SHAKA Festival 2026: In Biarritz, French tech swaps conference halls for the beach

A tech conference where deals are signed as much on the surfboard as in the networking space. This is the bet of the SHAKA Festival, returning to the Cité de l'Océan in Biarritz from September 24 to 26, 2026. Founders, CTOs, and investors come for a format that embraces its "anti-conference" side and for a lineup that mixes crypto, AI, and French institutions.

In brief

• Dates: September 24-26, 2026, Cité de l'Océan, Biarritz (doors open at 9 AM on the 24th, closing on the 26th at 2 PM).
• Over 2,500 participants, 80+ speakers, 100+ companies, and 30+ media outlets announced by the organizers.
• A rare mix: crypto partners (Binance, Crypto.com, Polkadot, Solana) alongside BPI France, Airbus, and the Basque Agglomeration Community.
• Ticket sales in waves: Early Bird 120 € sold out, Regular 190 € ongoing, Last Wave 240 € coming soon.

A festival that embraces not looking like a conference {#h-a-festival-that-embraces-not-looking-like-a-conference}

The positioning can be summed up in a formula that the festival itself claims: "no actors, no consultants". On site, you meet founders, technical directors, investors, and makers, not panel professionals. The program is calibrated for encounters: SHAKA Awards ceremony and opening night on the first evening, surf & yoga session on the second day, followed by a walk to the Biarritz lighthouse and brunch facing the ocean to close. The format "deal flow as much as surfboard" is not an empty slogan: it is the mechanism for networking.

This is not a trial run either. Born in 2022 under the name NFT Biarritz, the event was renamed SHAKA in 2024 to broaden its scope to AI and tech in general, and it now claims its fifth edition. Behind the organization are the Dupont brothers, Damien, head of OpenGem, and Franck, CTO of nüme.

Binance alongside BPI France: a variable geometry lineup {#h-binance-alongside-bpi-france-a-variable-geometry-lineup}

This may be the true signature of SHAKA: the coexistence of universes that rarely intersect. On the crypto ecosystem side, the booths include Binance, Crypto.com, Polkadot, Solana, and the CES Web3 Tokenization Village. On the institutional and industrial side, you find BPI France, Airbus, or the Basque agglomeration. A mix that explains the event's reputation among both Web3 and "traditional tech" audiences.

The lineup of speakers follows the same logic. Among the already confirmed names are: Paul Midy, a deputy engaged in tech issues, Rachel Delacour (CEO of Sweep), Francis Lelong (CEO of Alegria Groupe), Sylvain Theveniaud (Allianz Accelerator), or Hervé Bloch (Le Fund), alongside Maider Arosteguy, mayor of Biarritz. More announcements are expected in the weeks leading up to the event, so the list is not fixed.

A useful clarification for the French reader: the presence of a platform as a partner or exhibitor is a sponsorship of the event, not a recommendation. Some services presented on site are subject to access restrictions depending on jurisdictions, and it is up to each individual to verify their eligibility.

One question remains that the format subtly raises: can a festival that bets as much on surfing as on round tables remain a serious business venue as it grows? The organizers aim for 2,500 people this year. See you on September 24-26, between two waves, to see if the balance holds.