AFBELive 2026 to explore how FE, skills and industry can shape the future of engineering

Engineers, students, employers and innovators will come together in Birmingham this month to explore how the engineering profession can become not only more diverse, but more equitable in who gets to progress, innovate and lead.

The Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers UK (AFBE-UK) is bringing its flagship AFBELive conference to Birmingham on 30 October, with this year’s event placing the future of skills, technology and opportunity at the centre of the conversation. Held at The Vox Conference Centre, AFBELive 2026 will bring together engineering and technology professionals, students, researchers, business leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators from across the UK.

Now in its third year, the conference comes at a time when rapid advances in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, nuclear fusion, synthetic biology and advanced manufacturing are changing the skills and career pathways available across engineering.

The theme for this year’s event, “The Future of Engineering: From Access to Equity,” reflects a shift in the way the sector is approaching diversity and inclusion. Rather than focusing only on getting more people through the door, AFBE-UK wants to explore what happens once they are inside – whether people have the opportunities, networks, skills and support they need to progress and take on leadership roles.

For FE and skills providers, that question is particularly relevant as colleges, universities and employers consider how best to prepare learners for a rapidly changing engineering labour market.

Dr Nike Folayan MBE, Co-founder of AFBE-UK, said the conference would focus on making sure people from underrepresented backgrounds can see and access the opportunities emerging from technological change.

“AFBELive 2026 is about moving the conversation beyond access to equity. As new technologies reshape engineering, we need to ensure underrepresented groups not only enter the profession, but understand where opportunities are emerging, how transferable skills can open new pathways, and how businesses can access opportunities across the engineering supply chain.”

She added that holding the event during Black History Month gives the conversation added significance.

“It’s about celebrating achievement while focusing firmly on the opportunities of the future.”

Giving students a closer look at the technologies shaping their future

One of the main features of AFBELive 2026 will be the Innovation Hub, designed to give attendees a more practical insight into technologies that are often discussed in abstract terms. The walk-through exhibition will focus on five emerging areas – artificial intelligence, quantum computing, nuclear fusion, synthetic biology and additive manufacturing. Visitors will be able to see demonstrations, working models and hands-on activities, while speaking directly with researchers, engineers and people working at the forefront of these fields.

Importantly, the Innovation Hub will also connect technology with careers.

Students, researchers and early-career professionals will have opportunities to find out more about graduate schemes, apprenticeships, research opportunities and emerging career pathways, while employers will have the chance to engage directly with potential future talent.

That focus comes as the engineering sector faces continuing questions about how to attract and retain the next generation of skilled workers and ensure that young people understand the range of careers available beyond the traditional engineering roles they may already know.

From ideas to real-world solutions

The conference will also give students and professionals the opportunity to put their ideas directly in front of industry leaders through the Next Big Idea Pitching Competition.

Participants will pitch solutions to real-world challenges across areas including AI and workforce equity, inclusive supply chains, net zero and developing a future-ready workforce.

Finalists will have three minutes to present their ideas to senior business leaders at AFBELive, with the top three receiving cash prizes, recognition and support to develop their ideas further.

Applications for the competition closed on 11 September 2026, with the final taking place at the Birmingham conference on 30 October.

Creating connections between SMEs, researchers and industry

Another strand of the programme will focus on the relationship between innovation and business growth.

The SME Reception will bring together research students, entrepreneurs, founders, SMEs, investors, larger organisations and industry leaders to discuss funding, partnerships and routes to growth. Interactive roundtables, SME spotlight pitches and networking sessions will give smaller businesses and researchers the opportunity to showcase their work and make connections with potential investors, partners and established organisations.

For the engineering sector, AFBE-UK sees this as an important part of the wider equity conversation – ensuring that opportunities extend beyond recruitment and into entrepreneurship, supply chains, innovation and business ownership.

Bringing different parts of the engineering pipeline together

AFBELive 2026 will feature speakers from across engineering, technology and business, including Dame Tamara Finkelstein DCB, Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Engineering; Anca Raines, Chief People Officer at Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team; Loraine Martins OBE FRSA, Global EDI Director at Arup; and George Imafidon MBE, CEO and Co-Founder of Motivez.

AFBE-UK Co-founder and Chairperson Nike Folayan MBE, and AFBE-UK Co-founder and Chairperson of AFBE-UK Scotland Ollie Folayan MBE, will also take part, alongside engineers, industry leaders and emerging professionals.

The event is supported by organisations including Microsoft, Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, Aston Martin F1, Rolls-Royce SMR, Leonardo, Arup, Mott MacDonald, Bechtel and Harbour Energy.

Across the programme, attendees will be able to take part in keynote sessions, panel discussions, workshops, case studies, roundtables, fireside conversations, exhibitions and speed networking.

For students and early-career professionals, the event offers an opportunity to meet people working across different parts of the sector and gain a clearer understanding of where engineering careers could lead.

For employers, it provides a space to engage with emerging talent and consider how recruitment, skills development and supply chains can become more inclusive.

The conference will close with an evening cocktail reception, giving attendees an opportunity to continue conversations and build relationships beyond the formal programme.

With engineering increasingly shaped by technologies that did not exist in their current form a generation ago, AFBE-UK is positioning AFBELive 2026 as a conversation not simply about who enters the profession, but who has the opportunity to shape what engineering becomes next.