Elevate Techfest, Canada’s largest technology and innovation festival, takes over downtown Toronto from Sept 22 – 27 with a full week of events featuring inspiring speakers, content tracks, and networking events.
It was kicked off this Friday with a three day Hackathon that aims to “tap into our countries collective intelligence and create solutions around some of the toughest urban problems.” 500 hackers, including a mix of students and early career professionals, the youngest being just 7 years old, gathered at Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District for the opportunity to win a total of $18,000 by creating the innovative building blocks of a Smart City…”a fully connected urban center that uses technology to improve financial security, housing affordability, environmental sustainability, communication, as well as social and economic equality for its citizens.”
The Hackathon consisted of three main challenges focused on smart economy, connected communities and vibrant living. The first prize winners, StableHacks, took $10,000 and were selected based on a criteria of innovation, impact, use of data & technology and alignment with the challenge as well as data privacy and feasibility.
This week, Keynote speakers such as Al Gore, Whitney Wolfe Herd and Wyclef Jean will take the main stage on Tuesday September 25th to discuss the role of technology and collaboration in shaping the future. Beyond the stage, Elevate will be hosting the Corporate Buyer Zone and the Investor Zone, the ElevateR Pitch, and an exclusive Access Lounge.
More than 10 dedicated Elevate Educate content tracks will be hosted on Wednesday September 26th at various Elevate Village venues throughout downtown Toronto. Each track features a full day of curated programming and networking opportunities in fields such as Artificial Intelligence, Health, Cannabis, Retail, Fintech, and Blockchain.
The Toronto tech and innovation community will be opening its doors on Thursday, September 27, with Elevate Talent, giving participants a mix of programming and behind the scenes access to some of the world’s most innovative companies, founders and thought leaders.
This Year, Elevate is expected to draw over 10,000 guests from investors, government and media to youth, scale ups and talent to “disrupt together, celebrate diversity and inclusiveness, and proudly showcase the best of Canadian innovation.”