Davos 2026: A Guide to the Events Beyond the Official Programme
January 19-23, 2026 | Davos-Klosters, Switzerland
Every January, the World Economic Forum draws roughly 3,000 delegates to the Swiss Alps for what has become the world's most influential gathering of political, business, and civil society leaders. But for those who have attended before, there is a well-known truth: the official programme is only part of the story.
The most consequential conversations often happen in parallel. In hotel suites at the Belvedere. Over fondue at the Schatzalp. In the lounges and private dining rooms that line the Promenade throughout the week.
This is the frynge Davos, and understanding how to navigate it can be the difference between observing the forum and actually participating in it.
The Parallel Universe of Davos Week
The official theme for Davos 2026, "A Spirit of Dialogue," speaks to the forum's aspiration to foster collaboration across sectors and geographies. Yet much of that dialogue takes place outside the Congress Centre. It happens at curated dinners, invitation-only breakfasts, and thematic lounges where leaders gather in smaller, more focused settings.
This year's fringe ecosystem has grown significantly. We have tracked over 370 side events happening across the small alpine town, from intimate roundtables at the AI House on Promenade 67 to the legendary Swedish Lunch at the Schatzalp, where global leaders gather for what has become one of the most coveted invitations of the week.
Where to Be (If You Can Get In)
The Tech & Innovation Circuit
AI House Davos has established itself as the intellectual heart of AI conversations outside the official programme. Spread across three floors, it hosts everything from fireside chats with leading researchers to closed-door roundtables on governance frameworks. What sets it apart is a public lounge that signals their commitment to democratising the conversation, while keeping the highest-value connections reserved for vetted attendees.
Web3 Hub Davos returns for its fourth year, bringing blockchain, digital assets, and decentralised finance into sharp focus. Sessions run January 19-22 at Oberstrasse 33, featuring everyone from Swiss institutional investors to global crypto pioneers. The programming around digital asset regulation and institutional adoption reflects how far the space has matured since the speculative mania of previous cycles.
Davos Innovation Week at the Mountain Plaza Hotel offers a frontier-tech track that moves beyond buzzwords. Their "Ask the Investors" session, where VCs reveal what they are actually funding in 2026, might be the most practically valuable hour you could spend.
The Power Dining Scene
100 Women @ Davos, founded by Dr. Anino Emuwa, is a global community of impact-driven women CEOs, founders, and change makers originally launched in Davos in January 2019. Dr. Emuwa, Managing Director of Avandis Consulting and a former Citibank corporate banker, created the community to support UN Sustainable Development Goal 5: ensuring women's full and effective participation in leadership at the global level. Throughout the week, their programming brings together trailblazing women leaders for curated conversations, roundtables, and networking events. For women executives navigating Davos, this community offers both substance and meaningful connections with peers who are shaping industries worldwide.
Global Conversations has quietly become the connective tissue of fringe Davos. Their tiered wristband system grants access to an ecosystem of curated events, including executive lounges, private breakfasts, themed dinners, and the Avicii Tribute Concert at the Belvedere. Black Tier guests join ultra-private dinners with just 8-16 participants. These are not simply networking events. They are dealmaking environments where outcomes are expected.
Finnish Flow hosts its flagship invitation-only event on Tuesday, January 20th at the Schatzalp, one of the most sought-after gatherings of the week, with over 2,000 leaders applying for access in 2025. The evening continues with "Future of Hollywood," a closed-door gathering for family offices and institutional investors shaping entertainment's next era.
The Swedish Lunch needs no introduction. Hosted at the Schatzalp on January 21st, it's evolved from a casual gathering into a curated collision of tech founders, policymakers, and global executives. If you're not there, you're not in the conversation.
The Official-Adjacent
The House of Switzerland offers three days of programming from January 20-22, backed by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. Sessions range from cybersecurity policy to AI governance, culminating in discussions around Switzerland's first large language model, Apertus. For those seeking substantive policy conversations without the WEF badge requirements, this is an excellent option.
KPMG's programme features invite-only breakfasts on sustainability coalitions and panels on AI-driven value creation, representing how major consulting firms have built their own parallel tracks alongside the official agenda.
Hub Culture's Davos Leadership Campus anchors at Chalet Pavilion on Promenade 107, offering partners like Gates Ventures, Mastercard, and Gallup dedicated space for meetings and content creation throughout the week.
The Access Intelligence Play
One of the most common missteps for first-time Davos attendees is over-indexing on the official programme. Chasing panels. Waiting in lines for sessions that are already at capacity.
Experienced attendees approach it differently. They map the ecosystem weeks in advance. They recognise that Brand Finance's breakfast on January 20th, discussing AI and brand trust, may offer more actionable intelligence than a main-stage panel. They understand that a conversation over coffee at the Flower Shop Lounge might lead to their next board seat or funding round.
This is access intelligence: knowing not just where to be, but understanding the architecture of influence that makes Davos work.
The Real Agenda
The WEF's Global Risks Report, released just yesterday, placed geoeconomic confrontation as the top threat for 2026. This is a stark acknowledgment that the tariff wars and trade disruptions reshaping global commerce are not temporary turbulence. They are structural.
Behind closed doors, expect conversations to centre on navigating the new trade reality, AI governance frameworks that actually work, climate finance mechanisms that scale, and the quiet restructuring of global supply chains away from concentration risk.
The companies and investors who will emerge stronger from this period aren't waiting for consensus. They're building relationships with the people who will shape the rules.
Getting There
Davos-Klosters sits in the Swiss Alps, accessible by train from Zürich (about 2.5 hours) or by car. Accommodation is notoriously scarce; most serious attendees book a year in advance. Several fringe event organisers now offer accommodation coordination, recognising that solving the logistics is part of the value proposition.
The weather will be cold. The days will be long. The conversations will be worth it.
The Bottom Line
The World Economic Forum matters because it concentrates decision-makers in one small town for one week each year. But the official programme is just the visible layer.
Underneath, a parallel ecosystem of dinners, lounges, breakfasts, and back-channel conversations determines who shapes the year's deals, policies, and partnerships. Understanding this ecosystem, and having the access to participate, is what separates observers from participants.
That is the frynge advantage. And it is why we do what we do.