Daily Digest: Friday, 31 July | AIDS 2026
On this final day of AIDS 2026, take a moment to recognize more than 200 volunteers whose generosity and hard work have kept the conference running smoothly all week. We are also proud to have welcomed more than 700 scholarship recipients, who will carry what they have learnt back to their communities and organizations – as we all will! Quick links Online programme Virtual platform Conference website Coming up today Convert to your time zone through the AIDS 2026 programme. All times in the programme are in Brasilia Time (BRT). 08:30Is AI the next breakthrough or the next buzzword for the HIV response? The question is posed in the final plenary of AIDS 2026, “New realities, new responses”. It also covers healthy ageing with HIV, and migration and HIV in Latin America and the Caribbean. The session concludes with the presentation of the JIAS Impact Awards. 10:30Learn about the results of a systematic review of the impact of PEPFAR funding cuts on HIV programmes in central, eastern, southern and western Africa in the oral abstract session, “The cost of cuts: Human and systems impacts on the HIV response”. Also, find out about the growing burden of metabolic complications in people living with HIV. Science-focused symposia look at host-virus interactions that could help design and evaluate next-generation HIV cure strategies, and review data from clinical trials and early implementation studies of long-acting injectable PrEP for HIV prevention. Symposia also focus on political leadership and parliamentary action and digital solutions to empower adolescents. 12:00 New insights into the HIV reservoir and what it takes to disrupt latency come under the spotlight. Oral abstract sessions also focus on studies around mental health in HIV treatment and prevention, and supporting people living with HIV and other conditions. Symposia examine how to rebuild trust and financing while sustaining HIV gains, and how to deal with late HIV diagnosis, a barrier to ending the pandemic. 13:30“DoxyPEP” shares findings of the first population-level evaluation of changes in STI rates following the publication of national DoxyPEP clinical guidelines in Australia. It also presents study results on the impact of DoxyPEP on STI diagnoses and antibiotic use among men who have sex with men and trans women on PrEP in Brazil. Oral abstract sessions also look at protecting LGBTQ+ health in hostile climates, communities driving HIV service delivery, and the persistence of TB, including relapse and post-treatment mortality among people living with HIV and TB. 14:45 Lead rapporteurs report back live on conference highlights. They focus on critical issues addressed, important results presented, and key recommendations put forward. 16:00 Be sure to join us for the AIDS 2026 closing session, where we come together one last time to reflect on a week of rethinking, rebuilding and rising. Hear from Regional and Local Co-Chairs Draurio Barreira and Claudia Cortes, followed by a community perspective from Jean Vinicius of the Brazilian Interdisciplinary AIDS Association. Outgoing IAS President Beatriz Grinsztejn delivers her closing remarks before Barbara Lee presents the Barbara Lee Political Leadership Award to activist and Brazilian Federal Deputy Duda Salabert Rosa. We welcome Kenneth Ngure as the IAS President, and close off with a live performance from Rio’s Bloco 442 brass band. The rapporteur report-back and closing sessions are free to watch on YouTube. Join us live at 14:45. Rapporteur summaries These are your go-to resources for highlights of AIDS 2026. Thanks to the AIDS 2026 team of expert rapporteurs, you can find daily recaps by each scientific track here. Official media partners Join the conversation The official theme of AIDS 2026 is Rethink. Rebuild. Rise. Share your story or message of support using #RethinkRebuildRise! Follow us on social media, explore the AIDS 2026 social toolkit for ready-to-use posts and graphics, and join the conference conversation. #AIDS2026 @AIDS_conference @International AIDS Conference @aids_conference @International AIDS Society @iasociety Thanks to our major industry sponsors
iasociety.org
