Open Industry 4.0 Alliance at Hannover Fair 2026

Hannover Messe 2026: The Commu­nity Still Meets

Hannover Messe 2026 made one thing very visible across the halls: the industry is moving from concepts into imple­men­ta­tion. Data spaces, indus­trial AI, and inter­op­er­able systems were not just discussed, but shown and chal­lenged in real scenarios.

Even without an own booth this year, we were present throughout the week and in close exchange with many members and part­ners.

The Commu­nity Finds Its Way

With short notice, we orga­nized an informal OI4 get-together during the fair. Around 30 members joined.

No formal setup was needed. People came together, picked up ongoing discus­sions, and started new ones. Familiar faces met again, new connec­tions formed quickly, and conver­sa­tions went straight into rele­vant topics.

What Happened in the Exchange

Across the group, discus­sions focused on areas many members are currently working on:

• digital twins and their role in cross-company data exchange
• intral­o­gis­tics as part of connected end-to-end processes
• IIoT and condi­tion-moni­toring-based services
• soft­ware-defined automa­tion in real envi­ron­ments

Partic­i­pants shared current work, compared approaches, and explored where collab­o­ra­tion makes sense.

Hannover Messe 2026: Clear Signals

Across the fair, a consis­tent direc­tion could be observed. Many exhibitors showed working setups, live inte­gra­tions, and concrete use cases. Cross-company collab­o­ra­tion and inter­op­er­ability were present in multiple halls and across different initia­tives.

The conver­sa­tions during the week reflected this shift.

What Continues After the Fair

Many discus­sions started in Hannover will continue beyond the event. Follow-ups are already planned, and several topics will move into more struc­tured collab­o­ra­tion.

This ongoing exchange is what drives the alliance forward.

Factory‑X: From Project to Prac­tice

As part of Factory‑X, we were also present throughout the week at the joint booth of Plat­tform Indus­trie 4.0 in Hall 13. Together with part­ners, Factory‑X showed how data spaces are being imple­mented in real indus­trial envi­ron­ments, with multiple use cases, live soft­ware demos, and working setups. The focus was on how compa­nies can exchange data across orga­ni­za­tional bound­aries in a secure and stan­dard­ized way, based on common archi­tec­tures and shared approaches.

The Power of Many.