From March 24 to 27, 2026, analytica will be opening its doors at the Munich exhibition center. The world’s leading trade fair for laboratory technology, analysis and biotechnology will be focusing on one topic in particular: the digital transformation of the industry.
analytica 2026 places particular emphasis on the topics of AI, digitization, and automation.
Image Credit: Messe München GmbH
Whether it is automated analyses, robot assistants, or AI tools for data evaluation, the digital transformation of the laboratory world is in full swing, but still far from complete. “At analytica, we accompany the transformation and invite visitors to cast a glance inside the laboratory of tomorrow,” says Susanne Grödl, analytica Exhibition Director.
At the analytica special show Digital Transformation, visitors will experience how hardware and software from different manufacturers are combined to make digital work in the laboratory more intuitive and to automate processes. 18 exhibitors are taking part in the special show, including industry giants such as Liebherr, Metrohm, Mettler Toledo and Sigma. Together, they will present interactive exhibits and workflows for various application examples: from digitized processes in drinking water, flavor, and fragrance analysis to automated temperature control processes. A special highlight is a cobot from Universal Robots, which places samples in centrifuges and also masters other tasks perfectly.
For digital transformation to succeed, it requires data from different sources to be merged and transformed into a standardized format that can be read by both humans and machines. The LIMS and Lab Execution System SAMPLES from analytica exhibitor Qualitype supports this process, as it offers interfaces for loading and processing data with external tools such as Excel. In turn, analytica exhibitor Splashlake bridges the gap between laboratory equipment and LIMS with an interface that transfers data directly to the LIMS and supports the connection to AI-based analysis. Qualitype and Splashlake are also partners of the special show.
At the special show Digital Transformation, visitors can experience the lab of the future in action.
Image Credit: Messe München GmbH
AI in instrumental analysis
Digital transformation and AI methods are also on the program for the science-oriented analytica conference. Several speakers will discuss the knowledge they expect to gain from the use of artificial intelligence. “AI will not only control the automated laboratory of the future, but also generate new hypotheses or synthesis pathways,” predicts Professor Ulrich Panne, President of the German Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing in Berlin. He will chair the analytica conference session “Digital Analytical Sciences” on Wednesday morning (March 25) with presentations on self-driving labs and digital tools in mass spectrometry, photonics, and food analysis.
The topics of digitalization and AI will also be a recurring theme through the five exhibition halls, where over 1,000 exhibitors from all over the world will be presenting their latest innovations. Systems from Agilent, Bruker, Shimadzu and many other providers are already using machine learning and AI to evaluate spectra and other data, for example, in GC/MS analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, or atomic force microscopy. Thermo Fisher recently even entered into a strategic partnership with the software company OpenAI.
In short, all major equipment manufacturers are focusing on AI – and on analytica, the meeting place for the industry. After all, nothing can replace face-to-face discussions, especially in times of digital transformation. “With the combination of world-leading trade fair, conference, and a diverse supporting program, we offer plenty of room for exchange between manufacturers and users, and between representatives from science, industry, and public authorities,” says Susanne Grödl. analytica brings all the players together under one roof and shows them the way into the digital laboratory world.