AI is reshaping how startups build, sell, protect data and customers, and scale. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, the AI Stage, presented by Google for Startups, will focus on the business models, security challenges and new roles emerging from that shift.
The event runs October 13–15 at Moscone Center in San Francisco. Sessions will address AI product pricing as models become commoditized, infrastructure-level agent security, and go-to-market strategies for AI-native companies. The organizers also say the current pricing window is nearing its end, with savings of up to $200 available on tickets.
AI Stage sessions
Anthropic’s view of enterprise Claude deployments
Cat de Jong, Head of Applied AI at Anthropic, will discuss what happens after enterprises deploy Claude. The session will examine why some implementations deliver value quickly, why others remain stuck in pilots for eighteen months, and what successful deployments reveal about enterprise AI’s direction.
Building AI-native companies with OpenAI
Tara Seshan, Head of Productivity at OpenAI, will explore how AI has transformed go-to-market work. The discussion will cover the rise of GTM engineering, a discipline that did not exist two years ago and now includes independent practitioners building million-dollar businesses.
Enterprise AI security
Arsalan Tavakoli, Co-founder and SVP of Field Engineering at Databricks, will examine observability, governance and the architecture needed to secure autonomous AI decisions in sensitive enterprise systems.
Ric Smith, President of Product & Technology at Okta, will address the infrastructure-level requirements of agent security. Topics include the limits of application-level permission models and the foundational cybersecurity changes required for agentic AI.
Video intelligence and reasoning
Dean Leitersdorf, Co-founder and CEO of Decart, and Amit Jain, Co-founder and CEO of Luma AI, will discuss the shift from visual AI demonstrations toward real-time inference and physical reasoning.
AI’s impact on SaaS economics
Arvind Jain of Glean, Barr Moses of Monte Carlo, Sapphire Ventures partner Cathy Gao and NEA partner Aaron Jacobson will consider whether the traditional SaaS model is disappearing or adapting. Their discussion will cover sustainable AI pricing, defensibility as models commoditize, and building viable software businesses in the AI era.
The rise of the GTM engineer
Kareem Amin, Co-founder and CEO of Clay, will examine GTM engineering as one of technology’s fastest-growing job categories and explain how AI-native go-to-market practices are changing company growth.
Cloud security in the AI enterprise
Chet Kapoor, VP of Security Services & Observability at AWS, Katie Moussouris of Luta Security and Wendy Nather of 1Password will provide an infrastructure-focused view of AI enterprise security, including observability, governance and architectural principles for trustworthy deployments.
Disrupt 2026 is expected to bring together more than 10,000 startup, technology and venture capital leaders. Attendees will also have access to other stages, Startup Battlefield, networking opportunities and the exhibition floor.
TechCrunch Events is promoting Disrupt 2026 around the question of how companies can build sustainably in the AI era. The event will take place October 13–15 in San Francisco.