The Government of Karnataka, in association with the Association of Bangalore Animation Industry (ABAI) and Startup Karnataka, today announced the seventh edition of Bengaluru GAFX 2026, Asia’s largest annual conference and exhibition for Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics, XR, and immersive and interactive content. The event is being organised and executed by Phase 1 Events, the official event partner for Bengaluru GAFX 2026.
Scheduled to be held from February 27 to March 1, 2026, at the Hotel Lalit Ashok, the three-day conference and exhibition will bring together creators, studios, technologists, investors and industry leaders from across the global media and entertainment ecosystem.
Karnataka continues to play a leading role in India’s Orange Economy, where creativity, culture and advanced technology converge. Supported by Bengaluru’s deep talent pool across digital content, gaming, VFX, XR, artificial intelligence and real-time technologies, the state contributes nearly 20 per cent of India’s media and entertainment industry. Karnataka is home to more than 300 AVGC-XR studios and a workforce of approximately 15,000 professionals, backed by a strong freelance and gig economy.
‘Evolution Reloaded’: Powering the next phase of growth
The theme for this year’s edition, “Evolution Reloaded,” reflects the next phase of growth for the AVGC and immersive media industries, where human creativity converges with advanced technologies to redefine storytelling, gameplay, animation and immersive experiences. Bengaluru GAFX 2026 will focus on recharging skills, redefining progress and reimagining possibilities across animation, VFX, gaming, AI-driven creativity and immersive technologies.
The vision aligns with the Karnataka AVGC-XR Policy 2024–2029, described as India’s most future-ready policy framework for the sector. The policy aims to accelerate growth across animation, visual effects, gaming, comics, XR and emerging creative technologies, while enabling IP creation, research and development, global collaborations, advanced skilling and technology adoption.
AVGC Centre of Excellence anchors ecosystem growth
A key pillar of Karnataka’s AVGC strategy is the AVGC Centre of Excellence (CoE), which serves as the operational backbone of the state’s creative technology ecosystem. The CoE has executed more than 200 projects across domestic and international markets and has supported over 100 AVGC startups by providing access to infrastructure, licensed software, render capacity and production-ready environments.
With AVGC CoE 2.0, the state is extending access beyond Bengaluru to Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, building a distributed creative technology network integrated with machine learning, cloud-based production pipelines, real-time engines and XR authoring tools.
GAFX 2026 highlights and global participation
Bengaluru GAFX 2026 will feature sessions on major Indian productions including Kantara Chapter 1, Kurukshetra, Mahavatar Narasimha, Dhurandhar and Lokah. The programme also includes a book-to-screen session with author Anand Neelkanthan and cinematography and virtual production sessions featuring directors of photography from Kantara, Baahubali and OG.
With over 200 speakers across 100-plus sessions, masterclasses and workshops, the event will host experts from studios such as Industrial Light & Magic, Netflix, MrX, Base FX, Monk Studios and The Perlin. Additional features include a dedicated AI-for-VFX track, Comics Street, board game launches, GAFX Art Challenges and a B2B Investor Connect.
Speaking at the curtain-raiser, Priyank Kharge, Minister for Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka, said, “For over a decade, Bengaluru GAFX has been a key catalyst for India’s AVGC sector—bringing together talent, technology, policy and global opportunity on a single platform. ‘Evolution Reloaded’ reflects Karnataka’s belief that the next phase of AVGC growth will be driven by the convergence of deep technology and human creativity.”
Manjula N., IAS, Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics, IT, BT and Science & Technology, said, “Through focused initiatives such as the AVGC-XR Policy and the Centre of Excellence, we are translating policy intent into measurable industry impact and global partnerships.”
Biren Ghose, President of ABAI, said, “Bengaluru GAFX has reshaped how the world values India’s creative talent. ‘Evolution Reloaded’ is our declaration that the future of storytelling belongs to humans who can command new intelligence, including AI.”
Over the years, Bengaluru GAFX has hosted global studios such as Walt Disney Animation Studios, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks Animation, Netflix and Rockstar Games, reinforcing Bengaluru’s position as a global creative technology hub.
As preparations gather momentum, Bengaluru GAFX 2026 – Evolution Reloaded, delivered by Phase 1 Events, invites creators, innovators and industry leaders to be part of a platform shaping the future of India’s Orange Economy and the global AVGC-XR landscape.
