As QCon San Francisco (Nov 17-21, 2025) approaches, the conference’s program committee and track hosts are sharing their top picks from this year’s lineup. Their selections span a wide range of topics, from AI-accelerated development and platform engineering to resilience patterns and career growth, all with QCon’s signature focus on real-world case studies and lessons learned.
Here are some of the most anticipated sessions, recommended by the experts who helped build the program.
Architecture & Migration
Thomas Betts, a QCon San Francisco 2026 Program Committee member, Laureate Application Architect @Blackbaud, Lead Editor for Architecture & Design @Info, highlights the power of storytelling in technical presentations. “Something that sets QCon apart”, he says, “is the focus on presentations that tell a great story, with useful lessons learned along the way”.
His picks for compelling architectural narratives include:
The Future of Development with AI
Track host Kaye Mason, a Software Engineer at Meta, emphasizes that the software industry is at an inflection point. “We’re not going to lose our jobs to an AI any time soon”, she notes, “but we might lose out to someone who knows how to use AI well…this is one of those ‘adapt or be left behind’ moments”.
Her must-see sessions on this topic are:
Leadership & Career Growth
For those looking to advance their careers, Mason also strongly recommends the entire track on senior engineering leadership.
- “The Path To Senior Engineering Leadership” (Entire Track): “All of them”, she says. “I am so stoked about each talk presenting a different perspective on how to grow a career in our industry. Every single speaker had a very different career path, and brings years of insights on how to build your skills and your career”.
Resilience, Performance & Observability
For track host Lorin Hochstein, the most valuable sessions often come from senior engineers sharing wisdom from decades of experience. “My favorite talks are ones like this”, he explains, “where a senior engineer shares wisdom from their years of experience”.
His selections reflect a focus on deep, practical insights:
Kaye Mason also highlights the importance of resilience and performance, recommending:
Keynote Spotlight
Thomas Betts also points to a keynote that aligns with his appreciation for a good story.
Additional keynotes will be presented by Nicole Forsgren, Michelle Brush, Shawna Martell and Dan Fike.
QCon San Francisco 2025 will take place from November 17 to 21 at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. The conference provides practical insights from practitioners who solve complex problems at scale. You can view the full schedule on the QCon San Francisco website.
Early bird tickets are now available.
