Elevate Festival Returns to Toronto October 1-3, Doubling Down on Startup Founders, Women in Tech, New Content Tracks and More

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 30, 2024 / This October, Elevate Festival, Canada's largest homegrown tech festival, returns for its sixth annual event hosted in downtown Toronto, Canada, from October 1-3, 2024. With 10,000 attendees expected from the tech community, the year's festival includes over 300 speakers, including Kara Swisher, acclaimed journalist and podcaster; Dax Dasilva, Founder & CEO of Lightspeed Commerce; Erika Ayers Badan, CEO, Food52; Col. Chris Hadfield, Astronaut & Elevate Co-Chair; and others, with all three days hosted by Innovation Expert & Co-host of #TheFeed on SiriusXM, Amber Mac.

This year's Festival features expanded Women+ in Tech and Startup spaces, a new Elevate Happy Hour pub crawl on the Esplanade, and content tracks such as:

• Moonshots: Explore bold ideas and breakthroughs in science, engineering, and society. Visionary leaders tackle pressing global issues with deep tech.
• Shop Talk: Designers and developers share insights, challenges, and solutions for building innovative teams and products. This track is ideal for both professionals and beginners.
• Lifestyle: Discover how tech shapes fashion, entertainment, and politics. Innovators, content creators, artists, and athletes discuss tech's impact on lifestyle.
• Future Focus: Look ahead to the next 50 years in tech, including AI, healthcare, finance, and sustainability. Learn how disruptive technologies will shape our world.
• Scale Up: Whether you are a budding entrepreneur, a seasoned founder, or an investor, the Scale Up stage will empower you to take your venture to the next level.
• AI: How are we prepared to handle the change AI will bring not only to our lives but also to our businesses? Don't miss this chance to hear experts debate the future of AI and where its development is headed.
• Secure & Protect: Securing and protecting your personal, company and client data is more crucial than ever. We're hosting discussions with leading security experts about privacy, trust, and levelling up security systems against cyber threats.
• FinTech: With the current pace of adoption and innovation, what does the future finance landscape look like? Hear from industry experts on where the biggest opportunities lie and how Canadian fintech compares to other countries.

"Elevate Festival is a place where we can shine a global spotlight on Canada's tech and innovation ecosystem with everyone and everything you need, all in one space, to move this country forward faster and further," says 2024 Elevate Festival host Amber Mac.

Elevate Festival is also enhancing experiences for attendees with new features such as:

• Organized Networking: Elevate is teaming up with Braindate to enhance networking opportunities. This web-based app facilitates meaningful 1:1 or small group discussions focused on specific themes, fostering peer learning and collaboration.
• Founder Opportunities: The festival is expanding to include more 1:1 meetings, roundtables, and pitching opportunities. It features 200 startup investor meetings, 24 startup roundtables, and exclusive investor happy hours.
• Expanded Lounges: The popular Women+ in Tech Lounge and Startup Lounge have been enlarged to offer more programming and accommodate more participants.

Lastly, Elevate is aiming to significantly boost its international attendance through a strategic partnership with Toronto Global. This partnership will help bring robust international delegations to Toronto who want to network with and invest in Canada's tech ecosystem.

Elevate Festival continues to grow and adapt, promising an unmissable experience for those in the Canadian tech ecosystem, and those abroad.

Elevate Festival is made possible by our Founding Sponsors: Interac, TD Bank Group, and Moneris, as well as our Corporate Sponsors: Google, City of Toronto, the Government of Canada, TELUS, KPMG, Lighthouse Labs, University of Toronto, LG, Amazon, and Discover Global Network (DGN). Special thanks to our Programming Partners: Betakit, Creative Destructive Lab, and Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst.

Tickets are on sale now with the Super Early Bird sale.

For more information about this year's festival, visit www.ElevateFestival.ca. Media can apply for accreditation at Elevatefestival.ca/press-room/. Join the conversation on social by following @ElevateTechCA and #ElevateFest2024.

Elevate is a Canadian non-profit that unites world-class innovators to catalyze transformation in the Canadian tech ecosystem. Through year-round programs and events, including the annual Elevate Festival and CIX Summit, Elevate shines a spotlight on Canadian innovation, facilitates global connections with startups and investors, and inspires Canadians to embrace a go-for-gold mentality to help shape the future of the Canadian innovation economy.

Elevate has hosted global icons such as First Lady & Author Michelle Obama, Businesswoman & TV personality Martha Stewart, CEO of OpenAI Sam Altman, Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, and U.S. Vice President Al Gore, each of whom has inspired millions of people.

Media Contact

Robyn James
robyn@elevate.ca

SOURCE: Elevate