National STEM Festival 2026.
Five days. The country’s boldest young builders, one room in Washington, DC. That was 2026 — and it’s your preview of 2027. The next Festival returns Oct 19–24, 2027. See what you missed — then make sure you don’t again.
Watch the 2026 recap
Five days. The nation's best young innovators.
Student innovators, face to face with the people who hire, fund, and build what’s next — hands-on demos, executive roundtables, and programming for every age.
The whole point.
Before the awards, before the headlines — there are the Champions. Students from across the country who turned a bold idea into a real project, then brought it to Washington, DC.
Four students. Four breakthroughs.
From cancer detection to space biology to clean water — these are the ideas you’ll see in person at the Festival.
The stuff you can’t try anywhere else.
Try the gear, run the experiments, meet the people building what comes next.
AnatomageThe Digital Cadaver
A fully interactive 3D digital cadaver — explore every system of the human body at medical-grade accuracy. No scalpel required.
MilliporeSigmaThe Curiosity Cube™
Step inside a traveling science lab to run hands-on synthetic biology experiments, led by working MilliporeSigma scientists.
Project MFGThe Future of Making, On Wheels
A traveling lab of the real machines shaping advanced manufacturing. Try the equipment and meet the careers behind it.
NASANASA STELLA in Your Palm
An open-source, low-cost handheld that puts NASA's remote-sensing satellite science — the tools powering space habitats — into your hand.
The people shaping the conversation.
The scientists, communicators, and innovators on stage and in the room.
Forrest Valkai
Biologist & Science Communicator, Valkai Labs
Lydia Logan
VP of Global Education & Workforce Development, IBM
Jake Easter
Policy Advisor for AI, Education & Workforce, White House OSTP
Sydney Hamilton
Aerospace Structures Engineering Manager, The Boeing Company
Made possible by partners who build.
Major Support From
Presenting Partners
Program Partners
Supporting Partners
Strategic Partners
Turning invitations into real opportunities.
Talent is everywhere. Travel money isn’t. Thank you to the organizations who make sure an invitation is never wasted.
The future shows up early.
So should you. The U.S. Edition returns to Washington, DC on Oct 19–24, 2027 — be first to know when tickets and student applications open.