Emerging Technologies Conference

Experience what’s shaping tomorrow’s textiles before it reaches mainstream industry.

November 2, 2026

Orlando, FL USA
Orange County Convention Center (West Building)

Stay ahead of the curve. Dive into exclusive sessions led by industry experts, researchers and pioneers leading the charge of cutting-edge textile technology.

Add Emerging Technologies Conference to your Advanced Textiles Expo ticket to take full advantage of both shows.

2026 Session Schedule

Monday, November 2

10 am–10:50 am	Engineering Anti-Smoke Textiles: Insights from Controlled WUI and Battery Fire Simulations Prof. Guowen Song, Professor and Lloyd Chair in Textiles and Clothing, and Dr. Rui Li, Assistant Research Professor and Project Manager, Iowa State University Read more.

10 am–10:50 am	Tina & Tara Turn Tense: Digital Tension Twins for Textile Machines Dr. Topher Anderson, Owner, Textile.org Read more

11 am–11:50 am	Engineering Non-Wood Dissolving Pulp: What It Really Takes to Make Agricultural Feedstocks Spin Lelia Lawson, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Zylotex Inc. Read more

11 am–11:50 am	Enhancing Adhesive Strength Between Fabric and an Additive Manufactured Composite Dr. Rebecca Ruckdashel, Research Engineer III – Textiles, FASTR Lab, Advanced Structures and Composites Center, University of Maine Read more

11:50 am–12:45 pm	Emerging Technologies Conference Lunch Included in conference ticket.

12:45 pm–1:35 pm	Plants: The Original Textile—Lessons and Applications for Biomimicry Daryl L. Thompson, Director of Scientific Initiatives, Global Research and Discovery Group Read more

12:45 pm–1:35 pm	Dynamically Tunable Visible and IR Structural Colors Debashis Chanda, University of Central Florida Read more

1:40 pm–2:30 pm	From Fiber to Finish: High‑Performance Biobased Fire Retardants with Sustainable, Clean Chemistry Satish Hodage, Chief Technology Officer, YUJ Labs LLC Read more

1:40 pm–2:30 pm	Functional Textiles, Current Gaps, and Opportunities for Innovation Saloni Purandare, Ph.D., Program Chair and Instructor, Textile Technology Program, Gaston College Read more

2:40 pm–3:20 pm	Flexfactory and SUSTAIN: A Comparison of North American and European Pathways to Successful Collaboration and Entrepreneurship Dr. Amanda Mills, Assistant Professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University; Dr. Marie O’Mahony Programme Leader, MSc E-textiles and Wearable Technologies, Knowledge Exchange Enterprise (KEE) Champion Fashion and Textiles, WSA, University of Southampton, UK Read more

2:40 pm–3:20 pm	Unfolding Power: How Origami-Inspired Fabric is Creating the Next Generation of Self-Powered Sensors Dr. K.R. Sanjaya D. Gunawardhana, Postdoctoral Researcher, Dublin City University Read more

3:35 pm–4:25 pm	Circular Performance Footwear: Linking Foam Degradation, Material Recovery, and End-of-Life Design Intelligence Dr. Kedena Henriques-Thompson Read more

4:35 pm–5:25 pm	Don’t Let Your Color Expertise Retire: Building an AI Tool That Learns and Diagnoses in the Dye House Yuan Sun Ph.D., Candidate Student, Color Science and Imaging Laboratories, North Carolina State University Read more

5:30 pm–6:30 pm	Emerging Technologies Networking Reception Included in conference ticket. Meet and debrief with fellow innovators and industry leaders in a casual setting.

Tuesday–Thursday	Advanced Textiles Expo: Show Floor and Education Included in conference ticket. Explore education sessions, see latest tech up close at exhibits, meet with suppliers, and make connections that will benefit your business.

Speakers and sessions are subject to cancellation or change.

Engineering Anti-Smoke Textiles: Insights from Controlled WUI and Battery Fire Simulations
Prof. Guowen Song, Professor and Lloyd Chair in Textiles and Clothing, and Dr. Rui Li, Assistant Research Professor and Project Manager, Iowa State University Read more.

