Registration is now open for the Fleet Forward Conference 2026, taking place October 20-22 and bringing together fleet leaders, OEMs, technology providers, safety experts, and other industry stakeholders to explore the technologies and strategies shaping fleet management.

The event includes keynotes, panels, roundtables, networking, and hands-on experiences covering artificial intelligence, autonomy, vehicle safety, electrification, connected vehicles, regulations, leadership, and fleet operations.

For work truck fleet professionals, several sessions stand out. We took a look at what you want to make sure is on your agenda this year.

See What the Commercial Fleet Market Really Looks Like

Fleet Forward Conference kicks off with “The State of Commercial Fleets: A Registration-Based Market Analysis,” featuring Nicholas O'Neil of Global Mobility and Chris Brown of Automotive Fleet.

Using registration data covering more than 1.5 million commercial vehicles across some of North America’s largest private fleets, the session will dig into fleet composition, electrification, hybrid adoption, truck populations, industry segments, and other emerging market trends.

The goal is to move beyond surveys and anecdotal information to give fleet professionals new benchmarks and a clearer picture of what is actually happening across the commercial fleet market.

Get Hands-On With AI for Fleet Operations

AI gets practical during “Get Ready to Vibe Code: A Hands-On AI Fleet Workshop,” featuring Kristin Leary of Syneos, James McKinley of City Rent a Truck, and Ernie Garcia of Gothic Landscape.

Rather than focusing only on fleet technology you can buy, the session looks at how fleet managers are beginning to use AI to create their own simple tools and workflows. Examples include automating reports, generating driver communications, and building lightweight applications, even for fleet professionals without a technical background.

AI will also take center stage in “Too Much Data, Not Enough Direction: How Agentic AI Is Helping Fleets Cut TCO.”

Doug DeTellem, VP of Product at Mike Albert Fleet Solutions, and Vidhya Vijayakumar, VP of Customer Success at Motorq, will explore how AI can help fleets make better use of data coming from telematics, repair orders, fuel transactions, utilization, and other systems.

The discussion will include real-world applications for streamlining maintenance timing, reducing fuel waste, and identifying rightsizing opportunities.

IIHS Turns Its Attention to Work Truck Safety

One of the most directly relevant sessions for Work Truck readers comes from Insurance Institute for Highway Safety President David Harkey. During the Fleet Safety Keynote, “IIHS Is Testing Commercial Vehicles: Early Insights for the Fleet Industry,” Harkey will share early findings from new IIHS testing and analysis of delivery vans, pickups, and work trucks.

The session will highlight occupant protection gaps and examine the growing role of crash-avoidance technologies as fleets make increasingly data-driven vehicle safety decisions.

Put a Dollar Figure on Fleet Safety

There is knowing crashes are expensive, and then there is understanding exactly where those costs are coming from. “Breaking Down Crash Costs: NETS Benchmarks and CoolSys Fleet Results” will bring that conversation into a real vocational fleet operation.

Moderated by Eric Richardson, the session features Art Kinsman of NETS and Shawn Martinez of CoolSys. It will examine how crash costs vary based on factors including speeding, distracted driving, seatbelt use, impairment, and industry segment.

Martinez will then share how the CoolSys HVAC and construction services fleet built a safer driving culture across an organization of 3,500 employees and reduced annual auto loss costs by 80%.

Hear What Fleets Want From OEMs

Work truck fleets depend on much more than the vehicle itself, particularly as ordering, upfitting, connected technology, maintenance, and remarketing become increasingly linked.

“What Fleets Want: The Future of the Fleet-OEM Relationship” brings fleet and OEM perspectives together to discuss what that relationship looks like next.

The panel includes Bob Adamsky of Arrow International; Eddie Nath of Mobilisights/Stellantis; Amrith Mehta, Head of Fleet Solutions at Ford Pro; and Jeff Shields, Head of Fleet Growth at OnStar Services.

The discussion will look at how technology is changing the fleet experience throughout the vehicle lifecycle, from ordering and upfitting through maintenance, connected services, and remarketing.

Look Beyond Robotaxis for Fleet Autonomy

Autonomy may still bring robotaxis to mind first, but the technology could have applications much closer to the work truck world.

“Beyond Robotaxis: The Next Use Cases for Fleet Autonomy” will explore how autonomous technology could reshape service, utility, government, logistics, rental, and other commercial fleet operations.

Eduardo Rojas, who previously worked on Uber’s autonomy development team, will be joined by Jeb Lopez and Automotive Fleet’s Chris Brown for a discussion of where autonomy may realistically fit within fleet operations, what barriers still stand in the way, and how fleet organizations can begin preparing today.

More Than a Future-Tech Conversation

For work truck fleets, the Fleet Forward Conference agenda is not just about what transportation might look like years from now. The sessions also tackle the problems fleet professionals are working through today, including safety costs, maintenance, data overload, vehicle lifecycle decisions, and finding practical ways to use new technology without adding even more complexity to the job.

Registration is now open for the Fleet Forward Conference 2026. Check it out and register today! We'll see you in Maryland!