Astar Growth Summit 2026
THIS IS NOT ANOTHER EVENT!
Learn, apply, and watch it work.
A curated virtual innovation experience for growth leaders, combining Strategyzer’s proven methodologies with global, regional, and local expertise. Practical sessions turn innovation thinking into tools, approaches, and ideas leaders can apply in their organizations.
Bringing together a focused community of growth and innovation leaders, the experience is designed for meaningful learning, exchange, and connection. Fully virtual, it welcomes participants from across the region and beyond to explore new perspectives and turn ideas into action.
05 – 14 October 2026
15+ Online Sessions · 6 Days over 2 Weeks
7:00–09:30 PM KSA
Knowledge partner: Strategyzer
The Summit Starts in
05 – 14 October 2026, 7:00–09:30 PM KSA
The Experience
In PARTNERSHIP WITH Strategyzer
Built around globally proven innovative thinking and methodologies.
Organized by Astar, bringing global insight into the regional context and turning the summit into an ongoing platform for innovation leaders.
Enriched by regional and Saudi professionals
Global Insight
Global, regional and local innovation leaders share proven methods, experiences and lessons, not theory for theory’s sake.
Applied Application
Work with practical frameworks, case examples and implementation-ready tools.
Moments by Design
Sessions are curated to challenge thinking and create practical takeaways that can be applied inside your organization.
Beyond the Summit
The birth of the Astar Innovation community. Connect with a curated network of innovation, transformation, and growth experts.
Innovation is rarely held back by a lack of ideas. The harder questions are what happens next.
The Astar Innovation Summit explores those questions through a multi-session learning experience bringing together global methodology, regional context and practical implementation
Why Attend
An open regional platform for leaders in innovation, growth and transformation.
The Executive Sponsor
CEOs, MDs, C-suite leaders who care about growth, competitiveness, strategic bets, and the return on innovation.
- How does innovation contribute to growth?
- Where should we place strategic bets?
- How do we measure value and return?
The Innovation Operator
Innovation heads, transformation directors, VPs of strategy who care about implementation, tools, portfolio management, delivery.
- How do we build a real innovation system?
- How should portfolios be governed?
- How do we move initiatives into implementation?
The Business Builder
Founders, intrapreneurs, product and venture leads who care about new business models, pilots, customer value, the right foundations.
- Which opportunities are worth pursuing?
- How do we test new business models?
- How do we build around genuine customer value?
The Speakers
Alexander Osterwalder
Founder & CEO · Strategyzer
Michael N. Wilkens
Executive Advisor · Strategyzer
Gregory Bernarda
Founder · Upruption
Jonás Mosse
Program Director · Strategyzer
Tendayi Viki
Strategyzer
Leonardo Varella-Cid
CEO . InnovationCast
The Agenda
The agenda has been curated to create a cumulative “unforgettable” learning experience. Each week focuses on a specific persona. Both weeks cater to innovation managers. Each day is a combination of different mini-formats creating a variable tempo, and participants are carried throughout with beacon Emcees guiding them at every step.
Week 1 focuses on the Executive leadership Persona and cultivating the growth mindset, while week 2 focuses on the Entrepreneurial Builder Persona and transforming theory to practice
05 – 14 October 2026, 15+ Online Sessions · 6 Days over 2 Weeks
07:00 – 09:30 PM KSA time
Agenda – Day 1
Day 1
Monday, October 05, 2026
19:00
Why Six Nights and Not a Webinar: What You Walk Out With, and The Key Open Ended Growth Question.
