Mozilla Festival draws 3,000-plus to Barcelona around fairer tech vision

Mozilla Festival 2026 wrapped in Barcelona after three days with more than 3,000 attendees from 110 countries focused on building a more ethical digital future. Mozilla Foundation also announced the first 20 grantees of its $11 million Artists Make Technology initiative during the event.

Why it matters: - Mozilla Festival is positioning itself as a global convening for people trying to shift technology toward openness, equity and human dignity. - The festival's scale, international reach and new funding announcement underscore growing interest in alternatives to today's closed and extractive digital systems.

What happened: - Mozilla Festival 2026 ended after three days at Recinte Fabra i Coats in Barcelona. - The event was held by the Mozilla Foundation in partnership with the City of Barcelona and as part of Open Tech Week. - More than 3,000 people from 110 countries attended. - The festival used the theme "Wilding" to frame discussions and projects around a fairer, more ethical digital future. - Builders, technologists, artists and activists took part in more than 200 sessions, experiences and art installations. - Speakers included Dr Ruha Benjamin, Elizabeth Alexander, Gitanjali Rao and Stephanie Dinkins. - ALOK Vaid Menon served as emcee. - The festival also featured performances by the Saami Brothers and the Colla Castellera Jove de Barcelona.

The details: - Mozilla Foundation announced the first 20 grantees of Artists Make Technology, or AMT, during the festival. - AMT is an $11 million initiative developed with the Doris Duke Foundation. - The program gives performing artists funding and technical resources to build technologies for use in their own fields. - Mozilla Festival takes place annually at the intersection of art, technology and society. - Since 2010, the festival has brought together digital rights activists, ethical technologists and communities working on a healthier internet. - Mozilla Foundation describes the festival as a laboratory for bold ideas and collective action. - The event is organized across eight tracks, each co-designed by community co-curators from different regions and disciplines. - Mozilla Foundation says those tracks are meant to help re-imagine the foundations of a better tech future.

Between the lines: - Festival Director Zeina Abi Assy said the event showed what happens when human agency comes first and that participants built pieces of a more dynamic digital future together. - Abi Assy said the "Wilding" theme asked people to loosen the grip on how technology grows, and that the response came through care, creativity and courage. - The festival's framing reflects a broader critique of technology that can feel closed, controlled and extractive. - By pairing cultural programming with funding announcements, Mozilla Foundation is tying public storytelling to concrete support for new tools and communities.

What's next: - Mozilla Foundation said it is taking the energy from Barcelona into the year ahead. - The organization invited follow-up interviews with speakers and panelists after the in-person event. - Photos and b-roll are available on request. - Mozilla Foundation points readers to more information for background on its work and mission.

The bottom line: - Mozilla Festival 2026 used scale, art and funding to make a case for a more people-first internet, while signaling that the push for ethical technology is still gaining momentum.