Conference News: AR & VR events IRL; New Stage at MWC LV; Retail Conf. CFP
In Mixed Reality News: AWE USA has grown to more than 5000 attendees and doesn’t see signs of that growth stopping any time soon. The conference organizers have announced that they will move the 2024 event to Long Beach CA. This community of XR enthusiasts, investors and decision makers have outgrown their Santa Clara venue and the Long Beach Convention Center will give them space to grow. The next US conference will be held on 18-20 June 2024. In other mixed reality news, we have also learned that the Immersive Global Summit (IGS) will be co-locating with Synapse at MetaCenter Global Week in 2023, which will be held in Orlando (previously held in Miami). This gathering will bring together the most innovative and influential experts in VR, AR, spatial computing, and other immersive technologies and take place from 17-19 October 2023.
MWC LV debate stage: The GSMA is doing something a bit differently at the MWC Las Vegas show this year, which will be held from 26-28 September at the Las Vegas Convention Center. They are adding a debate stage right on the show floor. This will provide an opportunity for leaders and practitioners to consider questions such as: 5G & IOT: Is it too much to handle?; Can AI accelerate the drive to a carbon neutral future?; and Will eSim end roaming?
Speaking Opportunity: The Path to Purchase Expo (P2PX) is self-described as the world’s most comprehensive gathering of shopper and retail marketing professionals. In 2023 it will be held in St. Louis from 7 – 9 November and include two days of symposiums, seminars, exhibits and awards dedicated to integrating the wide variety of solutions, tools and expertise needed to influence decision-making along the entire path to purchase. If you are interested in addressing one of their topics of interest (Retail Media, Shopper Marketing, Consumer Trends and Shopper Behavior, OmniCommerce Innovation and BevAlc-Category-Specific Content) submit your speaker/topic proposal via their online form before the 1 July deadline.
Conference Organizer Q&A: An experienced conference producer who has managed leadership events across a range of technical sectors, Nick Longworth recently launched the Generative AI for the Creative Industries Summit (September 12.13th, London). We spoke last week with Nick about his plans to offer a “first-ever industry-led conference for creatives and AI platforms to find opportunities in this transformative technology and its applications” with attendees from brands, entertainment providers, game development companies, advertising agencies, and design studios.
Speaker Strategies: Why did your organization feel like it was the right time for a conference on this topic?
Based on the daily news, I think this conference has launched at a time where understanding and leveraging generative AI to amplify human creativity is a priority for many industries. However, just because a topic is hot doesn’t mean there is value in another new conference. There are frankly dozens of AI events out there. As organizers, it was really crucial to define and deliver a conference scope – and by that I mean the content, the audience – which would bring optimal value to the creative industry. The kind of event where senior leaders could both meet their peers in the creative industry and their future AI platform partners.
Speaker Strategies: What excites you most about your next event?
Seeing a world-class speaker faculty bring an agenda to life is why I do conferences. Beyond the speakers’ faculty though, I think this conference feels like something which could grow exponentially. This technology is clearly going to change the workplace.
Speaker Strategies: What is most important to you when considering speakers and topics for the agenda?
A challenge in producing this conference has been that we have to find speakers that bridge across the topic of creativity – resonating, for example, with someone working at an ad agency, but also someone in film or TV. The format of content delivery is critical, as well. Panel discussions bring a variety of perspectives and viewpoints, which I believe creates a more engaging and insightful session on the day.
Speaker Strategies: Why did you select the event location?
London is arguably both the AI and creative capital of Europe. We therefore have a perfect nexus of stakeholders in the immediate locality of the conference, plus great connectivity for our visitors coming from abroad. We have also taken the bold step in securing the event hall at the Emirates Stadium, where my team had hosted a very large web3 conference last year.
Coming Up Next Week: Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity celebrates an impressive 70 years of creative excellence when it runs 16-23 June and features a diverse set of speakers from across brand, marketing, and creative disciplines. Aspen Institute will kick off its highly-anticipated Ideas programming with Aspen Ideas Health spanning 21-24 June and focused on contemporary healthcare and well-being themes, followed by the broader-themed Aspen Ideas Festival from 24-30 June. At Infosecurity Europe from 20-22 June, attendees will convene at London’s ExCel to “rethink the power of infosecurity”, hearing from nearly 250 speakers across three days of cybersecurity content. Hailing itself as a “forum for community, allyship, & advancement of Women of Color,” Seramount’s Multicultural Women’s National Conference gets underway 21 June both in Chicago and online, bringing together mid-to senior-level multicultural women, women in tech, DEI practitioners, and HR professionals. Finally, Fortune will hold a one-day, virtual edition of its Emerging CFO series on Future Finance Leaders, exploring how a growth mindset can apply to the role of chief financial executive.