(MADISON, Wis.)—Individuals of all ages, industries, interests and experiences will have the opportunity to make connections, share advice and collaborate at the 15th annual Forward Festival, which will take place Aug. 19-23 at various locations in and around Madison. The festival will feature more than 50 events, 42 of which take place in-person, which is the most since pre-pandemic.
“It’s exciting to see an increasing number of in-person events at Forward Festival,” Laura Strong, festival board member and strategy advisor at Archeus Technologies, said. “We are providing attendees with information on advances in technology, yet we still have core sessions on how to build a business. There is something for everyone.”
Eight events highlight artificial intelligence, including “The Dark Side of AI and the Need for Cybersecurity Awareness” on Tuesday, Aug. 20 and “The Future of Voice in the Time of Gen AI: Scaling Marketing, Content IP and Blockchain” on Thursday, Aug. 22. Additional new topics include consumer demographics, music and art investing.
The festival still features annual events such as the Badger Startup Summit on Aug. 19 at the Discovery Building, as well as the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce’s Pressure Chamber pitch competition event on Aug. 22 at the Majestic Theatre.
Similar to last year, participants have three different options for the Forward Pass—a Free Events Forward Pass; the Forward Pass with Swag, which gives access to all virtual and in-person events plus access to the Forward Fest app and adds the 2024 merchandise; and the Forward Pass without Swag. Once participants buy a Forward Pass, they can RSVP to events with one click and have events synced to their calendars.
Forward Festival is sponsored by Associated Bank, Fetch, Fine Point Consulting, Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, M3 Insurance, MG&E, Neider & Boucher, Swink, WEDC and the Wisconsin Union. Public relations support is provided by Revelation PR, Advertising & Social Media.
For a detailed listing of events happening during the Forward Festival, please visit www.forwardfest.org.
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Resulting Media Coverage
- InBusiness (July 29, 2024): Forward Festival returns with post-pandemic record 42 in-person events
- WisBusiness: Forward Festival: 2024 series sees most in-person events since pre-pandemic
- WisBusiness Podcast: (Aug. 15, 2024): With Laura Strong, Forward Festival
- Channel 3000 (Aug. 15, 2024): Summerland education to dispel fears of AI
- WisEye (Aug. 19, 2024): Forward Festival 2024: MadAI’s Building and Using Small Language Models
- WisEye (Aug. 22, 2024): Small language models could address some AI concerns, expert says
- WisEye (Aug. 22, 2024): The Forward Fest 2024: Is it Real World? Or is it AI?
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