GBTA Convention 2026 Unites the Global Business Travel Industry to Connect, Learn, Innovate and Shape the Sector’s Future

GBTA Convention 2026 concluded yesterday after welcoming more than 5,500 attendees from 47 countries for the industry’s largest annual gathering and a week of discussions focused on the future of business travel. Held August 3-5 at McCormick Place, the event convened business travel buyers, suppliers, innovators, policymakers, volunteer leaders and partners to connect, learn and help shape the future of the global business travel industry.

This year’s Convention brought together almost 1,200 buyers from 681 companies representing more than $46 billion USD in self-reported annual travel spend. The event also featured nearly 400 exhibitors and over 1,300 first-time attendees, reflecting the continued strength, resilience and evolution of the global business travel community. The Convention also delivered an estimated $18.5 million in economic impact to the local Chicago area.

“GBTA Convention continues to be where the global business travel industry comes together to understand what’s changing, build meaningful connections and shape what’s next,” said Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA. “This year’s gathering reinforced the essential role business travel plays in driving economic growth and cooperation around the world, while helping organizations and professionals adapt, innovate and lead through change.”

Throughout the three-day event, attendees explored the trends, technologies and workforce dynamics reshaping business travel, while sharing practical strategies for managing programs in an increasingly complex global environment. Centered on the themes of Our Selves, Our Organizations and Our World, GBTA Convention 2026 reflected the association’s commitment to strengthening the industry through community, learning, advocacy, innovation, sustainability and professional development.

Education, Insights and Professional Development

GBTA Convention 2026 featured almost 90 education sessions across 17 tracks and more than 250 peer-reviewed speakers and presenters, offering practical insights and best practices for business travel professionals across every segment of the industry.

Programming highlighted GBTA’s expanding learning pathways and professional development resources, including Advanced Principles of Business Travel Management, Strategic Meetings Management, Sustainable Travel Management and Supplier Essentials. GBTA also showcased its new on-demand GBTA Learning and Community+ digital platforms, both designed to help business travel professionals access education, resources and peer connection throughout the year.

Main Stage Programming Explored Industry Outlook, Leadership and Impact

Main Stage sessions featured GBTA CEO Suzanne Neufang and GBTA Board President Rosemary Maloney, along with keynote speakers and industry leaders including Frances Frei, Anne Morriss, Chef José Andrés, Jia Jiang and executives from across the travel ecosystem.

Together, these sessions explored leadership, resilience, innovation, business transformation and social impact, while examining how organizations can navigate change, strengthen travel programs, better understand traveler needs and demonstrate the enduring value of in-person connections.

Newly Released GBTA Business Travel Index Points to Continued Growth and Evolving Market Dynamics

During Convention, GBTA unveiled the 2026 GBTA Business Travel Index, made possible by Visa. The 18th edition of the report forecasts global business travel spending to reach a record $1.71 trillion USD in 2026, with the number of business trips worldwide expected to surpass 1.84 billion.

While underlying demand remains resilient, the forecast reflects a more complex operating environment shaped by geopolitical uncertainty, energy-related cost pressures and a moderating global economic outlook.

The Executive Summary for the 2026 GBTA BTI is available for to download through GBTA Research. GBTA members can access the full BTI report through Community+ member platform.

VentureConnect Fosters Industry Innovation

Innovation was a major focus throughout Convention 2026, including the return of GBTA VentureConnect for its second annual Convention program. The invitation-only initiative connects high-potential travel technology startups with investors, business travel buyers and industry experts.

This year, investor and industry panelists selected three finalists, with Convention attendees voting live on Main Stage to determine the winning startups. Taking first place and an award of $5,000 was Nowadays presented by co-founder, Anna Sun.

GBTA Foundation Highlights People, Planet and Purpose

The inaugural GBTA Foundation Gala, held on the eve of Convention at Chicago’s Field Museum, celebrated the Foundation’s People & Planet programs and honored leaders and organizations driving meaningful change across the business travel sector.

The Gala brought together more than 250 industry leaders and guests and recognized recipients of the GBTA Foundation Impact Awards, including honorees across the Catalyst, Innovator, Changemaker and Partner for Progress categories, as well as the Luminary Award for Industry Impact.

Through the generosity of attendees and contributions from GBTA, the event raised $83,250 to support the NextGen Program and Fund, a key GBTA Foundation Initiative which provides career entry scholarships for students. 

Advocacy, Volunteers and Industry Recognition

GBTA Convention 2026 underscored GBTA’s role in representing the collective voice of the global business travel industry. Over the past year, 150 GBTA members held 200 meetings with government policymakers across the U.S., Europe and the UK, advancing priorities tied to aviation, mobility, border crossings and sustainability.

GBTA also recognized the volunteer leaders who help power the association’s global community, including those serving across 45 volunteer boards, committees and councils.

Honorees included:

• Committee of the Year: GBTA Risk Committee
• Direct Member of the Year: Roman Neumeister, Travel Officer, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
• Allied Member of the Year: Mary Ellen Hess, Executive Vice President of Business Development for North America, Corporate Travel Management Group
• President’s Award: GBTA Hotel RFP Standards Taskforce

A Robust Attendee Experience

GBTA Convention 2026 offered a wide range of opportunities for attendees to engage across learning, networking, business development and community-building. Highlights included buyer Braindates, a dedicated forum for travel managers and procurement professionals to engage in peer-to-peer discussions; a 5K Run/Walk that raised funds to support the GBTA Foundation’s NextGen scholarship fund; Media Day, where 17 companies shared their breaking news, announcements and innovations; and The Studio@GBTA, a reimagined experience that brought together almost 60 industry leaders to discuss the latest trends, challenges and opportunities within the business travel space.

Looking Ahead

GBTA will continue convening the global business travel community through upcoming regional conferences, including LATAM in Mexico City in October; Europe with VDR and ABTA in Vienna in November; Canada in Toronto in April 2027; and APAC in Singapore with WERC in June 2027.

Looking ahead, GBTA will continue connecting business travel professionals through a robust calendar of regional events around the world, while preparing for GBTA Convention 2027 in San Diego, August 2-4, and GBTA Convention 2028, July 25-27, in Philadelphia.

To view photo highlights from GBTA Convention 2026, visit GBTA’s Flickr page. The Studio@GBTA interviews and additional video content will be available on GBTA’s YouTube channel in the coming days.