Fortinet Accelerate 2026 in Las Vegas

5 Days at Mandalay Bay: Keynotes, Tech Expo, and one-on-one discussions with the teams

Every year, Accelerate serves as a gathering place for customers, partners, and Fortinet experts. In 2026, there were over 4,500 attendees. The event is structured so that participants can quickly shift from the big picture to hands-on experience. General sessions and keynotes set the tone, followed by breakout sessions, demos, the Tech Expo, and, above all, plenty of opportunities to talk directly with the teams on site.

A real benefit for us was the direct contact with product managers and the teams responsible. We were able to resolve questions on the spot that would otherwise often have to go through several layers of management in our day-to-day work. Understanding the context and putting issues into perspective—it is precisely this proximity to product strategy and the roadmap that makes an event like Accelerate so relevant to us.

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Ultimate Fabric Challenge: Sabin in Competition Mode

One of the main reasons for the trip was clearly to cheer on Sabin as he defended his title in the Ultimate Fabric Challenge.

The atmosphere there feels more like an esports event than a traditional IT conference. Speed, precision, focus, and tons of support from colleagues and other partners. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite enough for a win this year, but Sabin secured a strong 7th place out of over 40 participants. For us as a team, it was a moment we’ll never forget—performance, excitement, and true camaraderie.

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What became clear in 2026: A focus on platform thinking and operations

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FortiAI and Shadow AI: AI as Both a Help and a Risk Factor

A major topic at Accelerate 2026 was AI. Not just as a buzzword, but as a trend that is clearly moving toward practical application.

What we took away: AI helps with operations and security because it enables faster detection, better prioritization, and greater automation. At the same time, AI is becoming a new vulnerability. A key example is "shadow AI," which occurs when employees use tools without security or IT teams being fully aware of it.

What was particularly exciting was that AI is becoming more integrated into platforms and, in some cases, is being embedded directly into devices and operations—exactly where decisions and responses take place in everyday life. The general consensus in many discussions was clear: AI should support teams, not replace them. And it should reduce complexity rather than create new complexity.

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Application Experience: Quickly determine whether the issue is caused by the app, the ISP, or the client

One theme that came up repeatedly throughout many sessions and demos was operational transparency. Anyone responsible for IT is familiar with this situation. An app is running slowly, but no one can immediately tell whether the problem lies with the application, the network connection, or the device.

Fortinet clearly points the way toward better classification here. It provides greater visibility into how critical applications are performing and allows for comparison with normal internet traffic. For us, this is less of a nice-to-have and more of a practical tool. It enables faster isolation of issues, more targeted troubleshooting, and less wasted time.

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SD-WAN Resilience: Stable Connections Despite Packet Loss and Fluctuating Links

Another trend was clear: networking is increasingly being approached from the perspective of user experience. It is not enough for a location to simply be online. What matters is whether critical applications run smoothly, even when connection quality fluctuates.

In the SD-WAN environment in particular, several discussions focused on how to better handle packet loss, unstable paths, or fluctuating quality. Our impression: Fortinet is making targeted investments in mechanisms that enhance reliability, not just in throughput and speed.

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SASE bundles and centralized management: Scaling without a new toolset

SASE was not just a marketing focus; it also took on very concrete form in terms of content. The central question was how to design secure access and secure networking in a way that remains consistent, scalable, and centrally manageable.

This aligns with what we’re seeing outside of Accelerate as well. Companies want modern security architectures, but only if they’re easy to manage on a day-to-day basis and don’t result in a new landscape of tools. The direction is clear: more platform, fewer siloed solutions.

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Endpoint Consolidation: Fewer Agents, More End-to-End Control

The trend was also clear when it came to endpoint and secure access: consolidation. Fewer individual components, more integrated features, and better control through centralized management approaches.

That may sound trivial, but it’s crucial in practice. Today, security must not only be robust, but above all, it must be manageable. This is especially true in hybrid work models, where stability and user experience are just as important as policies.

OT Security: Segmentation, Visibility, and Legacy Systems as a Reality Check

In addition to AI, OT security was a second key focus that came up repeatedly in many discussions and presentations. OT—that is, the security of production environments, industrial facilities, and critical infrastructure—is becoming increasingly important as IT and OT continue to converge.

Fortinet positions itself as the market leader in the OT sector, and for us, it’s clear: ITpoint wants to do more in this area. That’s exactly why it was valuable to hear about the trends and pain points firsthand: visibility, segmentation, protection of legacy systems, and solutions that can realistically be implemented in an operational setting.

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Our takeaway: Platform thinking, automation, and a team moment that will stay with us

For us, Accelerate 2026 was more than just a product showcase. It was a clear indication of where the market is headed.

Fewer standalone solutions, more platform-based thinking. More automation, more AI support. And security that is more deeply integrated into the network and operations.

At the same time, it remains a human experience. It’s about connection, community, and a team moment like Sabin’s Challenge, which shows what’s possible when expertise and motivation come together. Thank you so much for the opportunity—it was a very educational and exciting experience for everyone!