Tina & Tara Turn Tense: Digital Tension Twins for Textile Machines
Dr. Topher Anderson, Owner, Textile.org Read more

Engineering Non-Wood Dissolving Pulp: What It Really Takes to Make Agricultural Feedstocks Spin
Lelia Lawson, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Zylotex Inc. Read more

Enhancing Adhesive Strength Between Fabric and an Additive Manufactured Composite
Dr. Rebecca Ruckdashel, Research Engineer III – Textiles, FASTR Lab, Advanced Structures and Composites Center, University of Maine Read more

Emerging Technologies Conference Lunch
Included in conference ticket.

Plants: The Original Textile—Lessons and Applications for Biomimicry
Daryl L. Thompson, Director of Scientific Initiatives, Global Research and Discovery Group Read more

From Fiber to Finish: High‑Performance Biobased Fire Retardants with Sustainable, Clean Chemistry
Satish Hodage, Chief Technology Officer, YUJ Labs LLC Read more

Functional Textiles, Current Gaps, and Opportunities for Innovation
Saloni Purandare, Ph.D., Program Chair and Instructor, Textile Technology Program, Gaston College Read more

Flexfactory and SUSTAIN: A Comparison of North American and European Pathways to Successful Collaboration and Entrepreneurship
Dr. Amanda Mills, Assistant Professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University; Dr. Marie O’Mahony Programme Leader, MSc E-textiles and Wearable Technologies, Knowledge Exchange Enterprise (KEE) Champion Fashion and Textiles, WSA, University of Southampton, UK Read more

Unfolding Power: How Origami-Inspired Fabric is Creating the Next Generation of Self-Powered Sensors
Dr. K.R. Sanjaya D. Gunawardhana, Postdoctoral Researcher, Dublin City University Read more

Don’t Let Your Color Expertise Retire: Building an AI Tool That Learns and Diagnoses in the Dye House
Yuan Sun Ph.D., Candidate Student, Color Science and Imaging Laboratories, North Carolina State University Read more

Emerging Technologies Networking Reception
Included in conference ticket. Meet and debrief with fellow innovators and industry leaders in a casual setting.

Advanced Textiles Expo: Show Floor and Education
Included in conference ticket. Explore education sessions, see latest tech up close at exhibits, meet with suppliers, and make connections that will benefit your business.

Speakers and sessions are subject to cancellation o change.

SEE FULL SCHEDULE

Stay For the Full Show

Stick around for the full Advanced Textiles Expo show Nov. 3–5, included in your conference ticket. Explore the dedicated exhibit hall space of Emerging Technologies innovators, suppliers, beginners and experts. Get inspired, make connections, discuss opportunities and find new products. Join dozens of vendors, associations, and ATA partners in this vibrant pavilion.

Don’t miss the show floor education. Interactive sessions are also hosted right on the show floor in dedicated education booths. Topics include AI applications in textile industry, anti-smoke textiles from battery incidents, next generation engagement, creating advanced medical textiles, the future of manufacturing and much more. Stop by for fun, informal and digestible sessions and keep the conversation flowing back to the exhibitor booths.

A man in a green striped shirt operates a machine, feeding a vibrant green sheet. Blurred figures and industry booths are in the background.

A booth displaying colorful shutters (red, blue, green) at a trade show, with a presenter demonstrating features to an engaged audience.

Two men smile and engage at a trade show booth, surrounded by displays of colorful equipment and plants. A seated attendee is in the background.

Three men stand smiling in a conference setting, with posters of past winners displayed in the background. They are casually dressed.

View Show Floor Map

View Show Floor Education

Especially valuable was the approach the speakers took. They presented significant technical challenges and opportunities with appropriate societal context, provided insights as to various paths being used to address the problem, delivered insights on innovative new approaches, and made a call to action for collaborative efforts to complete the solution.

Matt O’Sickey, PhD

Director of Education & Technical Affairs for INDA

Learn More

Emerging Technologies Council – ETC serves as the principal international resource providing members with the most current information on research, best practices and innovative knowledge available to advance emerging technologies within materials, products, processes and more.

Learn more about Emerging Technologies Council.

“Having now visited ATA shows for more than 5 years, I’d like to share with you our excitement and satisfaction during this year’s show. This year was particularly effective for us, as we had several opportunities to share our public funded research results with interested public.”

Andreas Bisinger
DITF–German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research, Germany

Contact Us

events@textiles.org