Astar × Strategyzer
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Opening
19:15
The Dual Mindset, and Business Model Patterns
Speaker: Alexander Osterwalder,
CEO, Strategyzer
Keynote
20:15
Bridging the Global Perspective with the Regional Context
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Fireside
20:30
Sponsor Session
Speaker: To Be Announced
Sponsor
20:45
Rethinking Business Growth: What an Investor Here Actually Funds
Speaker: To Be Announced
Host: Faisal Alqethami
Spotlight
21:10
Day 1 Closing Remarks
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
CLOSING NOTES
Agenda – Day 2
Day 2
Tuesday, October 06, 2026
19:00
Nightly Intro: The Emcees Connect the Journey and Introduce Tonight’s Voices
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Welcome
19:10
Revenue Resilience: Why the engine you are protecting is the One at Risk
Seven Characteristics of Companies With Higher Resilience
Speaker: Michael N. Wilkins, Coach, Strategyzer
Keynote
20:10
Revenue Resilience: Local Case Study
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
FIRESIDE
20:25
Introducing the Breakout Rooms: Structure, Timeframe, Self Introductions, Top Challenges and Key Takeaways
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
BreakER
20:30
Networking Breakout Rooms
All attendees
Breakout SESSIONS
20:45
The Connection Between Entrepreneurship and Business Model Innovation
Speaker: To Be Announced
Host: Hashim Alzain
Spotlight
21:10
Day 2 Closing Remarks
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
CLOSING NOTES
Agenda – Day 3
Day 3
Wednesday, October 07, 2026
19:00
Nightly Intro: The Emcees Connect the Journey and Introduce Tonight’s Voices
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Welcome
19:10
From Disruption to Upruption: Lifting the Whole Ecosystem
Speaker: Gregory Bernarda – Initiator, Upruption
Keynote
20:10
From An Ecosystem Idea to a Saudi Institution
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Fireside
20:25
Connecting Innovation and Growth with Societal Impact
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami
Spotlight
20:50
Day 3 Closing Remarks
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Closing Notes
21:00
Ecosystem Deep-Dive with Keynote Speaker
Host: Gregory Bernarda – Initiator, Upruption
Exclusive: Executive Tier Access Only
Roundtable
Agenda – Day 4
Day 4
Monday, October 12, 2026
19:00
Nightly Intro: The Emcees Connect the Journey and Introduce Tonight’s Voices
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Welcome
19:10
Testing Business Ideas
Speaker: To Be Announced
Keynote
19:55
How Ideas Pivot Based on Testing: Local Case Studies
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
FIRESIDE
20:10
Building the Next Generation of Innovators
Speaker: To Be Announced
Host: Faisal Alqethami
SPOTLIGHT
20:35
Design Your First Experiment
Trainer: To Be Announced
WORKSHOP
21:20
Day 4 Closing Remarks
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Closing Notes
Agenda – Day 5
Day 5
Tuesday, October 13, 2026
19:00
Nightly Intro: The Emcees Connect the Journey and Introduce Tonight’s Voices
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Welcome
19:10
Enabling Organizational Change Through Momentum and Buy-In
Speaker: Tendayi Viki — Author, Associate Partner, Strategyzer
Keynote
20:10
Introducing the Breakout Rooms: Structure, Timeframe, Self Introductions, Top Challenges and Key Takeaways
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
BREAKER
20:15
Networking Breakout Rooms
All attendees
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
20:30
Story Telling & Innovation
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Hashim Alzain
SPOTLIGHT
20:55
Day 5 Closing Remarks
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
CLOSING NOTES
21:25
Transformation Deep-Dive with Keynote Speaker
Host: Tendayi Viki — Author, Associate Partner, Strategyzer
Exclusive: Executive Tier Access Only
ROUNDTABLE
Agenda – Day 6
Day 6
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
19:00
Nightly Intro: The Emcees Connect the Journey and Introduce Tonight’s Voices
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Welcome
19:10
Institutional Innovation – Making It Systemic – Local Case Study
Speaker: Leonardo Varella-Cid – CEO & Co-Founder, InnovationCast
Keynote
20:00
From One Organization Making It Systemic to a Country Doing It
Speaker: To Be Announced
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
Fireside
20:15
Creating an Innovation Ecosystem within a Large Organization
Speaker: To Be Announced
Host: Hashim Alzain
Spotlight
20:40
Summit Closing: Journey Recap, Key Takeaways,
Launch Announcement: Astar: the Community – Innovation Cohort
Hosts: Faisal Alqethami and Hashim Alzain
CLOSING Finale
21:00
Systemic Deep-Dive with Keynote Speaker
Host: Leonardo Varella-Cid – CEO & Co-Founder, InnovationCast
Exclusive: Executive Tier Access Only
Roundtable
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