Formnext 2026: What to Expect

The countdown to Formnext 2026 is officially underway. On June 9, the event’s vice presidents, Sascha F. Wenzler and Christoph Stüker, gathered in Paris to present the upcoming edition, which will take place in Frankfurt from November 17 to 20. 3Dnatives was there to bring you all the latest details.

Formnext turns eleven in 2026, and the press conference offered an opportunity to take stock of where the industry stands. The vice presidents opened with a clear diagnosis: the post-COVID world has changed the way we manufacture, and additive manufacturing has reached more users, which in turn has unlocked new applications. The conversation has shifted away from whether the technology works and toward how to consolidate and scale it. In that journey, automation is one of the top priorities. Artificial intelligence is also emerging as a topic, though the vice presidents were clear on one point: as long as processes remain unautomated, AI has little room to contribute.

According to the organizers, the global landscape is fragmented and increasingly shaped by strategic decisions. “We have a very dynamic, export-oriented Chinese market. The biggest AM market is still the US, now concentrating almost everything on defense. And then you have Europe, also looking to find its way toward more stable and reliable supply chains, and a more self-sufficient approach to its challenges. There is also a push to cooperate and create a European path in industrial manufacturing, driven by defense, but also by the energy sector and aerospace, which are strong forces this year, especially in Germany,” said Sascha Wenzler.