Schedule
Gel 2026 took place over a day and a half, offering speaker presentations, on-site workshops, and off-site experiences: a community-building event with no algorithms and no platforms getting in the way. Gel gave us a greater awareness of what’s possible – so that we’re better equipped to survive the AI age.
Friday, October 2, 2026
Morning
Venue: Skate Time, 5164 US Highway 209, Accord, NY
Speaker presentations
• 8am: Doors open. Check-in, coffee, pastries. We recommend arriving by 8:30am to get checked in.• 9am: Speaker session 1
• 10:30am: Mid-morning break
• 11am: Speaker session 2
• 12:30pm: Lunch, thanks to our sponsor Upstate Curious.
Afternoon
• 1:30pm: Pre-departure. Instructions before everyone heads to afternoon sessions.• 2/2:30-ish to 4:30/5-ish: Off-site Gel tours, workshops, and other in-person experiences in and around the Accord/Kingston area. Each attendee was assigned one experience to participate in.
Evening
• Dinner: Attendees on their own. We provided suggestions for where to eat in the Accord/Kingston area.
• 7:30pm: Skate party at Skate Time, with a live band. All Gel attendees were invited (but not required) to put on skates and try out the rink. Thanks to our live band (Dirt Surfers) and our DJ (Miss Behavior) for their spectacular music!
Saturday, October 3, 2026
Morning
Venue: Skate Time, 5164 US Highway 209, Accord, NY
• 8am: Doors open. Check-in, coffee, pastries.• 9am: Morning session: Small-group discussion and reflection about the themes and learnings from the event and attendees’ next steps.
• Conference closing (before lunchtime, so that attendees can find their lunch in the area after the conference ends). We finished right at 12pm.
Afterward: There is plenty to see and do in the Catskills, so we invited attendees to go from Gel to other activities in the region! (One option was the Verbatim festival, starting Saturday afternoon.)