Semrush Spotlight 2026 Heads to London With AI Focus

Semrush will bring its Spotlight marketing conference to London on October 13, 2026, with this year’s event focusing heavily on how artificial intelligence is changing the way consumers discover brands online.

The one-day event will take place at Old Billingsgate in central London and is expected to attract more than 1,000 marketers, with over 80 speakers and 100 sessions planned.

AI and the changing face of online discovery

The central theme of Spotlight 2026 is brand visibility — and, in particular, what happens to it as consumers increasingly use AI tools alongside traditional search engines to research products, services and companies.

This is becoming an important issue for ecommerce businesses. Online retailers have traditionally invested heavily in search engine optimization (SEO) and paid search to appear prominently in Google. But AI-powered search results and tools such as ChatGPT are creating additional places where consumers can discover — or fail to discover! — a brand.

According to Semrush, Spotlight will examine how marketers can respond to this shift, with sessions covering AI, search, content, branding and online visibility. Rather than relying solely on conventional presentations, the event will combine keynote talks with smaller workshops and “Mastermind” sessions designed around practical marketing challenges.

Semrush is positioning the conference around the idea of attendees arriving with a business problem and leaving with something they can put into practice. While that is an ambitious promise for a one-day event, the mixture of presentations and smaller sessions should give attendees several different ways to engage with the topics being discussed.

Speakers from OpenAI, Adobe, Wix and more

The speaker lineup includes marketing and technology executives from several companies with direct connections to ecommerce and digital marketing.

Scheduled speakers include Leila Woodington, Head of B2B Marketing EMEA at OpenAI; Andrew Warden, VP of Marketing at Adobe; Paula Ximena Mejia, VP of Marketing at Wix; Andrew Monu, VP of Marketing at LinkedIn; Crystal Carter, Head of AI Search and SEO Communications at Wix; and Naomi Francis-Parker, Organic Growth Manager at Deliveroo.

Other organizations represented include Spotify, Getty Images, WPP, ElevenLabs, Uber Eats, Yoast and Semrush itself.

The program includes more than 30 keynote presentations and over 60 Mastermind and workshop sessions. The Mastermind format puts small groups of attendees together with an expert to work through a particular marketing issue, potentially making these sessions particularly useful for businesses looking for practical rather than purely theoretical advice.

Yoiu can see the full Spotlight speaker line-up here.

Spotlight ticket prices

There are three main ticket options for Spotlight 2026.

At the time of writing, the Conference Pass costs £199, the All Access Pass £419, and the VIP Pass £599. These prices include a 20% discount available until September 24, although an additional service fee applies during registration.

The £199 Conference Pass provides access to the main Spotlight keynote stage, expo area, unlimited coffee and snacks and post-event cocktails.

The £419 All Access Pass adds access to the Signals keynote stage, workshops and Mastermind sessions. The £599 VIP Pass includes further benefits such as guaranteed access to three Mastermind sessions, early agenda access, priority check-in, a VIP breakfast and lunch, a private lounge, a reception with speakers and reserved seating for Spotlight keynote sessions.

(Workshop and Mastermind places require advance reservations, so purchasing an eligible ticket does not necessarily mean attendees can simply turn up to every smaller session on the day.)

Semrush AI Search Bootcamp available as an add-on

For attendees looking for more hands-on training, Semrush is also holding a separate AI Search Bootcamp on October 12, the day before Spotlight.

The full-day course is designed around improving brand visibility in AI-powered search. According to the agenda, it starts with an overview of how AI search works before moving into practical sessions on monitoring brand visibility, identifying opportunities to improve it and researching the prompts people use when interacting with AI tools.

Later sessions cover AI Visibility Auditing, competitor analysis and customer research, including a workshop on using AI to analyze customer reviews and identify themes that can inform marketing. The day concludes with a session on putting the different elements together into an AI search strategy.

The training is primarily built around Semrush’s own AI and SEO tools, so businesses should bear that in mind when assessing its wider usefulness. However, the topics covered — including prompt research, competitor visibility and understanding how AI systems represent a brand — are increasingly relevant beyond the Semrush platform itself.

The Bootcamp can currently be purchased separately for £349. It can also be added to a Spotlight ticket for £299 with a Conference Pass, £259 with an All Access Pass or £199 with a VIP Pass.

Matt Walsh

Matt Walsh is the Head of Content at Ecommercetrix. He also creates video content for the site and its associated YouTube channel.

Having gained a degree in Literature and Philosophy from Trinity College Dublin and an MA in International Relations from Dublin City University, Matt worked in the marketing world for a decade before taking up an education role — teaching languages, literature and creative writing in London.

Matt is an Adobe Certified Associate in Photoshop and Illustrator, and also holds a certificate in digital marketing from DMI (Digital Marketing Institute), along with a postgraduate certificate in Design Thinking, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Creative Thinking from Trinity College Dublin.

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