A two-week festival set to shine a spotlight on Cornwall’s thriving tech industry is launching this month.
Software Cornwall’s Festival of Tech launches on Thursday, November 16, from 10.15am to 2pm, at the Eden Project. Businesses are invited to attend and share ideas to help shape the festival’s line-up.
The lunchtime event will feature a keynote by Georgie Barrat, tech trendsetter and TV presenter with Channel 5’s The Gadget Show. A frequent contributor to platforms including The Guardian and Marie Claire, Georgie is a global speaker on future tech trends and champion for women in tech.
The Festival of Tech, supported by the government’s Shared Prosperity Fund, is being planned for February 12-25, 2024.
This month’s launch event will offer insights from Software Cornwall and partners TECWomen CIC and Screen Cornwall about how to get involved.
Niki Davies, director at Software Cornwall, said: “Our mission with the Festival of Tech is to elevate Cornwall’s stature as a prime hub for tech business, both within the county and nationally.
“We’re proud to have secured a significant award from the Shared Prosperity Fund to develop this event. Our goal is to spotlight Cornwall’s thriving tech industry and inspire individuals to explore tech-centric career pathways, thereby bolstering our local economy in the long term.”
Sign-up is fully funded, and includes a lunch plus a chance to share ideas and feedback to shape the festival.
Holly Patton, co-director at Software Cornwall, said: “The Festival of Tech is a brilliant opportunity for businesses and organisations to raise the profile of their products and services, connect with potential clients and attract new talent.
“We are really keen to use our lunchtime launch event to drive ideas to ensure the events and activities we deliver for the two-week festival are valuable and help drive the development of our growing tech industry in Cornwall.”
TECWomen will be hosting an event, the CTRL ALT DEL summit, aimed at encouraging inclusivity within the tech industry.
Caitlin Gould, TECWomen’s founder, said: “We can’t wait to bring together tech companies and inclusivity communities together for a day exploring how to reboot the tech industry to create more accessible and inclusive innovation, products and services so we can all work to create a brighter future for all.
“With a huge number of tech-for-good organisations in the South West we believe that Cornwall is the perfect location to host such a critical global conversation.”
Festival Of Tech has received £453,699 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Cornwall Council has been chosen by government as a lead authority for the fund and is responsible for monitoring the progress of projects funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Louis Gardner, Cornwall Council cabinet portfolio holder for economy, said: “The Shared Prosperity Fund provides an opportunity to direct investment that will deliver outcomes for our communities and drive good growth in our economy.
“Our Good Growth ambitions are about boosting Cornwall’s long term economy, bringing with it well-paid jobs and business growth.
“The Festival of Tech will shine a light on this growing sector, hopefully encouraging more residents to pursue a career in this area and businesses to invest.”
More information on the Software Cornwall’s Festival of Tech can be found at cornwallfestivaloftech.co.uk