2026 Innovation Summit
Hilton College Station & Conference Center
801 University Drive East College Station, TX 77840-2116 United States
APRIL 15 - 16, 2026
HILTON COLLEGE STATION & CONFERENCE CENTER
The Innovation Summit is your industry-leading hands-on AI education for destination professionals. Improve your leadership, operations and marketing with the latest training in AI tools and implementation.
VIEW THE UPDATED INNOVATION SUMMIT AGENDA
**The Innovation Summit will count as a Core Track for the DMS Program. A Summary Essay will be required to earn credit for this core track.
CONFERENCE CANCELLATION DATE: FRIDAY, MARCH 13th
Our cancellation policy is as follows:
- Before the cancellation date, you can cancel for a full refund minus a $80 administrative fee.
- After the cancellation date, no transfers or refunds for cancellations.
ALREADY REGISTERED? SHARE WITH YOUR NETWORK THAT YOU'LL BE ATTENDING!
| Credits | Price | |
|---|---|---|
|
Innovation Summit - Member Registration
|
1.00 (DMS Core Track) | $595.00 |
|
ADD ON: Small DMO Workshop (includes AI 101)
|
1.00 (DMS Elective) | $150.00 |
|
ADD ON: AI 101 + Governance (pre-conference class)
|
$95.00 | |
|
Non-Member Innovation Summit Registration
|
$795.00 | |
|
Supporting DMO Sponsorship
|
$1,500.00 |
The UPDATED Innovation Summit Agenda is NOW AVAILABLE!
Hilton College Station & Conference Center
801 University Drive East
College Station, TX 77840
(979) 693-7500
The discounted group guestroom rate for attendees is $169. Your booking link will be emailed to you in your conference registration confirmation e-mail. Guestrooms tend to go quick and we anticipate our block will sell out! Cutoff date is Monday, March 23rd.
Todd Brook, CEO
Unchained | Journey Works | Envisionit
Todd Brook is the founder of Unchained, a company dedicated to helping organizational leaders simplify and accelerate their AI journey. By harnessing AI in strategic and practical ways, Unchained empowers businesses to get more done, elevate the quality of their work, and stay focused on what truly matters—without being weighed down by routine tasks.
Tyler Kirsh, COO
Unchained
Tyler Kirsh is the Chief Operating Officer at Unchained, where he helps enterprise organizations navigate the intersection of technology strategy and organizational transformation. A proven leader across multiple SaaS companies, Tyler has built a career uniting business objectives with scalable, real-world technology solutions that drive growth and clarity.
Kenzie Austin, Director of SEO
Envisionit
Kenzie Austin brings over a decade of digital marketing expertise focused on driving SEO performance for destination brands. At Envisionit, she leads the agency’s SEO team with a balance of technical precision and creative vision, helping DMOs increase discoverability, inspire travel, and drive meaningful engagement. Kenzie has led growth initiatives for organizations including Choose Chicago, Visit Kansas City, Visit Spokane, and Galena Country Tourism, partnering with teams to elevate visibility across both traditional search and emerging AI-driven experiences. She specializes in developing SEO strategies that reflect how travelers actually search—aligning content, site experience, and data to capture demand at every stage of the journey. Known for her hands-on, collaborative approach, Kenzie combines strategic leadership with execution—working closely with clients to turn insights into action. She is passionate about helping destination brands stay competitive in an evolving search landscape and turn visibility into visitation.
Greg Oates, Director of AI Advocacy
Matador Network + GuideGeek
Greg Oates is Director of AI Advocacy for Matador Network, where he helps develop the leading GuideGeek AI chat platform for the travel industry. He is also founder of 2050 City and creator of the 2050 City AI Roadmap, which provides DMO clients a proven framework for implementing AI-first strategy. During the past 15 years, Greg has collaborated with more than 100 tourism and hospitality organizations worldwide to create high-level strategic planning frameworks.
Matt Clement, Managing Partner
Madden Media
Matt Clement helps DMOs develop clear strategies using frameworks like Play to Win, then translate those into operational playbooks and stakeholder communications that demonstrate measurable community impact. Clients have used this work to secure increased public funding, expand program scope, and strengthen their political position within their communities. In 2020, Matt led the effort to build Madden's Voyage Intelligence platform from concept to profitability in 18 months - a product line that still powers their research infrastructure today. Matt teaches strategy and innovation as CDME faculty and speaks at 20+ industry events annually on destination strategy and practical AI implementation.
What’s "butter" than a happy hour? A Golden Hour.
Come enjoy an evening of buttery bites, curated pairings, and warm, glowing ambiance. Gold accessories are encouraged, whether you go bold or keep it subtle. Reception will feature a Texas shaped butter sculpture and our friends from Unreined Whiskey, a new distillery in Texas, will be sampling their four-grain bourbon.
Wednesday, April 15th
6:00pm - 8:00pm
Visit College Station - 1207 Event Space
1207 Texas Ave
College Station, TX 77840
Transportation will be provided to and from the lobby beginning at 5:45p of the Hilton College Station.
We look forward to welcoming you to College Station! View the Insider's Guide HERE.
Thank you to our presenting sponsor:
Interested in speaking at one of our events?