What CEOs Are Saying: Morgan Stanley's TMT Conference 2026

Let's hear from leadership at IBM, Okta, and The Trade Desk. How are they holding up in the age of AI?

Every March, Morgan Stanley gathers tech execs in San Francisco for its Technology, Media and Telecom Conference. The event typically draws over 250 public companies and an audience of chief investment officers, portfolio managers, and analysts, and tends to produce (not always) more substantive exchanges than the prepared remarks of a typical earnings call.

The dominant theme of last week’s conference, according to Morgan Stanley’s own analysts, was a growing confidence that AI-driven productivity gains are real, as in showing up in actual margins.

Let’s look at presentations from three of the biggest players: IBM, Okta, and The Trade Desk.