Las Vegas
#1 Technology Industry Event
Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association, the show is the pioneer of all events for technology enthusiasts. In 2016, the 50th edition of the event reached a new attendance record at 177,393 people. The show had 3,886 exhibitors across 2.5 million square feet of exhibit space in the event hubs of the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, and the Sands Expo & Convention Center. It also debuted a C Space Storytellers conference track for panels and sessions to discuss marketing and technology. Google, Facebook, and Target were among the companies that participated. Next: January 5-8, 2017
San Francisco
#2 Technology Industry Event
With an estimated 170,000 attendees, the show is one of the biggest gatherings for industry professionals and consumers to learn about the world’s largest cloud ecosystem. About 10 million people also watch the event online. Salesforce, in association with George P. Johnson Experience Marketing, produces the conference, which customizes its communication with attendees according to their respective industries via the conference’s mobile app and with the more than 2,000 conference workers brought in to help with feedback and questions from attendees. In 2016, guest speakers include Tony Robbins, Melinda Gates, and Salesforce co-founder Marc Benioff. The event has more than 2,000 discussion and information sessions. Next: October 4-7, 2016
San Francisco
#3 Technology Industry Event (up from #5)
For its ninth anniversary, the developer conference moved from its original location from the Moscone Center in San Francisco (where the event was held from 2008 to 2015) to Shoreline Amphitheatre in Google’s headquarters city, Mountain View, California. The event also debuted a new format that borrowed elements from music festivals, with an outdoor festival village and sessions taking place in domed tents. Charlie XCX and Kygo performed at an opening-night party, and there was an after-hours party on the second night. About 7,000 people attended. Next: Spring 2017
Los Angeles
#4 Technology Industry Event
Also known as E3, the expo continues to be the leading trade show for the electronic entertainment industry, but the event took a big blow in 2016 when several major companies—Electronic Arts, Disney, Activision, and VentureBeat—opted not to exhibit. Attendance for the event was still healthy (an estimated 70,000 people), and the show broke its own records for social media participation, for example counting more than 7 million posts on Twitter. In addition, more 42 million gamers watched content on Twitch, the show's official streaming partner, making it Twitch’s largest audience for video-game content. More than 250 exhibitors across 720,000 square feet of exhibit space participated in the show, which is produced by Entertainment Software Association and took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center. One of the standout activations at this year’s E3 was the Doritos #MixArcade, which hosted performances for E3 Live attendees. Wiz Khalifa, Big Boi, Steve Aoki, DJ Jazzy Jeff, and Mix Master Mike were among the artists who performed. Next: June 13-15, 2017
San Francisco
#6 Technology Industry Event
Technology giant Oracle’s event drew 6,000 people and 500 exhibitors to various locations throughout the city. During his keynote address, Oracle executive chairman and chief technology officer Larry Ellison made a provocative statement about a company rival, saying that “Amazon is over.” The event also included several product and service introductions. Next: September 2017
Las Vegas
#7 Technology Industry Event (new to the list)
The cybersecurity conference, founded in 1997 and now owned by UBM, attracted more than 15,000 attendees to Mandalay Bay. Speakers included representatives from Apple, Google, Microsoft, NATO Cyber Center, Adobe Systems, Columbia University, and Endgame. Next: Summer 2017
