Breakpoint is back for 2026, and this year the conversation is a bit more honest.

Most teams already have AI somewhere in their testing workflows. The hard part now isn't adoption. It's the messy middle: integration problems, test suites that were supposed to get faster but somehow got more complicated, and the quiet uncertainty about what all of this means for your team long-term.

Breakpoint 2026 (12–15 May 2026, virtual, free) is built around exactly that moment: after the pilot, before everything clicks.

What is Breakpoint?

Breakpoint is BrowserStack's annual virtual conference for the global software testing community. It started in 2020 and has run every couple of years since, growing to 20,000+ attendees by 2025. It's always been free.

The format hasn't changed much across editions: practitioner-led sessions, no fluff, real workflows from people who've actually shipped the thing they're talking about.

This year's theme is Testing, Reimagined by Intelligent AI. Because most teams are somewhere between "we've adopted AI" and "we've figured out AI," and that gap is where the interesting work is happening.

Some of the people on stage (more to come)

The full speaker lineup is still coming together, but here are a few of the confirmed sessions:

  • Julio de Lima (QA Manager, Capco) is doing a live build. He'll write an API, design tests for it, automate them, and push them through a pipeline, all using AI code assistants like Copilot. The value isn't the tools, it's watching someone who actually does this daily show you how it fits together. If you've been circling API test automation without knowing where to start, this one's for you.
  • Brittany Stewart (Senior QA Specialist, QualityWorks Consulting Group) is presenting what she calls "Centaur Mode." She's logged real numbers from her own practice: 75% less time creating test scenarios after working AI into her workflow. But the session isn't about the win. It's about everything that went wrong first, and the model she landed on where the human stays firmly in the loop.
  • Keith Klain (Director of Quality Engineering, KPMG) is asking out loud something a lot of people think privately: has test engineering actually delivered what it promised? His session is called "The Death of Test Engineering" and it's not a gentle take. If you've ever sat through a testing ROI conversation that felt disconnected from reality, this will feel like fresh air.
  • Lena Nyström, CEO of Test Scouts AB, is presenting on how to read what your system is actually telling you when something breaks. Error messages, validation failures, alerts. She's been building software since 1999 and the session is as practical as that experience suggests.
  • Pramod Yadav (Test and Automation Specialist, Power Tester) went from idea to shipped SaaS MVP in a few days using AI agents, and then used those same agents to build quality gates so the thing didn't break the moment he added a feature. It's a first-person account of agentic testing in the wild, not a walkthrough of what the tools claim to do.

Day 3 is a full run of lightning talks: 10-minute sessions from practitioners sharing what they tried, what they measured, and what actually changed. More sessions and speakers are being added, so check the event page for the latest.

Is this for you?

Whether you're a QA engineer looking for technical depth, an engineering manager thinking about team structure in an AI-driven world, or a developer who cares about what happens after code ships, Breakpoint has content built for you.

Sessions span beginner-accessible to advanced practitioner level, and there are dedicated tracks for both hands-on practitioners and people in leadership roles.

Frequently asked questions

  • What is Breakpoint 2026? Breakpoint 2026 is BrowserStack's annual virtual conference for the global software testing community. It runs 12–15 May 2026 and covers AI in testing, test automation, quality engineering, agentic testing, and how QA roles are evolving.
  • Is Breakpoint 2026 free to attend? Yes. General registration is completely free. Workshop sessions have limited seats and require separate registration.
  • When is Breakpoint 2026? 12–15 May 2026. Sessions are scheduled in Pacific Time.
  • How do I register for Breakpoint 2026? Go to browserstack.com/events/breakpoint-2026. Registration is free and takes about a minute.
  • Will sessions be recorded? Yes. Registered attendees get access to recordings after the event.
  • What topics does Breakpoint 2026 cover? AI in software testing, test automation, quality engineering, accessibility testing, agentic testing, CI/CD, and how QA roles are evolving. Sessions range from hands-on practitioner content to strategic leadership tracks.
  • Who should attend Breakpoint 2026? QA engineers, SDETs, developers, and engineering managers. Content spans beginner-accessible to advanced practitioner level, with dedicated tracks for individual contributors and leaders.

Want to understand the bigger picture before May? Check out the State of AI in Software Testing 2026 report, which surveyed 1,000 software professionals on how teams are adopting AI in testing, where they're seeing ROI, and what's coming next.

Inside the State of AI in Software Testing 2026
BrowserStack’s State of AI in Software Testing 2026 report shows how high-performing teams are moving beyond experimentation to achieve measurable ROI, by prioritizing integration, disciplined adoption, and long-term maturity.
BrowserStack BlogShweta Chhillar