Northern California Summit 2026

As boards work through AI acceleration, a reset exit market and rising expectations for trust, NACD Northern California Chapter members traveled to National Harbor, Maryland, for NACD Directors Summit® 2026, where several of them led conversations on the issues facing boards today.

Sean Aggarwal, Alan Boehme, Joe Hurd and Claudia Fan Munce explored the future of autonomous vehicles, the corporate fog of AI acceleration, governing when the future pushes back, and measuring the real return on AI; Barbara Adachi and Christopher Lee unpacked the exit market reset, while Melinda Yee Franklin spoke on next-generation shareholder engagement; and Shannon Nash, Linda Amuso and Marie Oh Huber examined the questions directors should be asking now, the board’s role in leadership transitions, and why transparency and vulnerability are boardroom assets.

Thank you to every speaker for representing our region so well and to the board members who joined us: Claudia Fan Munce, Christine Gorjanc and Melinda Yee Franklin. A special thank you to our board chair, Ira Ehrenpreis, for building a community of Northern California directors so engaged that they bring it across the country, giving their time to learn and connect with NACD on the East Coast. And to the entire NACD team, thank you for another outstanding Summit, with fantastic mainstage speakers who gave everyone a lot to think about. See you in 2027!

Thank you to our reception partners for making this event possible.