Our member-exclusive annual conference convenes the nation’s leading experts across industry, government, and academia to strengthen US manufacturing. Learn how our event connects you to collaborators you’d otherwise miss in the marketplace.
On Nov. 17, 18, and 19, robotics, AI, manufacturing, and workforce experts will descend on Pittsburgh for the ARM Institute’s 10th Annual Member Meeting. Just as Pittsburgh’s bridges connect different neighborhoods across the city, the ARM Institute bridges the gaps between industries, organization types, and individuals to build a cohesive national strategy for US manufacturing. For ten years, this event has been building roadmaps, demystifying innovations into practical applications, creating connections, and helping organizations identify new opportunities to enhance their competitiveness and contribute to a stronger US manufacturing ecosystem.
In this blog, learn more about the networking activities you can expect during our 10th Annual Member Meeting. Be sure to secure your spot at our annual event by Oct. 31 before prices increase. Email us at [email protected] for assistance registering.
Our event is open only to ARM Members. Not a member? Explore how to join our consortium here to gain access to our Member Meeting and other member benefits, including access to project funding.
Evening Networking Receptions
Our event features two cornerstone evening networking receptions.
Our opening night networking reception on November 17 will take place in the Member Showcase Hall where ARM Members will display their technology innovations in a robust exhibit hall environment. Preceded by a champagne toast to celebrate the event’s 10th anniversary, this Networking Reception will feature a roaming dinner reception, drinks, and gamified networking to encourage ARM Members to explore the demonstrations taking place in the Member Showcase Hall.
Our second night will feature our 2026 Hall of Fame & ARM Champions Dinner – sponsored by ARM Member Yaskawa. The evening will begin with appetizers and drinks served in the Member Showcase Hall before our attendees gather for a seated dinner where we will announce our 2026 class of ARM Champions and our first-ever Hall of Fame inductee. The ARM Champions Awards recognize ARM Members who have gone above and beyond the call of membership to further the ARM Institute’s mission while our NEW Hall of Fame Award will recognize one Champion each year who has shown exemplary dedication to US manufacturing. We’ll cap off the night with post-dinner networking and roaming dessert displays in the Member Showcase Hall.
Member Showcase Hall
The Member Showcase Hall is a hub for networking and demonstrations! Overlooking Pittsburgh’s Point State Park in Downtown, this zone is constantly buzzing with activities, conversations, and interactive displays.
The ARM Institute’s 10th Anniversary Showcase Hall connects you to technology providers, education and training providers, and other organizations. Gamified activities encourage attendees to visit each table while each of our meals is served in the Member Showcase Hall to provide ample time for connections. Coffee breaks are served just outside of the Showcase Hall, enabling attendees to duck in during breaks to catch up on demonstrations they may have missed.
We have a limited number of remaining open tables in the Member Showcase Hall! Contact us at [email protected] to learn more and secure yours.
New for 2026: Curated Networking Tables & Project Team Building
The best networking conversations occur when those with different perspectives are encouraged to connect and work towards a common goal.
In response to feedback from ARM Members, the third day of our event (Nov. 18) will offer a new format for curated networking. ARM Members will be assigned to tables where we’ll convene groups of Members who may otherwise not meet. These tables will offer a custom mix of ARM Members who have diversified focus areas, represent different organization types, have differing lengths of membership, and represent organizations at different membership levels.
ARM Members will find their assigned table, have 15 minutes to explore a guided discussion, move to a different table assignment, and have 15 minutes for another guided discussion with a different group of ARM Members.
Through this activity, you’ll meet representatives from across our 500+ member organizations who you may not have had an opportunity to meet. As our consortium continues to grow, these opportunities for connection will offer important ways for you to better engage with your ARM Institute network of collaborators. By ensuring a mix of member level types, you’ll have the opportunity to meet organizations who are able to prime responses to our Project Calls, enabling more efficient project team building.
Be sure to remain at our event through our third day to take advantage of this new, curated activity!
Interactive Activities
Back by popular demand, our concurrent Technology Track and Education/Workforce Development Track taking place on the afternoons of Nov. 17 and Nov. 18 will feature interactive activities to facilitate connections and drive forward a cohesive national strategy in our dual-focus areas. These hands-on sessions encourage networking around key objectives that help our Members get more involved in our membership, craft stronger project proposals, and more. Learn what you can expect during this year’s interactive activities below:
Our Technology Track will feature the following interactive activities:
- Nov. 17 Interactive Activity: From ARM Institute Project to Factory Floor Deployment: Led by Cara Cranston (ARM Institute Senior Director of Technology Programs) this session will feature rapid, fireside chats with ARM Members who have successfully transitioned their ARM Institute project from funded program to industry impact. We’ll explore the different types of technology transition, best practices for success, and more before opening the session up to a hands-on activity at our attendee tables. This session will help you understand how to get more involved in ARM Institute project funding opportunities and create impactful technology transition plans.
- Nov. 18 Interactive Activity: The Art of Tech Storytelling: Communicating Need, Risk, and Value: Led by Misty Dawson (ARM Institute Chief Technology Officer), Harry Pierson (Government Chief Technology Advisor for the ARM Institute), and Phil Freeman (ARM Member representing Boeing), this session will help you build competitive technology project proposals that speak to a variety of audiences – from internal stakeholders at your organization and funders to government experts and end users. You’ll walk away with a better understanding about what sells and what gets funded when it comes to building technology innovations.
