Maker Faire Rome 2026 opens calls for makers, schools and researchers

Applications are now open for one of Europe’s best-known maker and applied technology events

Applications are now open for Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition, which returns to Rome from October 23–25, 2026.

The deadline for applications across all categories is June 15.

Maker Faire Rome

I covered the event for Irish Tech News last year (Irish Tech News has been reporting from the fair since 2019), and it remains one of the more interesting and hands-on technology events in Europe, particularly for people working in engineering, fabrication, sustainability, robotics, education and applied research.

Three calls now open

Organisers have opened three separate calls for participation.

Call for Makers

Open internationally to startups, companies, makers and innovators working across robotics, AI, IoT, sustainability, digital fabrication, agritech, wearables, food technology, space technologies and related areas.

Call for Makers 2026

Call for Schools

Open to student teams aged 14–18 from Italy and across the European Union.

Call for Schools 2026

Call for Universities and Research Institutes

Open internationally to researchers, doctoral candidates, university teams, public research institutes and academic spin-outs.

Call for Universities and Research Institutes 2026

Selected participants receive exhibition space free of charge, including practical supports such as setup services, electricity and Wi-Fi where applicable.

Projects are reviewed by an independent Scientific Committee.

A very different type of tech event

Maker Faire Rome takes place at the Gazometro Ostiense complex, a huge former industrial gasworks site in the south of Rome.

The industrial setting suits the event well. Inside the old steel structures are hundreds of working demonstrations, prototypes, experiments and exhibits, ranging from school projects to university research and startup technologies.

The event is linked to the wider international maker movement through Make: and the broader network of Maker Faire events worldwide.

That maker culture still comes through strongly in Rome, with many projects still at prototype stage rather than polished commercial products.

Robots, research and experimental ideas

At Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition you could move within minutes from teams of robots playing football to scientific research tackling the Xylella fastidiosa pest devastating olive groves across southern Europe. Nearby were startup competitions, robotics labs, AI demonstrations, digital fabrication projects, accessibility technologies and experimental sustainability ideas. One area featured remarkable wooden pinball machines created by Italian maker Massimiliano Aiazzi, combining mechanics, craftsmanship and engineering using levers, pulleys and counterweights rather than electronics. Elsewhere, students demonstrated autonomous vehicles, researchers showcased underwater communication systems and artists explored the overlap between sculpture, fabrication and digital design. What makes Maker Faire Rome unusual is that it does not feel like a polished trade show. It feels more like a huge working laboratory where inventors, researchers, makers and students openly test ideas in public inside Rome’s Gazometro Ostiense.

The event also reflects Italy’s strong engineering and manufacturing tradition, with practical problem-solving and applied technology more visible than marketing hype.

Why events like this still matter

Many technology events are increasingly dominated by polished presentations and commercial messaging.

Maker Faire Rome still feels closer to a working laboratory. Visitors spend time talking directly with makers, researchers, engineers and students about technologies that are often still evolving.

For Irish startups, researchers, schools, makers and engineering-led projects, it remains a worthwhile event to watch and potentially participate in.

Applications close on June 15, 2026.

Maker Faire Rome is organised by the Rome Chamber of Commerce through Innova Camera, under licence from Make:.

Further details are available at Maker Faire Rome.

Read about Maker Faire Rome 2025 HERE

Billy Linehan

Billy Linehan writes about innovation, tech for good and entrepreneurship for Irish Tech News. He leads Celtar Advisers, working as a business mentor with SMEs and startup founders, and co-founded StartUp Ballymun, Dublin’s longest-running entrepreneurship series.  In recent months he has reported from technology and innovation events in Rome, Las Vegas, Orlando and Dublin.

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