When you’re working in the tech field, you no doubt read new info each week to stay up-to-date about trends and new developments and then meet up with tech friends to discuss what’s happening in your respective fields. You probably also study IT, through on-campus or online classes in computer science or similar and join relevant tech associations and business groups.
However, if you really want to take your career to the next level, it’s worthwhile attending some of the world’s best tech events held around the globe each year. Read on for some of the top events you need to put on your calendar.
Machine Intelligence Summit
If you’re interested in areas such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as the various applications for these types of tech, you should head to Hong Kong in June for the annual Machine Intelligence Summit. 2018 is the fifth year the event has been held, and attendees will have the chance to see speakers from such large organizations as NASA, Alibaba, DHL, HSBC, GogoVan, DBS Bank and more. Talks cover topics across the business, automation, finance, healthcare, and education fields, to name a few.
SXSW
Lasting for around nine days, SXSW is an annual event held in Austin in March that brings together people from diverse areas and specialties. The festival is one unified conference that covers 24 different tracks of programming, across fields like film, technology, music, culture, VR and AR, sports, food, social impact, news and journalism, health, style, design, and government. SXSW is popular because of its variety and commitment to seeing what kind of discoveries can be made when ideas from different genres come together.
Microsoft Build
Held in Seattle over three days in May, Microsoft Build is the tech giant’s annual developer event. Attend this one to listen to some of the most innovative people in technology share insights about what’s coming in the future. There are demos to watch, discussions to sit in on and a variety of hands-on labs, too. The conference has been operating since 2011 and attracts more than 15,000 people each year.
VR World
In its third year, VR World is Europe’s largest virtual, augmented and mixed reality event for business. The two-day conference and exhibition is held in London in May and is focused on the impact of VR, AR, and MR beyond gaming. Thousands of people attend the event to listen to more than 150 leading speakers cover four different fields. On top, attendees enjoy access to case study-led content, with 45 different case studies being used. There are excellent networking opportunities to boot.
Brain Bar
Another event held around May is Brain Bar, in Budapest. Run annually in the Hungarian city, it’s self-proclaimed as the “Biggest European Festival on the Future”. Over three days, you can listen to some of the brightest minds from across the globe, in fields such as science, technology, business, politics, and philosophy, discuss key tech fields and what’s to come. They examine controversial questions shaping our present and future. For example, topics include things like the morality of artificial intelligence, the security of Big Data, animal intelligence, and body modification.
Gartner Security and Risk Management Summit
With security being a more important factor than ever in the digital world, it pays to attend an event such as the Gartner Security and Risk Management Summit. This year held in June in National Harbor, Maryland, across four days, the summit is the premier event for cybersecurity and risk-management leaders. Attend to hear the latest information on new threats and emerging technologies in fields such as blockchain, AI, analytics and machine learning.
Open Source Summit North America
Open Source Summit, held in Vancouver, Canada, is one of the biggest open-source technical conferences in North America. It draws together over 2,000 developers, operators and community leadership professionals during three days in August. At the event, people convene to share information, collaborate and find out about the latest developments in open technologies. It covers cloud computing, Linux, containers and other specialist fields.
CeBIT
One of the largest and most globally-recognized computer expos is CeBIT. This annual mid-year event is held in Hannover, Germany and is the place to be to hear from experts and top decision-makers across every area of digital business, including cyborgs, biohacking, AI, virtual worlds, cybercrime, the Darknet, robots and more. The event is attended by hundreds of thousands of people each year and attracts speakers from some of the world’s largest companies.
