When it comes to procuretech conferences, they don’t come much bigger than DPW Amsterdam.
Its founding story is well told – founder Matthias Gutzmann left his job in New York City, moved back into his parents house and invested his entire life savings to launch DPW.
The rest is history but it is safe to say the risk paid off.
Under his stewardship, the event has grown exponentially since its 2019 launch – last year welcoming over 1,700 people from 65 different countries.
In fact, DPW has grown so popular that the much-loved Beurs van Berlage space is no longer big enough. 2026 marks the first year that DPW takes over the RAI Amsterdam which is the largest convention and exhibition centre in the Netherlands at over 112,000 square meters of event space. Not bad for seven years and a global pandemic in between.
Going hand-in-hand with this physical upgrade is a major redesign of DPW Amsterdam 2026, shaped around the theme: Recode. The event is being reimagined from the ground-up, which is coming at a crucial time for procurement professionals. Access to information is no longer the issue for them – it’s about defining what actually matters to their individual businesses. That’s the new focus, and it’s keeping DPW on the front lines of our industry.
Gutzmann said: “AI has changed the conversation. There’s no shortage of technology, information or ideas. The challenge is making the right decisions quickly and turning them into progress.”
In a world with so much noise, yet so little action, surrounding AI, DPW is asking a more fundamental question: how should procurement work in an AI-powered world?
This year’s theme builds on DPW’s New York City event in June, which focused on redesigning how procurement and supply chain really work amidst an explosion of AI tools. DPW aims to showcase that although AI is everywhere, real progress isn’t yet where it needs to be. The next 10 years should be shaped by how work is structured, decisions are made and by how humans and machines can collaborate to get the job done.
DPW Amsterdam 2026 takes place over two days on September 30th and October 1st and is anticipated to host over 100 speakers. One of the biggest appeals of DPW is the high calibre of speakers it attracts. The likes of Tiger Tyagarajan, Former President and CEO of Genpact, Alison Jones, CPO Direct Materials at Philips and Hervé Le Faou, Chief Procurement Officer at The Heineken Company, to name but a few, will all take to the stage.
DPW matters to so many people in procurement. And it is easy to see why.
Speaking earlier this year after confirming the conference theme, Gutzmann commented: “Since I founded DPW in 2019, AI has moved from hype to everyday reality. At the same time, I’ve seen a lot of activity and chatter about AI, but very little progress. As the enablers of digital transformation in procurement and supply chain, it’s part of our mission to help you close this gap.
“We’ve added tools. Lots of them. Yet progress feels limited. What if the real challenge isn’t technology, but how procurement and supply chain are designed? How is work structured? How are decisions made? And where do humans and machines each add the most value?
“In 2026, we’ll be exploring – and answering – these questions together at DPW. I’m super excited to announce our theme for the year – RECODE.”
And, as always, CPOstrategy will be there to follow the action.
CPOstrategy has attended DPW Amsterdam for the past five years and watched it grow from strength to strength. For the last two conferences, we have produced a Takeover Edition of the magazine featuring dozens of video interviews with leaders at the event to uncover the latest in procurement transformation, offering readers unfiltered insights and strategies about how to navigate this ever-changing function.
We will capture the voices, themes and conversations dominating the agenda while bringing together the views of DPW leadership, speakers, sponsors, attendees and the procuretech ecosystem.
And this year it will be bigger than ever.
Those looking to experience the redesigned DPW Amsterdam in person can register for tickets for 30th September-1st October at RAI Amsterdam.
As the excitement builds ahead of this year’s conference, be sure to check out our previous Takeover Editions of CPOstrategy for 2024 and 2025.
But if you can’t attend this year’s DPW Amsterdam, CPOstrategy’s got you covered. Follow us on LinkedIn and keep it locked to our website so you don’t miss out on the action.