AnitaB.org cancelled the 2026 Grace Hopper Celebration, and the Grace Hopper Celebration cancelled news landed just weeks before the event was due to open. The conference had been scheduled for October 27–30 in Anaheim, California.
Cathy Hackl, who was set to MC the event, said, "I'm in shock. The notice just came in." Her reaction captures how abruptly the decision arrived for people who had already arranged travel, speaking roles and partner plans around the four-day schedule.
Cathy Hackl and the notice
The cancellation left attendees, speakers and corporate partners seeking answers about refunds, hotel bookings and possible virtual programming. That is the practical mess created when a conference disappears this late in the cycle, because the costs and commitments are already locked in.
The detail that matters most is the timing. The event was still on the calendar for late October, and then it was pulled just weeks before those dates. For anyone who had planned around the trip, the immediate question is not the conference itself but what gets unwound first.
Anaheim schedule pulled back
The 2026 Grace Hopper Celebration had been set for October 27–30 in Anaheim, California. A four-day run gives attendees, speakers and partners time to book flights, rooms and schedules, so a late cancellation forces those arrangements into reverse all at once.
The story also sits in the middle of another expectation: the event was planned to supplement AI training. That makes the cancellation more complicated than a simple date change, because the lost value is not just the gathering itself but the training plan tied to it.
Refunds and virtual programming
What comes next is the part affected readers need most: refunds, hotel-booking changes and any replacement programming. Those are the operational pieces people will have to track now, especially if they already paid for travel or expected an on-site schedule to carry the week.
The unanswered issue is why AnitaB.org cancelled the 2026 Grace Hopper Celebration. Until that is clear, the only firm facts are the cancellation, the October 27–30 Anaheim dates and the scramble it left behind.
