The third day of the 2026 Conference was live in Salt Lake City, Utah with thousands of persons in attendance, and thousands more watching some of the conference classes online for free. I chose to be an online viewer rather than an in-person attendee due to my physical restrictions.
1) Over the past week, I selected online classes for "My Schedule" and have downloaded syllabus articles and slide decks for many of the online and in-person classes. You can see the current list of RootsTech 2026 online and in-person speakers and presentation titles in https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/schedule/preview.
2) My activities today were sandwiched around my visit to the Men'sa Bible Study in the morning, a nap in the afternoon, but I was able to watch some of the classes on my class schedule. Here are the classes that I watched, either partially or completely:
- Wanted! Seeking the Identity of Unknown Parents by Dana Palmer. The class description is:
Are you struggling to find your ancestors’ parents? Learn how to bust those brick walls and find your family by using a variety of sources. This lecture is geared for more advanced researchers and examines two kinship case studies for an Ohio couple who moved west. This advanced-level session is sponsored by BCG and ICAPGen.
- The Future of AI in Genealogy – Panel with David Ouimette (FamilySearch), Steve Little (NGS), Diana Elder (Family Locket), Dave Vance (FTDNA) and Mark Thompson (Moderator).
The panel was asked these questions:
- How AI is impacting genealogy — what is working today, and what is still on the horizon
- What is driving the change — inside the companies building these tools and among the researchers using them
- Are we going too fast or too slow — balancing the enormous potential of AI with the need for accuracy, privacy, and trust.
- DNA Swim School – Part 3: Swimming Toward Your Ancestors by Diahan Southard. The class description is:
In DNA Swim School Part 3, you’re ready to go beyond grouping matches—you want to figure out how they’re related to each other and to you. But what if your match network feels incomplete or unclear?
This session is all about what to do when the simple path doesn’t appear. You’ll learn how to take stock of what you do know, test hypotheses using tools like Shared Matches of Matches (SMoMs) and WATO (What Are the Odds?), and follow a process to move forward even when your network isn’t perfectly connected.
NOTE: Stopped watching – no slides were shown - PICNIC happens.
- Question Everything: Sharpen Evaluation, Avoid Assumptions, & Clarify Your Writing by Kelley Conner Lear. The class description is:
No matter how long you've been a genealogist, asking yourself the right questions can transform your research and your writing. In this session, we’ll look at how questioning yourself can guide you from the beginning of your process through testing hypotheses, assumptions, deepening analysis, and refining writing. Whether you’re working through conflicting evidence, or polishing your proof arguments, these straightforward strategies will help you sharpen your work. Attendees will benefit from a thorough understanding of the Genealogical Proof Standards and BCG Genealogy Standards. This advanced-level session is sponsored by BCG and ICAPGen.
3) I checked the Relatives at RootsTech page tonight and saw that I have 49,995 relatives listed at RootsTech 2026 (down from over 74,000 in 2025).
Disclosure: I am a RootsTech 2026 "Influencer" but will receive no remuneration for my support or posting of RootsTech information. I will be an online participant this year because of my health issues.
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Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver
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