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FOUNDation 2026

A graphic image with computers and acronyms GEO and AEO

Join the speaker line-up for FOUNDation: a two-day online conference exploring GEO and AEO for education marketing and content teams

Proposal deadline: 23:59 Pacific Time on Tuesday 3 February 2026

We're looking for engaging, generous and practice-driven speakers to join us at FOUNDation 2026 - a new two-day online event for education sector marketing and content teams that want to learn more about generative engine optimisation (GEO) and answer engine optimisation (AEO).

Learn more about the event

Whether you're in a university, college, school, or agency supporting the sector, we want to hear how you're adapting your systems, content and content strategies to ensure that your education institution stands out and is represented reliably and accurately in the world of generative AI and zero-click search trends.

You don’t need to have all the answers - we love honest stories about what’s working, what isn’t working, and what you're learning along the way.

We are especially interested in speakers from:

  • Education institutions around the world. We welcome non-native English speakers although the language of the conference is English

  • Underrepresented groups, including persons of colour and people with disabilities

  • Emerging roles and professions in the content space, including AI specialists, content engineers, content marketers and dedicated content strategy leads.

A note for vendors, consultancies and agencies:

You are always welcome to submit non-promotional session proposals for consideration for our programme. However, you may also wish to consider a sponsor partnership. Contact hello@contentedlive.com to enquire about sponsor and partner opportunities for FOUNDation and other ContentEd events.

What we’re looking for

We're looking for sessions that offer insight, spark ideas, and reflect the real-world challenges of planning content and content strategies for an AI-driven world in education marketing. Some of the themes we’re especially interested in include:

Formats and audience

All sessions will be delivered online. We welcome:

  • Solo talks (20–30 mins)

  • Paired or panel conversations

  • Case studies

  • Practical workshops or demos

Our audience includes:

  • Content and communications professionals

  • Digital and UX strategists

  • Marketing and student recruitment teams

  • Education sector leaders working on digital transformation

First-time speakers welcome

You don’t need a big job title or a polished pitch. If you’ve got a story worth sharing, we want to hear it. We’re especially keen to hear from:

  • People experimenting in the field with AI optimisation

  • Professionals from a wide range of education institutions and roles

  • Those working behind the scenes to improve content and user experience

We’re committed to creating a welcoming, inclusive and supportive event.

Speaker benefits

In return, speakers selected for our line-up receive:

  • A free place to attend the whole event for you and a colleague

  • A speaker honorarium of £50 per session

  • Additional ticket discounts for your network.

📌 Search optimisation in an AI-driven world

  • Standing out in AI overviews

  • Preparing your content for discoverability

  • Ensuring that AI overviews represent your brand accurately and fairly.

📌 Generative engine optimisation

  • Optimising your content for use by generative AI tools

  • Staying competitive and ensuring your content is referenced

  • Understanding how generative AI uses and references your content and your brand.

📌 Audience behaviours and insights

  • Understanding how key education audiences - such as prospective students - are using AI

  • Exploring issues around perceptions of trust and reliability

  • Transparency around institutional use of AI.

📌 Measuring performance with zero-click behaviour

  • Understanding the implications of AI technologies on performance metrics

  • How to know if your content is working when engagement and interactions are all taking place through search engines and third party generative AI platforms

  • Explaining the impact of AI search to senior leaders and stakeholders.

Submit your speaker proposals today

Speaker proposal are now open.
Deadline for proposals: 23:59 Pacific Time on Tuesday 3 February 2026

A note on co-presenting: We do allow co-presenting of sessions but we don’t necessarily encourage it. Co-presented sessions can feel disjointed, and we want to avoid that. We therefore ask that this is intentionally considered and well-planned. If you wish to have more than two speakers in your session, please email us hello@contentedlive.com.