Fortune will host the Fortune 500 Innovation Forum in Detroit from Nov. 16–17, 2026 at The Department at Hudson’s in the central business district.
The Forum will bring together leaders from business and the public sector to explore new paths to prosperity during the AI transformation and other issues pivotal in America and the world.
Held under the content theme, “America Leads,” the Forum will serve as the capstone event of Fortune’s year-long editorial initiative — an exploration of the companies, leaders, and ideas shaping the next era of business.
Marking the city’s entrepreneurial spirit and energy, Fortune will convene CEOs and other leaders at Fortune 500 companies, with a special focus on the more than 200 companies that have been active for a century or more, alongside startup founders, investors, policymakers, and nonprofit and cultural leaders.
Mainstage sessions, peer-to-peer roundtables, and activities will be framed around four key business levers — talent, operations, customers, and community. Fortune editors and participants will discuss and debate how the public and private sectors can work more closely together to drive growth across the American economy through job creation, infrastructure development, education, and more.
In the months leading up to the 2026 Fortune 500 Innovation Forum, Fortune — under the banner of 250 Years of American Innovation — will showcase stories of business pioneers and industry titans, landmark moments of innovation as well as failure and rebirth, and key trends and figures that have shaped America’s role in global commerce.
On June 3, Fortune will publish its Fortune 500™ ranking for 2026, the 72nd year of the iconic annual list of the largest corporations in the United States.
“The trajectory of U.S. business over 250 years is a testament to American dynamism and the nation’s capacity for innovation,” says Alyson Shontell, editor-in-chief and chief content officer at Fortune.
“Throughout the year and in Detroit, Fortune will help tell the remarkable story of business and point to the dynamic future for its leading companies and visionary leaders, and in particular define the challenges and opportunities represented by the historic AI transformation.”
Institutional Partners for the Forum include the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business organization representing businesses of every size and sector, and a leading advocate for American free enterprise.
“Fueled by the innovative spirit inherent in our free enterprise system, American businesses have served people, solved problems, and strengthened society for 250 years,” says Suzanne P. Clark, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We look forward to partnering with Fortune in Detroit — a city that has continually reinvented American innovation — to chart the path forward at such a critical and transformational period in our history.”
Impact Partners for the Forum include Points of Light, the nonpartisan nonprofit that is the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service.
Confirmed sponsors of the 2026 Fortune 500 Innovation Forum include Indeed and Salesforce. Additional sponsors and programming updates will be announced in the coming months.
For more information, including the full agenda and speakers list, visit here.
