Sun Valley, Idaho
#1 Business & Financial Industry Event
The semi-secretive, invitation-only event is for an elite group of business titans who gather to discuss issues that affect their respective industries. Hosted by Allen & Company, the conference does not allow media access and does not issue press releases, but CNBC reported that 303 people were on this year’s attendee list. The participants included Microsoft’s Bill Gates, billionaire investor Warren Buffet, power couple Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg, Disney’s Bob Iger, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, Activision Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick, Snapchat’s Evan Spiegel, and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg. Next: July 2017
Washington
#2 Business & Financial Industry Event
The summit brings together leading experts and policymakers to discuss fiscal and economic policies for the next president of the United States. Speakers in 2016 included members of congress such as Nancy Pelosi, Mike Enzi, Sheldon Whitehouse, Lindsey Graham, and Joe Manchin. Also in attendance were Keith Hall, director of the U.S. Congressional Budget Office; Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action; and Heather Boushey, executive director and chief economist at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. Next: May 2017
New York
#3 Business & Financial Industry Event
The 21st edition of the conference was a gathering of numerous V.I.P.s to discuss business investments. This speaker-driven event—attended by about 3,000 people at Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall in New York—included New York Giants football star Eli Manning in the mix of business heavyweights David Einhorn, Larry Robbins, Jim Chanos, and Jeffrey Gundlach. The conference honored Manning for his Tackle Kids Cancer Charity with the launch of the Sohn-Manning Pediatric Cancer Survivorship Program at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey. The event raised $4 million for the Sohn Conference Foundation, a benefit for pediatric cancer. Next: May 2017
Los Angeles
#4 Business & Financial Industry Event
Every year, the conference attracts movers and shakers in various industries. Al Gore, Tom Hanks, Brian Grazer, Goldie Hawn, Eric Schmidt, Wayne Gretzky, and Tony Blair were among the estimated 3,000 attendees in 2016. Topics included education, finance, government, media/technology, and philanthropy. Next: April 30-May 4, 2017
Las Vegas
#5 Business & Financial Industry Event
SkyBridge Capital’s eighth annual conference drew about 1,800 thought leaders and influences to the Bellagio. Speakers from the worlds of finance, alternative investments, politics, science, and pop culture covered topics and included a debate on the presidential election. Among the notables who attended were Michael Bloomberg, John Boehner, Kobe Bryant, Felipe Calderón, Kenneth C. Griffin, Ron Howard, Lara Logan, T. Boone Pickens, Robert E. Rubin, Will Smith, Admiral James Stavridis, Lawrence H. Summers, Nassim Taleb, and Sam Zell. Next: May 2017
San Francisco
#6 Business & Financial Industry Event (new to the list)
Now in its third year, the conference has quickly become an influential gathering of V.I.P.s from several industries. The invitation-only event, limited to about 700 people, takes place at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Many of the attendees are on Vanity Fair's annual New Establishment list, which ranks people who have been making powerful impacts in their industries in recent years. In 2016, the speakers include Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Barry Diller, actress Sarah Jessica Parker, Disney’s Robert Iger, CBS Corporation’s Leslie Moonves, talk-show host Conan O’Brien, and General Electric’s Beth Comstock. Next: October 18-20, 2016
Los Angeles
#7 Business & Financial Industry Event=
The 28th edition of the conference, hosted by Roth Capital Partners, drew about 3,000 attendees to the Ritz-Carlton in Dana Point, California. The event had representation from about 500 companies in a variety of sectors, including business services, industrial growth, healthcare, retail/ecommerce, and technology/media. Dr. J. Craig Venter delivered the keynote speech. There was also a panel with Mark "Oz" Geist and John "Tig" Tiegen, who were part of the Global Response Staff military team as portrayed in the movie 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi. Next March 2017
