Conference News: What I learned this week – October 11, 2019
Tech for Good: Under chair Stéphane Richard, the GSMA has continued to emphasize the organization and industry’s commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the way technology has the power to help societies and positively impact the earth’s ecosystem. While Mobile World Congress had activities and sessions devoted to the Planet last year, the GSMA has made “Our Planet” one of its key themes for MWC20. According to the organization. Our Planet related activities at MWC20 will focus on “the connected technology industries responsibilities to the environment and underserved people, including the unconnected and accessibility for the disabled, among others.” Keep an eye out for specific sessions within this theme when the agenda is released later this year.
Startup Speaker Sport: For the first time in 2020, early stage education and talent tech companies may apply to be one of the “Elite 200” presenters at the 2020 ASU GSV Summit from March 30 to April 1 in San Diego as part of the GSV Cup Competition. The Elite 200 finalists will then compete to win the GSV Cup. The top three companies will compete on StageX at ASU GSV XI on Wednesday night, April 1st and earn prize money totaling $250,000. The annual ASU GSV Summit was created in 2009 to “elevate the dialogue around raising educational outcomes through scaled innovation.” Since then, it has grown to 5,000 attendees, including key stakeholders in the future of education – startup founders, tech leaders, educators, educational content creators, and investors.
Speaking Opportunity: Black Hat Asia (31 March – 3 April 2020) has opened its call for briefings. The Black Hat Briefings were created 21 years ago to provide computer security professionals a place to learn the very latest in information security risks, research, and trends. They cover everything from “critical information infrastructure to widely used enterprise computer systems to the latest InfoSec research and development and everything in between.” If you have a speaker/topic idea to share, complete this online form before the 28 October deadline. The Black Hat Asia 2020 Arsenal Call for Tools will be open once the call for briefings closes and will remain open until 13 December 2019.
Lunchtime Learning: The Next Web Conference (TNW20) has grown from a 200-person gathering in 2005 to one of Europe’s most prominent tech festivals, bringing together close to 15,000 attendees for two days of knowledge sharing and networking in Amsterdam. Watch some of last year’s speakers including Guy Kawasaki who shared Lessons from a Life in Technology; Michael Martin, the Global Head of Digital Products at Nike, on The Power of Digital Transformation; and Louise Troen, International Marketing & Communications at Bumble who addressed The power of kindness in brand building.
Coming Up Next Week: Touted as “the festival for everyone,” Chicago Ideas Week gets underway tomorrow and runs through next Thursday in the Windy City. From featured talks to workshops, Chicago Ideas Week features over 200 speakers, including top CEOs, activists, authors, and Hollywood players. At Educause Annual Conference (14-17 October; Chicago) professionals and service providers in higher ed IT gather to share new ideas and the latest innovations. WSJ’s Women in the Workplace is held 15 October in San Francisco for invite-only level networking and exclusive panels. xRS Week (previously VR Strategy Conference) runs 16-18 October in San Francisco, offering senior executives in the biz strategic dialogue and insight into the future of virtual & augmented reality. Last but not least, National Association of Broadcasters produces its annual NAB New York next week. Though smaller than its Las Vegas counterpart, NAB New York draws a still sizeable crowd that is distinct to this show, drawing heavily from the business verticals of media entertainment based in New York and the northeast.