Hannover Messe · 2027

Agoris analysis · updated October 2026

Key takeaways

• HANNOVER MESSE is the world's largest trade fair for industry and production technologies: automation, energy, industrial AI, hydrogen, electric mobility and R&D transfer, brought together on a single site in Hannover.
• Organiser: Deutsche Messe AG, operator of the Hannover exhibition centre and the long-standing producer of the trade fair.
• Next edition: 5 to 8 April 2027 at the Deutsche Messe Hannover (Hannover Exhibition Centre).
• Latest results: the 2026 edition (20-24 April) drew around 110,000 visitors from more than 150 countries and over 4,000 exhibitors, down on the 127,000 visitors of 2025.
• Partner country 2027: Spain, following Brazil (2026) and Canada (2025). The partner country changes with each edition.
• Headline themes: artificial intelligence (the common thread running through every hall), Physical AI and robotics, automation, energy infrastructure, green hydrogen and electromobility.

Who exhibits

Typical profile

HANNOVER MESSE brings together the value chain of the manufacturing and energy industries: mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, automation and robotics, software vendors and industrial platforms (Industry 4.0, digital twins, industrial AI), energy players (grids, storage, hydrogen, fuel cells), electromobility, subcontracting and engineering, research and technology transfer. The main exhibition categories announced are Automation & Digitalization, Energy & Industrial Infrastructure and Research & Technology Transfer. In 2025, around 4,000 companies from 60 countries presented more than 10,000 products and solutions.

Notable exhibitors

The exhibitor list and hall plan are available on the official website: hannovermesse.de. The trade fair regularly brings together more than 4,000 companies from the electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, digital and energy sectors. The partner country's pavilion is a highlight every year: in 2026, Brazil deployed around 300 companies across 6 halls and 2,700 m², coordinated by ApexBrasil and SEBRAE (source: hannovermesse.de).

Quality of the visitor base

• Around 110,000 visitors in 2026, of whom roughly 40% were international, from more than 150 countries (source: Deutsche Messe AG).
• In 2025, around 127,000 visitors from 150 countries, more than 40% from abroad. Main countries of origin after Germany: China, the Netherlands, Canada, Poland, South Korea, Japan (source: Deutsche Messe AG).
• A professional visitor base of industrial decision-makers: technical, production, purchasing, R&D, energy and industrial information systems management.

Activities & community

Conference programme

The trade fair is paired with a dense conference programme built around the edition's main themes: industrial AI, Physical AI and robotics (including humanoid robots), automation, energy infrastructure, hydrogen, cybersecurity and industrial security. Artificial intelligence is positioned as a common thread running across all the halls. The detailed programme and speakers for the 2027 edition will be published as the trade fair approaches on hannovermesse.de (source: hannovermesse.de).

Community & networks

HANNOVER MESSE is run by Deutsche Messe AG, working closely with the German industrial federations, notably the VDMA (mechanical engineering) and the ZVEI (electrical engineering and digital), long-standing partners of the trade fair. The partner-country approach (Spain in 2027) shapes an annual exercise in economic diplomacy: memoranda of understanding, official delegations and national pavilions. The 2026 edition was opened by the German Chancellor and the Brazilian President (source: hannovermesse.de).

On site: what you need to know

Access, parking, transport and accommodation: see the Deutsche Messe Hannover listing.

Specific to the trade fair:

• 2027 dates: 5 to 8 April 2027 (Monday to Thursday).
• Scale of the site: the trade fair occupies many halls of the Hannover exhibition centre, one of the largest in the world. Expect significant distances between halls and plan your route by main category (Automation & Digitalization, Energy & Industrial Infrastructure, Research & Technology Transfer).
• Partner country pavilion: identify the location of the Spanish pavilion in advance, a focal point for delegations and official highlights.
• Accommodation: hotel demand in Hannover is very high during the trade fair, so book well in advance.

How much it costs to exhibit

Preparing your visit

For the exhibitor

• 12 months out: make contact with Deutsche Messe AG or the local representative, choose the exhibition category (Automation & Digitalization, Energy & Industrial Infrastructure, Research & Technology Transfer) and decide between an individual stand and a national group pavilion.
• 9 months out: book the floor space and hall, as placement in the flagship halls is decided early.
• 6 months out: design the stand, the live demonstrations and the logistics (handling, utilities, build-up).
• 3 months out: activate press and media relations (a high density of industrial journalists), and set up decision-maker meetings.
• 6 weeks out: brief the team, prepare the demos and the multilingual materials (a very international visitor base).

For the decision-maker attendee

• Register online at hannovermesse.de, and allow time for badge validation and proof of professional status.
• Target one or two exhibition categories in advance rather than walking the whole site: the centre is vast.
• Schedule your meetings via the trade fair's matchmaking platform before the event; walk-ins are not very effective at this scale.
• Book accommodation very early: Hannover is saturated during the trade fair.
• Identify the partner country's pavilion (Spain in 2027) for the official highlights and international sourcing opportunities.

CSR policy & initiatives

Industrial sustainability is a central editorial theme of HANNOVER MESSE: the trade fair showcases industry's solutions for decarbonised production (electrification, digitalisation, automation, renewable energy and its storage, smart energy management, hydrogen and fuel cells, the circular economy). This is a theme carried by the exhibitors, that is, technologies presented on the stands, rather than a certification of the event itself (source: hannovermesse.de).

The environmental commitments specific to Deutsche Messe AG as organiser (green energy at the centre, carbon-neutrality targets for operations, any ISO 20121 certification) are not documented in a verifiable way in the public sources consulted. To be confirmed with Deutsche Messe AG.

How the trade fair has evolved

Trajectory analysis

HANNOVER MESSE remains the benchmark trade fair for global industry, with a stable base of around 4,000 exhibitors from one edition to the next. On the visitor side, the 2026 edition (around 110,000 visitors) marks a dip compared with 2025 (around 127,000), which should be kept in perspective: these figures are reported by the organiser, and the attendance of an annual April trade fair depends heavily on the industrial climate and the calendar. The structural constant is strong internationalisation (more than 40% foreign visitors, 150 countries represented) and the partner-country mechanism, which brings a dedicated delegation and pavilion each year: Canada in 2025, Brazil in 2026, Spain in 2027. The thematic trajectory is clear: industrial artificial intelligence, robotics (including humanoid robots and Physical AI), hydrogen and electromobility are gaining ground and now shape the trade fair's narrative, against a permanent backdrop of decarbonising industry.

Unless otherwise stated, all factual data in this listing comes from the organiser's official website (hannovermesse.de).