Reliable events industry data: what Athena is

Athena gives you the events industry figure you can defend to your client, with its study, its page and a link to the document. Free; sign-up optional.

· 4 min read
Reliable events industry data: what Athena is

Your client has to approve the budget for the 2026 event. You want to raise it. In the meeting someone is going to ask: “And who says so?”.

If you got the figure from ChatGPT or saw it on LinkedIn, you have nothing to show. With Athena you do. It gives you the figure, the study it comes from and the page. And you can open the document in front of your client.

What is Athena?

Athena is a free tool from Sinapser. You ask it a question about the events industry, the way you would ask a colleague. It answers with figures from real industry studies.

Those studies include ones from UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry. Also from AUMA, the German trade fair association, and from EITW (Europäisches Institut für TagungsWirtschaft), the German institute for the meetings industry. And from companies such as Cvent.

Every figure comes with three things:

  • The name of the study.
  • The page where it appears.
  • A link to open the document.

If no study measures what you’re asking, it tells you so. It doesn’t give you a number just to look good.

How does it help you defend a budget?

Imagine you’re preparing the 2026 proposal for your client. You want to justify a higher budget. You ask Athena how organisers expect their budgets to change in 2026.

It answers with two studies.

The first is EITW’s German meetings and events barometer. It is an online survey run from January to March 2026 among organisers in Germany and other countries. On page 40, 51% plan to increase their event budget for 2026. 41% will keep it the same and 8% will reduce it. The average change is +6.5%.[1]

The second is Cvent’s report on 2026, with more than 1,650 planners worldwide. On page 1, 69% expect their event budgets to rise in 2026. And 72% expect their spend to rise by up to 20% compared with 2025.[2]

With that, you have your slide. Something like this:

“51% of organisers plan to increase their event budget in 2026, with an average change of +6.5% (EITW, Meeting- & EventBarometer 2025/2026, p. 40).”

If your client asks where it comes from, you open the document at page 40 and show them.

What if you organise a trade fair?

Your exhibitors want to know whether the industry is using AI seriously yet. So does your committee. You ask Athena.

It answers with the UFI Global Exhibition Barometer, 37th edition. It is a survey closed in June 2026 of 466 exhibition industry companies from 59 countries and regions. On page 20, 75% of trade fair organisers regularly use standard AI tools.[3]

It is a figure you can put in your presentation to exhibitors. With its page.

What does Athena warn you about so you don’t slip up?

Alongside the figures, Athena tells you how not to misuse them. On the budget question it warns you about three things:

  • They are different surveys. One asks organisers for the German barometer and the other asks planners worldwide. That is why it doesn’t mix the 51% with the 69%.
  • Cvent’s 72% is about spend. You were asking about budget. It isn’t the same thing.
  • They are expectations. It is what organisers believe will happen in 2026, not what has happened.

It also tells you what isn’t measured. None of these studies gives an average increase that holds for all organisers. If your client asks you “how much will budgets rise across the whole industry”, you now know what to say. And you can explain why.

What if I already use ChatGPT?

ChatGPT writes very well. For drafting an email or summarising a document it is very useful. Figures are another matter. Often you don’t know which study they come from, what year or what country.

If ChatGPT or Claude is already your everyday tool, you can connect Athena to them. That way you get figures with their source without leaving your chat. For that you do need to sign up.

What else can I ask it?

Anything you’re asked for in a proposal or a committee. For example:

If you want to get more out of it, here is how to research with Athena.

Ask your first question at athena.sinapser.com. It’s free and you don’t have to sign up.

Sources

  1. EITW, “Meeting- & EventBarometer Deutschland 2025/2026” (open access): an online survey run from January to March 2026 among organisers in Germany and other countries. Budget forecasts for 2026 on page 40.
  2. Cvent, “The 2026 Global Cvent Planner Sourcing Report” (download after a form): survey with Censuswide of more than 1,650 event planners worldwide. Budget and spend expectations for 2026 on page 1.
  3. UFI, “UFI Global Exhibition Barometer, 37th Edition” (open access): survey closed in June 2026 of 466 companies from 59 countries and regions. Regular use of standard AI tools among trade fair organisers on page 20.

Frequently asked questions

Is Athena free? Do I need to sign up?

It is free. At athena.sinapser.com you ask without signing up. You only need to sign up if you want to connect it to ChatGPT or Claude.

Can I put Athena’s figures in a presentation?

Yes. Cite the study Athena gives you, with its year and its page. And keep the link to the document to hand.

What do I do if Athena says there is no data?

Don’t use a figure without a source. Say you haven’t found a study that measures it. Or try a similar question that is measured.

Who is behind Athena?

Sinapser, an AI lab for the events industry. Its founder, Iván García, has been applying AI to events since 2013.

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