Ultralytics' key highlights at MWC 2026 in Barcelona

Last week, from March 2 to 5, the Ultralytics team was back in Barcelona, Spain for 4YFN (Four Years From Now) 2026 and Mobile World Congress (MWC), the world's largest and most influential connectivity event. 4YFN is the dedicated startup arm of MWC, where early-stage companies scale up, connect with capital, and gain global exposure. This year's theme, Infinite AI, made it a particularly exciting place for the vision AI community to be.

Together, MWC and 4YFN open the door to an audience of over 100,000 attendees, bringing together founders, investors, corporates, and innovators all focused on turning bold ideas into real-world impact. With AI firmly at the center of this year's conversations, the energy on the show floor was hard to miss.

This year, Craig Johnston, our VP of Sales and Success, Francesco Mattioli, our Lead Partnerships Engineer, Zinnia Pourdad, our Global Events Manager, and Nuvola Ladi, our Digital Content Manager, represented Ultralytics across four packed days. We showcased Ultralytics YOLO26, teamed up with some exciting partners, explored both show floors, and made some great memories along the way.

In this recap, we'll walk through the highlights from our time at MWC and 4YFN 2026. Let's get started!

An overview of MWC and 4YFN 2026

Before we dive into our week, let's take a quick look at what makes MWC and 4YFN such a significant moment on the global tech calendar.

MWC Barcelona is organized by the GSMA and takes place at Fira Gran Via in Barcelona. It has grown into one of the most important gatherings in global tech, bringing together leaders, innovators, and businesses from across the world to explore the latest in connectivity, AI, and emerging technology. 

This year marked a special milestone, celebrating 20 years since the event moved to Barcelona. Running alongside MWC, 4YFN brought together over 1,000 startups and exhibitors, world-class speakers, and investors representing collective funds of €70 billion. 

For Ultralytics, it was the perfect backdrop to share what we have been building, connect with partners and customers, and be part of the conversations shaping the future of vision AI.

Core themes at MWC and 4YFN 2026

A few strong themes shaped the week across sessions, demos, and conversations on the show floor. Opening MWC, Vivek Badrinath, Director General of the GSMA, outlined three priorities for the industry: completing the 5G journey, rising to the AI challenge, and protecting the world from the escalating global scam epidemic.

Meanwhile, at 4YFN, the Infinite AI theme set the tone, spotlighting founders who are building boldly and scaling quickly, and pushing AI into areas once considered out of reach. Together, the two events painted a clear picture of where the industry is heading, with AI, connectivity, and real-world impact at the center of it all.

A recap of Ultralytics at 4YFN 2025

Interestingly, this wasn't Ultralytics' first time at MWC and 4YFN. We’ve been a part of the event for a few years now. 

In fact, last year at MWC 2025, the team had a great time showcasing live demos of Ultralytics YOLO11, where attendees could see real-time object detection in action. We also took part in panel talks covering AI talent, ethics, and open-source technology, with our Founder & CEO Glenn Jocher taking the stage to discuss making AI accessible and responsible for everyone.

The experience at MWC 2025 left the team inspired and eager to return. Building on the momentum from the previous year, this year we came back to Barcelona with Ultralytics YOLO26, new partnerships, and a renewed commitment to advancing vision AI alongside the global tech community.

Setting up the booth and exploring Barcelona

The day before the event officially kicked off, the team got to work setting up the Ultralytics booth at Hall 8.1. With everything in place at Booth 8.1B65.2, the team was ready to welcome visitors and showcase what we had been building.

Once the booth was set, the team took the evening to explore Barcelona. The city has a way of making you feel at home, and a dinner of tapas was the perfect way to unwind before the busy days ahead. It was a great chance for the team to connect in person, recharge, and gear up for everything MWC and 4YFN 2026 had in store.

Day one: Ultralytics YOLO26 takes center stage

The event kicked off with Ultralytics YOLO26 taking center stage at the booth. Attendees had the chance to test the model directly through the app, seeing its capabilities in real time. 

It was great to watch visitors interact with the technology firsthand, and the conversations at the booth were full of curiosity and enthusiasm. Alongside the app demo, we also showcased Ultralytics YOLO26 running on an Axelera AI accelerator, demonstrating how high-performance vision AI can be delivered at the edge, optimized for efficiency.

The combination of a hands-on app experience and a live edge AI deployment gave visitors a well-rounded look at what YOLO26 is capable of across different environments. We also got a chance to have the NVIDIA Inception Program represented at our booth. 

Meanwhile, our Lead Partnerships Engineer Francesco Mattioli joined the Accelerating AI Innovation with Dell Technologies and NVIDIA session as part of the 4YFN showcase, connecting with industry leaders and exploring how AI innovation is being accelerated across the ecosystem.

The day wrapped up with 4YFN networking drinks on the terrace, a relaxed and enjoyable end to a vibrant first day, and a great opportunity to continue the conversations that had started on the show floor.

Day two: D-Robotics joins the booth

Day two brought an exciting addition to the booth. We were joined by D-Robotics, who came to showcase the Magic Box and Aura, powered by the D-Robotics RDK X5 and Ultralytics YOLO26. 

The demos got a lot of attention from visitors and provided a compelling look at what becomes possible when capable edge hardware meets powerful vision AI. The collaboration with D-Robotics was a great example of the kind of real-world applications that Ultralytics YOLO26 is enabling across the ecosystem. 

Day three: Exploring the expo floor at MWC

The next day, the team took the opportunity to explore the wider MWC show floor, catching up with partners and customers from across the industry. It was a great chance to see how the broader ecosystem is evolving and where vision AI is showing up in new and unexpected places.

One of the highlights was meeting the team at Intel, as well as seeing DEEPX showcasing Ultralytics YOLO models in action at their booth. It was encouraging to see our models being put to work in real-world demonstrations across the show floor.

Conversations throughout the day spanned a wide range of industries, including marine, energy, logistics, healthcare, and automotive. One use case that came up consistently was defect detection, with a lot of interest from teams looking to use computer vision to improve quality control and reduce errors across their operations. 

It was a clear signal of just how broad the appetite for practical Vision AI solutions has become. The day wrapped up with a team dinner, and Barcelona delivered once again with a classic plate of paella to close out the evening.

Day four: Pitching and winning at 4YFN

The final day of 4YFN 2026 ended on a high note. Ultralytics was selected by a team of ESADE University students to be pitched as the best exhibitor at 4YFN in the AI for Meaningful Impact category, and we won. 

It was a genuinely special moment for the team, and a meaningful recognition coming from the next generation of business and technology leaders. Being recognized for meaningful impact is something that resonates deeply with us at Ultralytics, as it speaks directly to why we build what we build.

Beyond the award, the final day was a great opportunity to reflect on everything the week had brought. The booth saw a steady stream of visitors right through to the end, and the conversations remained just as engaging as they had been on day one. 

As always, our merchandise proved to be a hit, with tote bags, caps, and stickers flying off the stand throughout the week. We left Barcelona grateful for the connections made, the conversations had, and the recognition received across a truly memorable week.

Key takeaways

MWC and 4YFN 2026 was truly rewarding a week for the Ultralytics team. Thanks to everyone who stopped by the booth, joined a demo, or took the time to connect with us. We can’t wait to come back next year.

Join our community and explore our GitHub repository to learn more about Vision AI. Check out our licensing options to kickstart your computer vision projects. Interested in innovations like AI in manufacturing or computer vision in self-driving? Visit our solutions pages to discover more.