Pocket Gamer Connects Summit San Francisco smashed expectations
- PG Connects Summit San Francisco has concluded another successful edition at this year’s GDC week.
- 80% game makers, 70% senior decision-makers, 500+ companies, and 52 countries represented.
Hosted during GDC week, Pocket Gamer Connects Summit San Francisco brought games industry professionals to 715 Harrison on March 9th, once again serving as a key meeting point for the global mobile games business. With 500+ companies registered from 52 countries across six continents, the event delivered a full day of networking, business meetings and market expertise in the heart of the city.
The event boasted an impressive stage line-up, with the likes of Meta, Scopely, Marvel SNAP’s creators, Discord, Tencent, SYBO, Sensor Tower, Embark Studios and many more sharing their insight on stage. Helika and Avalanche hosted a series of entertaining product pitches, and Jun Koketsu from Sony Honda Mobility revealed the company’s new autonomous car entertainment platform.
By the numbers
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500+ companies
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52 countries across six continents
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80% game makers (developers, indies, publishers)
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39% C-level executives and over 70% senior decision-makers
While the headline numbers show the scale of the event, the real story was the quality of the conversations and connections taking place throughout the venue.
The summit facilitated a full day of networking, including curated meetings, informal meetups, VIP receptions and a lively evening celebration marking 20 years of Pocket Gamer.
Steel Media general manager Dave Bradley commented: “San Francisco gave us a glorious sunny welcome as the games industry arrived for GDC week, and our new home at 715 Harrison proved a brilliant setting for it. It’s close to the heart of the city, full of character, and packed with the kind of nooks and corners where the best impromptu conversations happen. The whole day had a real buzz to it, with people filling the space to talk about the challenges and opportunities facing the mobile games industry. It was also a pleasure for me to open the event and underline the sheer scale of today’s mobile games business as we brought together hundreds of people from across the industry.”
The focus of the day was set on forward-looking strategies and practical lessons for game makers navigating the current market. Topics like alternative publishing strategies, live ops models, monetisation and AI’s impact on game development were high on the agenda.
Craig Chapple revealed PocketGamer.biz’s inaugural Top 30 US Game Makers of 2026 list live from stage, featuring the likes of Activision Blizzard, EA and Roblox. Congratulations to Scopely for grabbing the top spot!
Next stops on the PG Connects world tour
With San Francisco now wrapped up, the PG Connects 2026 world tour is accelerating towards a few stacked months of events. Next stop is Dubai GameExpo Summit on May 20th-21st, followed by a debut summit in Malmö, Sweden, on May 27th and 28th.
After that, the series returns to Barcelona for a two-day games industry fiesta in the Spanish sun, June 15th-16th.
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