CDO Exchange 2026

In every industry, data leaders are facing the same hard truths: governance slows more than it steers, AI overpromises and culture lags behind ambition. With shrinking margins and rising scrutiny, the real challenge isn’t technology - it’s friction. As the role of the Chief Data Officer shifts from custodian to commercial driver, that friction gets more complex, and no one solves it alone. Enter the CDO Exchange. An invite-only gathering of senior data, analytics, and AI leaders from across the UK for two days of closed-door, honest, peer benchmarking. From government and retail to finance, media, energy, and digital disruptors, this is where cross-industry collaboration becomes a catalyst for real, replicable, and scalable change. No buzzwords, no filler panels. Just candid insight into what’s working (and what isn’t), curated 1-to-1 meetings with partners who can help, and an agenda built around embedding governance into delivery, readying culture for production AI, commercialising data safely, and proving impact in a thin-margin market. Because in 2026, CDOs don’t need more hype. They need clarity, credibility, and a community that helps them move faster where it matters most. That’s what the CDO Exchange 2026 delivers.