor numbers publicly.

Why is the Berlin run of GITEX Europe ending, and where is it going next?

This was the final Berlin edition. Per Berliner Zeitung, citing a Berlin city spokesperson, attendance fell below targets and a planned joint venture between the city and organizer Kaoun International did not come about. For 2027, Kaoun International, now operating its European trade fairs through a joint venture called inD with UK organizer Informa, is reportedly redirecting its European GITEX AI events to Belgrade, Serbia, with a possible addition in Rome, Italy. A Belgrade edition is reportedly planned for May 2027 tied to EXPO 2027 Belgrade, but exact dates are not yet confirmed on an official GITEX site, and the Rome mention has only one press reference with no further confirmation.

Is GITEX Europe relevant to a US or UK ecommerce brand expanding into the EU?

At the margins, yes. GITEX Europe is a broad enterprise AI, cybersecurity, and deep-tech expo aimed at technology vendors, investors, and infrastructure buyers, not ecommerce brands or marketplace sellers. There is little on the agenda that speaks directly to product compliance, marketplace listings, or EU fulfillment. Its relevance is as a broader signal of where EU digital policy and infrastructure are heading.

What do I need to sell electronics in the EU?

Electronics carry the most layered rules: CE marking, restrictions on hazardous substances, WEEE registration for electrical waste, battery rules where relevant, and radio equipment rules for anything wireless. Each is separate from general compliance and from VAT (value-added tax). Electronics brands should map the full applicable set before launch, as gaps cause marketplace removal.

How big is the ecommerce opportunity in Europe for US brands?

Europe is one of the world's largest ecommerce regions, and many categories are less saturated than the US with lower advertising costs. Growth rates, dominant channels, and shopper habits vary widely by country, so market data should be read per market rather than treating Europe as one block. The opportunity is real but market-specific.

Is it better to use one expansion partner or assemble providers separately?

Assembling a VAT agent, a logistics provider, a compliance advisor, and a marketplace consultant separately creates coordination cost and gaps between them. A single expansion partner runs it as one operation, which is faster to launch and easier to manage. Expandly works this way, using the Global Expansion Pathway (GEP™) as the method.

Make Your Move

Watching Europe's tech scene shift from the sidelines?

GITEX Europe's exit from Berlin is a reminder that events come and go, but the underlying opportunity in the EU market does not. If EU expansion is already on your roadmap, the question is how to structure entry so it does not depend on any one event, city, or vendor relationship.

Expandly runs EU entry as one coordinated operation, using the Global Expansion Pathway (GEP™) to cover tax and compliance, product listings, marketplace integration, and fulfillment through our Netherlands warehouse, all under one roof. If you are weighing where and when to launch in the EU, let's talk through what a structured entry looks like for your brand.