Across the globe, there are events, conferences and exhibitions (and sometimes as hybrids of all the above), both huge and small that point the way to a better future
These hugely influential events are a chance for industry professionals, inspiring leaders and the general public to get together as a like-minded collective and share the latest ideas, cutting-edge technologies and discuss the challenges and solutions to drive our world forward in a positive and sustainable direction. As follows is a few of the bigger and arguably more impactful happenings, but by no means exhaustive.
Web Summit Lisbon
The Web Summit Lisbon is held on 6th-9th November and it’s one of the world’s biggest technology showcasing events and has grown exponentially since its beginnings back in 2010 with Dublin as the host city.
The organisers of the Web Summit pride themselves in their unique approach to organisation of the event in that it could be considered as more “programmed” than organised. Venue logistics are handled by traditional means but where Web Summit Lisbon sets itself apart is that they hire computational scientists, statistical mathematicians, AI experts and engineers from many different fields to “program” e.g. developing algorithms that can determine the best networking leads for attendees, be they exhibitors or CEOs of companies (big and small).
They, in their own words, “engineer serendipity”
The event itself is a means of showcasing the latest software and hardware developments and how these can “transform business”. There are over 15000 companies represented and they range from the world’s biggest players like Google, Facebook, Amazon and Cisco to all of the small companies represented and for them it’s a fantastic opportunity to share the same room and to show what they are made of.
https://websummit.com/
World Mobile Congress
Barcelona hosts the World Mobile Congress during 27th February-2nd March. The event is a combination of conference and exhibition and it is the largest B2B event for all things mobile related. The conferences include visionary keynotes and panel discussions whilst the exhibition side is host to in excess of 2200 companies. MWC is a chance for exhibitors to impress the masses with demonstrations on how their business can benefit from the ever-expanding world of mobile technology.
The four-day event includes the Global Mobile Awards (https://www.globalmobileawards.com) where recognition is given to “most innovative mobile solutions and initiatives from all over the globe” there is even an award or two given to governments that show initiative in adopting technology that will benefit growth, it’s been heralded as the “Oscars of the mobile technology industry”
This year’s event promises to expand the event even further and MWC has chosen a very timely theme, that of ” Mobile is the next element “ which encapsulates the reality of mobile being everywhere.
Within the MWC is a couple of notable sub-events, YOMO (youth mobile congress) and Women4Tech. Innovation city is a highlight which will showcase VR, AR and AI applications and is strategically placed as part of a walkway to and from keynote presentations and other key points of interest.
https://www.mobileworldcongress.com/
South by Southwest (USA)
SXSW in Austin, Texas is not just relegated to one venue but it’s an event that takes place over a large area where there is an overwhelming list of presentations, panel discussions, conferences, gigs, exhibitions, movie premieres and a great many other things on offer. You name it, SXSW has it and it’s a real hodgepodge of styles which is celebrated for that very reason. The flavour of diversity is apparent in the attendees who proudly proclaim their varied backgrounds, like a digital producer for an agency that also plays guitar in a punk band and so forth. SXSW somehow manages to turn all of this activity into a coherent beast.
The event has become an essential hotspot for professionals and the professionally curious to get together, network and generally soak in the atmosphere.
https://www.sxsw.com/
World Economic Forum
This event, which was already held this year in Geneva, is potentially the most impactful event as it endeavours to bring together political figures, CEOs of some of the world’s biggest companies, thought leaders and other influential persons for a variety of engaging discussions and debates.
WEF always has a core theme with which the event is based around and this years was “Responsive and Responsible Leadership”. Discussions are aimed at discussing ways to tackle challenges both in the present and in the coming years.
Previous participants have been Al Gore, Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Jack Ma but this is just a mere few out a huge list of participants since its founding year of 1971. It’s been said that many a conversation has continued after the publicly viewable discussions and it’s there that potential change really occurs.
https://www.weforum.org/
It goes without saying that all of the above events are well represented in video, whether through interviews, keynote live streams or general round-ups so even if you are unable to physically be there, you are still able to access most of the same content as the attendees.
Some other very noteworthy mentions are listed as below:
Slush (Helsinki, Singapore, Shanghai, Tokyo)
http://www.slush.org/
Techcrunch disrupt (New York, Berlin, San Francisco )
https://techcrunch.com/event-type/disrupt/
Nordic business forum (Helsinki, Stockholm)
https://www.nbforum.com
Future Festival (Toronto, Las Vegas, New York, Ontario, Chicago)
http://www.futurefestival.com/
Hope you enjoyed the article and I would love hear about any others that I missed out on.