Conference News: Atlantic Festival Takes on NYC; SWE CFP; Big Events Next Week

Atlantic Festival in NYC:  Created back in 2009, The Atlantic Festival has grown over the years from a one-and-a-half day, single-stage experience, to a multiday slate of several stages and distinct events. And for the first time this fall, it will happen in the Big Apple!  From 18 September – 20 September programming will run at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in downtown Manhattan, with other venues to be announced. The Atlantic will also host a gathering in Washington DC on 29 April called On the Future, which will “help you understand the future of America and its place in an ever more complex world.”

Secret Agent No More: Last week, the team behind Paris Blockchain Week and RAISE announced a new addition to the Paris event scene. According to the announcement AgentX will be “the first fully agent summit, designed to showcase the transformative power of AI and Decentralization.” On 7 April at the Mazarium, Institut de France, Paris the one-day program will cover the ongoing AI revolution around 5 themes: Decentralized Compute; On-Chain AI; Agents of Change; Ethics & Regulation, and Data Sovereignty.

Submission Opportunity The Society of Women Engineers is the world’s largest advocate and catalyst for change for women in engineering and technology. Their annual conference will be in the Big Easy from 23 – 25 October this year. They are looking for breakout session speakers to connect, innovate, and inspire the next generation of industry leaders. With three different session formats and eight tracks, you will want to review the WE25 CFP Guidelines before you begin drafting your submission. Fill in your speaker and topic idea on their Cadmium portal before the deadline of Monday, 10 March, at 11:59 p.m. US Central Time in order to be considered for a coveted speaking role.

Lunchtime Learning: On 10 and 11 February 2025, France hosted the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit. The event gathered Heads of State and Government, leaders of international organizations, CEOs of small and large companies, representatives of academia, non-governmental organizations, artists and members of civil society to discuss the future of AI. The agenda focused on five major themes, including public service AI, future of work, innovation and culture, trust in AI, and global governance of AI. Video of the event has been posted online and will give you an inside look at how different business and government leaders view this technology and the impact it will have on our lives.

Coming Up Next Week: From 23-26 February, Web Summit Qatar will gather 15,000 international entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders at the Doha Exhibition & Convention Center to connect a new generation of innovators in the Middle East. The invitation-only Lake Nona Impact Forum convenes a select group of leaders from the health, wellness, and medical innovation ecosystem from 26-28 February, serving as a catalyst for global health innovation in Lake Nona’s “Smart City of the Future.” eTail West – which has been “changing the face of retail since 1999” – gets underway 24 February in Palm Springs, featuring speakers from brands like Office Depot, H&M, Macy’s, and Target. The Information AI Summit (27 February; San Francisco) explores such issues as whether algorithmic improvements in AI will lead to lower computing costs, and what upcoming models are showing us about the trajectory of LLM capabilities. And at the annual Women in Business Conference hosted by Harvard Women’s Student Association this weekend, the one-day agenda will center around the theme “Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges.”