CPDP Conference 2026: “Competing Visions, Shared Futures”
On 19 of May 2026, the 19th edition of Computers, Privacy and Data Protection conference opened its doors to many participants coming from all over the world. A four-days extensive and fascinating programme, punctuated by lively debates and the constant clinking of cups were ahead of us, beneath the glass roof of the Maison de la Poste (Brussels). As expected, CPDP delivered on its promises.
First and foremost, the CPDP community should be credited for its welcoming spirit. Though it may be someone’s first time attending, it never feels overwhelming or intimidating. And why would it be? Questions, discussions and exchanges come easily. At CPDP, connecting with others feels like a second nature for participants, and a special thanks must go to Mozilla for funding the coffee spot, which facilitated connections with its now renowned queue, where you could meet absolutely anyone!
The variety of the programme is also to highlight: to navigate this flow of panels and workshops, some specific “tracks” were in place, with specialized focus on issues such as digital youth future, IT security, and DPO. The diversity of views was particularly reflected on issues such as the Omnibus Proposal and was finely conveyed through a set of panels representing stakeholders and point of views.
Beyond the tracks, a wide range of topics were covered. From broad societal issues to more technical legal tools, this conference edition successfully brought together different degrees of complexity and detail. You could either deep dive into risk assessments reports or discuss fairness as a transversal notion, sitting on a couch with twenty experts you just met. That’s also part of the magic brought by having workshops in the programme: these collaborative spaces for debating and brainstorming together are a brilliant idea (and one that definitely needs to be maintained in future editions of the conference!).
Building bridges within and among regulations to facilitate their implementation will undoubtedly be a key takeaway from this CPDP edition. It is precisely with the idea of “shared visions” in mind that the Chair organized a workshop on DSA-GDPR connection, aiming to identify transferable know-how from Data Protection Impact Assessment’s practice from the GDPR to help assessing systemic risks under the Digital Services Act. Similarly, panels on Fundamental Rights Impact Assessments also highlighted the need for this type of overlap to be exploited and turned into an advantage by professionals.
Artificial intelligence was also deeply discussed. AI explainability has made its way into panels, and some clever solutions were proposed to model GDPR-compliant XAI by leveraging the interdependence between AI systems’ design and data protection rules (see already on this topic, this 2022 article from Suzanne Vergnolle and Dylan Bourgeois). An idea which also constitutes a great follow-up to the workshop on fairness by design!
Critical thinking was the main protagonist of the conference, and CPDP would not be CPDP without its engaged community expressing its “competing visions”. It was precisely its community that brought a new energy to each panel discussion and to the workshop’s exchanges, drawing together new ideas for “shared futures” to be celebrated around the EDPS’ (friendly) cocktail.
However, as lively discussions can last so much longer than expected, timekeepers reminded us that time moves faster at CPDP. Didn’t you hear the bell ring? Staff would appear in every room a few minutes before the end of the session, filling the space with the sound of an ancient bell and, to a certain extent, its long history.
In short, if you enjoy sharing, discussing, debating and creating great connections, you’ll love the CPDP experience!