Our Education / Workforce Development Track will feature the following interactive activities:
- Nov. 17 Interactive Activity: Defining Value, Outcomes, Outputs for Competitive Education/Workforce Grant Proposals: In this session, after hearing about funding trends as they relate to education and workforce development initiatives, attendees will get hands-on in understanding how to write grant proposals that get funded. You’ll work in tables to define ideas, value, outcomes, outputs, and more to write stronger education/workforce grant proposals.
- Nov. 18 Interactive Activity: Immersive Learning Experiences: How do you combat outdated perceptions about the manufacturing industry? How do you engage the next generation of builders and makers? How do you make learning both meaningful and highly interactive? This session will feature hands-on activities explore immersive learning experiences for manufacturing careers that address these questions.
Five-Minute Pitches
The five-minute pitch sessions are an extremely popular part of our Annual Member Meeting! These sessions feature rapid, strictly timed five-minute overviews from ARM Members about a variety of topics – from a problem that a Member is looking for help solving to overviews of ground-breaking innovations. These sessions are carefully timed with speakers getting their mics cut off right at the five-minute mark with music playing them off the stage. These sessions take place around networking breaks and meals to enable connection following the presented pitches.
ARM Members apply for pitch sessions with the ARM Institute selecting pitches around topics with the highest level of interest and relevance to event attendees. Stay tuned for more details about this year’s five-minute pitches.
What Past Attendees Say
- “One of my favorite things about this meeting is the Five Minute Pitches. I take copious notes on that and usually go home with a book full of notes about all these new members that are new to me that we should be working with and that will have the opportunity to collaborate with on project proposals and other projects.” – Curtis Richardson, Technical Fellow at Spirit Aerosystems
- “Every year, we look forward to the ARM Member Meeting — it’s truly one of the most valuable industry events we participate in. Through this meeting, we’ve formed key partnerships, launched new project ideas, and even shaped aspects of our product development based on the conversations and insights shared at the event.” – Dijam Panigrahi, Co-Founder & COO of Gridraster
- “The ARM Member Meeting was the highlight of our conference season! Our team was extremely impressed by both the quality and quantity of great connections we were able to make with other attendees and also found the programs and speaking events highly informative and entertaining.” – Kevin Beamish, Chief Operating Officer at BG Workforce
- “What I look forward to most at the Member Meeting is hearing about what all the other members are working on. Most of us want to be part of something bigger than ourselves, and the ARM Institute is clearly a place where a manufacturing / robotics geek can experience that sense of being a part of something that is getting things done, moving the needle and having an impact.” – Glenn Saunders, RPI
- “The uniqueness of this event is born in the fact that our competitors are here and that we are all together in this.” – Clint Chapman, Director of Educational Workforce Development at Yaskawa
- “These are some of the brightest minds in the industry that show up for this event and I get goosebumps to just be involved and the opportunity to meet and network. We also have the ability to learn a lot about what key suppliers in our industry are doing that we would have never known about.” – Laura Evans, Senior District Manager at FANUC
Dive Deeper into Our Agenda
Networking is one cornerstone piece of our event, but this event is host to so much more. Download the working version of our agenda here to learn what else you can expect at our 2026 Annual Member Meeting.
In addition to networking activities, you can expect:
- Keynote presentations from leading experts, including:
- Mr. Douglas Woods, AMT CEO
- Mr. Keith DeVries, Director of the Office of the Secretary of War (OSW) Manufacturing Technology (ManTech)
- Retired Army Lieutenant General Rick Lynch
- Mr. Alex Shikany, Executive Vice President of A3
- Interactive panel discussions exploring the use of AI in manufacturing, problems that manufacturers are looking to solve, best practices for building willing ARM Institute-funded project teams, actionable trends around funding opportunities, ways to increase enrollment in your manufacturing training programs, and more
- Updates about ARM Institute funded projects
- A deep dive into our newly revamped digital ARM Member Community, which will debut at the Annual Member Meeting
- And more!
Register to Attend by Oct. 31 Before Prices Increase
Register here or email us at [email protected] for assistance.
Our Annual Member Meeting is open only to ARM Members. Join our consortium soon to be eligible to attend.
Looking to amplify your presence at our event? Explore sponsorship and Member Showcase Tables by emailing us at [email protected]. Organizations who purchase a sponsorship and/or Member Showcase Table receive five free registrations for their team.
Thank you to our Platinum Members & Sponsors for Supporting Our Event
ABOUT THE ARM INSTITUTE
The ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing) Institute is a Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) funded by the Office of the Secretary of War under Agreement Number W911NF-17-3-0004 and is part of the Manufacturing USA® network. The ARM Institute leverages a worldclass consortium of 500+ member organizations and partners across industry, academia, and government to assert the US as the leading nation in manufacturing output through the adoption of robotics and AI. Based in Pittsburgh, PA since 2017, the ARM Institute has a dual focus on catalyzing innovative yet practical robotics and physical AI solutions while growing and preparing the US workforce for advanced manufacturing careers.
For more information, visit www.arminstitute.org and follow the ARM Institute on LinkedIn