CNBC AI Forum 2026 opens in Dallas with focus on enterprise AI scaling

The CNBC AI Forum 2026 got underway in Dallas on Thursday, bringing together business leaders to discuss how companies are scaling artificial intelligence deployments while managing security, cost and governance concerns, according to CNBC's live coverage of the event.

Sessions at the forum are centered on enterprise adoption of AI tools and autonomous agents, a theme that has dominated corporate technology spending over the past two years as companies look to move beyond pilot projects toward broader deployment across their operations.

Discussions also touched on the global competition around AI development, with participants weighing how different countries and companies are positioning themselves in the race to build and deploy advanced AI systems. Cost management emerged as a recurring topic, as businesses balance the computing expenses associated with large-scale AI use against expected productivity gains.

Governance and security were also highlighted as priorities, reflecting ongoing concerns among enterprise leaders about data protection, regulatory compliance and the operational risks of deploying autonomous AI agents within sensitive business processes.

The forum is continuing throughout the day with additional sessions and updates from attendees in Dallas.