Adobe MAX, the software company's annual creativity conference, takes over the Miami Beach Convention Center this week, bringing designers, photographers, video editors, and marketers to the city for three days of keynotes, classes, and parties.

The main conference runs Tuesday, Nov. 10 through Thursday, Nov. 12 at 1901 Convention Center Drive. Preconference training courses began Sunday and continue today.

Adobe says it expects more than 10,000 in-person attendees, and the audience is a global one. The last time the company published a breakdown, in-person attendees came from 74 countries, and people in 204 countries and territories took part online.

For three days, that puts Miami Beach at the center of the digital creative industry. The announcements made from the Convention Center stage Tuesday morning will be streamed to audiences across the Americas, Europe, and Asia, with separate online programs scheduled for each region.

The lineup includes actor Terry Crews, a closing-night concert by The Black Keys, and more than 200 sessions, labs, and photowalks. It is also where Adobe traditionally shows off what is coming next for Photoshop, Premiere, Illustrator, and its Firefly AI tools.

The main stage

Three events anchor the agenda, all times Eastern:

• Opening Keynote: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 9–11 a.m. This is where Adobe typically unveils its new product features.
• Inspiration Keynote: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 10–11:30 a.m., featuring creative leaders from outside the company.
• Sneaks: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 5:30–7 p.m. Adobe engineers demo experimental tools that may or may not ever ship. It is usually the most talked-about session of the week, and Crews hosts this year.

All three will be streamed free online.

Speakers to watch

Adobe's list of featured speakers mixes working designers with creators who built large audiences online.

Among them: beauty entrepreneur Michelle Phan, YouTube creator Dhar Mann, filmmaker Drex Lee, artist Shantell Martin, designers Aaron Draplin and Jonathan Anderson, illustrator and artist reporter George Butler, and Chris Do of The Futur.

A few sessions stand out on the schedule:

• Ramisha Sattar, creative director for the musician Chappell Roan, on how a handmade, scrapbook aesthetic scaled up to album art, tour visuals, and festival animations. Wednesday, 2 p.m.
• Chris Do and Liz Mosley on why creatives should collect rejections rather than avoid them. Wednesday, 4 p.m.
• Don Allen Stevenson III, a creative technologist, on building an interactive art world with a hybrid of AI and traditional Adobe tools. Tuesday, 5:15 p.m.
• Vanessa Rivera, the digital artist behind The Life of AIVAX, on turning ordinary moments into work that stands out in a crowded feed. Tuesday, 3:30 p.m.

Those four are among the featured sessions Adobe is also streaming.

Sessions, labs, and photowalks

The classroom program is organized into seven tracks: AI, branding, creative leadership, the creator economy, design and illustration, photography, and video, audio, and motion.

Labs are hands-on, 90-minute classes on computers Adobe provides. Photowalks pair a Lightroom lesson with two hours of shooting on foot. Attendees can also take Adobe certification exams on site at no extra charge.

AI runs through much of the catalog. Adobe labels each session by how heavily it leans on AI, from "AI Forward" to "Traditional Techniques," so attendees can choose either direction.

The winners of the Adobe MAX Creativity Awards will be announced during the conference.

Creative Park

The show floor, which Adobe calls Creative Park, is open 11 a.m.–8 p.m. Tuesday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Wednesday, and 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Thursday.

What's there:

• MAX Marketplace, where conference speakers and members of the creative community sell handmade goods.
• Creative Park theaters, with short talks and demos throughout the day.
• Free professional headshots from Adobe's photographers.
• Adoptable puppies and kittens. Adobe says the animals in its cuddle area are available for adoption.
• Hands-on stations with Adobe product experts, plus booths from sponsors including NVIDIA, Google Cloud, Microsoft, Samsung, Fujifilm, and Logitech.

The Black Keys at MAX Bash

The conference's closing party, MAX Bash, runs Wednesday from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m., immediately after Sneaks. Five-time Grammy winners The Black Keys headline.

Adobe's public agenda does not list a venue for the Bash.

How to take part, including if you live here

Adobe MAX is a badge-only event. There are no free walk-in days and no single-day tickets, and in-person attendees must be 18 or older. The regular full conference pass is $1,995.

There are a few cheaper ways in.

Free: watch online

Adobe streams the keynotes, Sneaks, featured sessions, and more than 50 online sessions at no charge on Tuesday and Wednesday. Adobe Live broadcasts from the show floor from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. both days.

Registration requires a free Adobe account but not a paid subscription, according to the conference FAQ. Sign-up is on the MAX Online page, and most sessions remain available on demand afterward.

$499: the Creative Park pass

The closest thing to a general-admission ticket is the Creative Park 3-Day pass, priced at $499.

It covers all three days on the show floor, Tuesday's Welcome Reception, product demos, and the Creative Park talks. It does not include the keynotes in person, the classroom sessions, or the labs.

Creative Park pass holders can add the Wednesday night party for another $200.

$399: the student rate

Students get the steepest discount: a full conference pass for $399.

To qualify, a student must be at least 18, enrolled at a higher-education institution, and carrying at least 12 credits. Adobe requires a current class schedule and a valid student ID at check-in.

Educators, government employees, and nonprofit employees are eligible for a $1,295 full pass. Promo codes for each discount are posted on Adobe's pricing page.

Adobe says in-person passes are sold until they run out, so availability this late is not guaranteed.

$200: a guest ticket to the Bash

The party is not open to the public. But each registered attendee may buy one guest pass for $200, which means a resident who knows someone attending can get in as their plus-one.

What neighbors will notice

Registration opens at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday and 7 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday, so expect the area around the Convention Center to be busy early.

Adobe is running complimentary shuttle buses between the Convention Center and conference hotels that are not within walking distance.

Small groups of attendees will be out on foot with their phones during the day as part of the photowalks.

Parking at the Convention Center runs $20 to $35 per day, according to Adobe's attendee guidance, and the venue has about 800 spaces. The city lists nearby public garages and lots on its parking page.

A repeat visit

This is Adobe MAX's second time in Miami Beach. The conference, long based in Los Angeles, came to the Convention Center for the first time in October 2024 and returned to Los Angeles in 2025.

The 2024 edition drew roughly 10,000 attendees, according to Business View Magazine. Miami Today reported that it generated more than $22 million in economic impact, and Convention Center general manager Freddie Peterson has separately cited a figure of roughly $25 million.

This year's conference is expected to bring an estimated $25 million in economic impact, according to a Convention Center announcement in June.

If you go

What: Adobe MAX 2026

When: Tuesday, Nov. 10 through Thursday, Nov. 12

Where: Miami Beach Convention Center, 1901 Convention Center Drive

Cost: Free online; $499 Creative Park pass; $399 student pass; $1,995 full conference pass

More information: max.adobe.com