Announcing The 44th ANNUAL PNSQC

Portland, Oregon
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October 12–14, 2026

The Pacific Northwest's premier software quality conference brings together practitioners, researchers, and leaders to share real-world knowledge and build a stronger quality community.

Submit Proposal Registration — Open Soon

Call for Proposals deadline:

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Quality professionals collaborating with AI and automation
Conference Theme

Quality in the Age of Autonomy

Software systems are becoming faster, more interconnected, and increasingly capable of acting with reduced human oversight.

Our 2026 conference examines how quality practices evolve across this spectrum—from primarily human-driven teams to highly automated and AI-enabled systems.

Regardless of tooling or maturity, quality remains grounded in intent, evidence, accountability, and learning.

Submit Your Proposal

Four Tracks for 2026

Whether you're a first-time author or experienced practitioner, PNSQC welcomes real-world experience and transferable insights.

Track 1

Quality Engineering & Systems Reliability

Engineering practices, architectures, metrics, and reliability techniques grounded in evidence and real-world experience.

Topics Include:

Test Design Automation Observability Integration Testing
Example paper titles
  • • Exploratory Testing as a Reliability Signal, Not a Last Resort
  • • What Actually Improved System Stability: Lessons from Production Defects
  • • Coverage Isn't Confidence: Rethinking What Our Tests Really Tell Us
Track 2

Organizational Quality & Leadership

Quality governance, decision frameworks, culture, and organizational strategy tied to measurable outcomes.

Topics Include:

Agile Practices Test Management Risk-Based Testing Leadership
Example paper titles
  • • Test Management That Supports Teams Instead of Slowing Them Down
  • • How We Made Better Quality Decisions with Fewer Metrics
  • • Quality Governance When You Don't Own the Code
Track 3

Emerging Technologies & AI Systems

Testing, evaluating, governing, and assuring trustworthy AI-enabled and intelligent technologies.

Topics Include:

AI Testing Bias & Fairness Explainability Governance
Example paper titles
  • • Testing AI Features When Expected Results Aren't Deterministic
  • • Introducing AI Testing into a Traditional QA Organization
  • • Human Oversight Models That Actually Work for AI Systems
Track 4

Tools & Productivity

Track description coming soon. This half-track will focus on practical tools, frameworks, and productivity techniques for quality practitioners.

Topics Include:

Tooling Productivity Frameworks

More details to be announced

Submit Your Proposal

First-time authors and practitioners without prior conference publishing experience are encouraged to submit.

Recent Events Hosted by PNSQC

Get your resume seen! Talks to help your tech job search.

Active event

Tuesday, Feb 17 · 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM PST

Trimble, 5665 Meadows Rd #400 · Lake Oswego, OR

RSVP:

Schedule (all times in PT)

  • 6–6:30 PM: Light refreshments and networking
  • 6:30–7:30 PM: Talks/Presentation
  • 7:30–8 PM: Q&A and more networking
Refreshments: Pizza Soft drinks

Come Jam With Us!

Past event: Jan 22 • 5–9 PM

Networking, lightning talks, and refreshments. Kick off the 2026 conference year with the quality community.

Workshop Day

Past event: Jan 23 • Full Day

Hands-on workshops: AI Orchestration, QA Re-Bootcamp, MCP Integration, and Test Plan Writing.

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