Conference News: What I learned this week – June 30
WSJ goes D.LUXE: On the last day of the Wall Street Journal’s D.Live, taking place from 16 – 18 October in Laguna Beach, the WSJ event team will introduce a new conference brand. D.LUXE, which will cover the intersection of business, tech and fashion, will launch with a luncheon discussion followed by panels of “luminaries from the worlds of art, fashion, entertainment, food and philanthropy.” D.LIVE attendees will be invited to stay and WSJ will invite additional attendees as well. According to the conference organizers, the goal is for D.LUXE to become its own stand-alone conference.
Big F’ing Deal: To demystify the fundraising process for founders and investors, G-Startup Worldwide is launching a new series called Big Funding Deal, which will feature fireside chats with prominent VCs about the startups in which they recently invested. The discussion “will go deep into the backstory of VC deals, explaining why the VC chose the startup, why the founder chose the VC and how terms were determined.” Big Funding Deal events will take place at RobotXSpace in Santa Clara. You will find details on the first event in this series here.
Auto Innovation: This year’s edition of TU-Automotive West Coast, taking place from 9 – 10 October, has been renamed to Auto Tech R&D Summit and moved to San Jose. The reason for the change? According to the organizers, automakers are growing their presence in Silicon Valley and attendees have expressed a greater interest in cooperation with tech companies. Also new this year: roundtable discussions, workshops and a dedicated exhibition zone and pitching competitions to attract more startups, innovation labs and investors.
Speaking Opportunity: CES will return to Vegas on 9 January but is only accepting speaker proposals until 14 July. This year, the conference is limiting the number of speaker submissions per company to five, so coordinate with your colleagues filling out the online form! This year’s themes will include AI/Robotics/Drones; Augmented Reality; Connectivity (IoT, mobile, wireless, etc.); Design and Sourcing; Diversity and Social Responsibility; Emerging Technologies; Music; Smart Cities; Smart Home; Sports Technology; Vehicle Technology; and Virtual Reality.
Lunchtime Learning: Oh, to spend an afternoon on the French Riviera! Azure blue water, white sandy beaches, palatial hotels and thousands of advertising executives! Wait, what? That was the scene earlier this month as the 64th International Festival of Creativity took over the resort town of Cannes. If you were not able to attend, you may have missed out on the picturesque views and incredible weather, but you can still watch the conference sessions! Hear industry leaders address “the changing face of original content,” “the creative ethics of cognitive intelligence,” and “key learnings from the economics of creativity.”
Coming Up Next Week: We hope you have a fun and safe Independence Day!