Elevate Festival, Canada’s largest homegrown tech and innovation event, is back for its sixth annual edition, set to take place in Toronto from October 1-3. Hosted at Meridian Hall and the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, the festival will gather the brightest minds in tech, business, and creativity for three days of impactful discussions, networking opportunities, and cutting-edge innovation.
This year, Elevate is proud to feature a dynamic roster of speakers, each a trailblazer in their respective fields. The headlining speakers include acclaimed journalist and broadcaster, Lisa LaFlamme; iconic music video director, Director X; Canadian indie pop duo, Tegan and Sara; award-winning American journalist, Kara Swisher; astronaut and Elevate Co-Chair, Chris Hadfield; President of Shopify, Harley Finkelstein; legendary entrepreneur and venture capitalist, Arlene Dickinson; Founder and returning CEO of Lightspeed, Dax Dasilva; CEO of Food52 and former Barstool Sports CEO, Erika Ayers Badan; WNBA Toronto President and former Raptors executive, Teresa Resch; and much more.
The first 60 sessions have been added here, with more being added every day. See here for a comprehensive list of speakers to date, which includes:
- Michele Romanow, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman, Clearco
- Amber Mac, President of AmberMac Media
- Joelle Pineau, Vice President, AI Research, Meta
- Kayla Grey, Broadcaster & Executive Producer, Kayla Grey Media Inc. & TSN
- Daniel Eberhard, CEO, KOHO Financial Inc.
- Mike Wessinger, Co-Founder and Executive Chair, Board of Directors, PointClickCare
- Jeff Shiner, CEO and Chairman of the Board, 1Password
- Aaron Saunders, Chief Technology Officer, Boston Dynamics
- Christian Weedbrook, Founder & CEO, Xanadu
- Emily McReynolds, Head of Global AI Strategy, Adobe
- Erin Elofson, VP Canada and APAC, Pinterest
- Mara Lederman, Co-Founder and COO, Signal 1
- Melissa Sariffodeen, CEO, Canada Learning Code
- Kory Mathewson, Senior Research Scientist, Google Deepmind
- Richard Socher, Founder & CEO, You.com
- Althea Wishloff, General Partner, Raven Capital
“Elevate Festival has always been about more than just technology — it’s about bringing together the brightest minds, from all industries and walks of life, to ignite meaningful change,” said Lisa Zarzeczny, Co-Founder and CEO of Elevate. “This year’s incredible lineup of speakers reflects our commitment to sparking conversations that will inspire the next generation of leaders and innovators to take bold action, right here in Canada.”
Organized and operated by Elevate — Canada’s not-for-profit organization at the intersection of technology and social innovation — Elevate Festival will continue its tradition of showcasing a variety of programming tracks covering the latest trends and challenges in technology, business, and society. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage in thought-provoking panels, in-depth workshops, and experiences designed to foster learning, collaboration, and connection.
What’s to come this year —
- Content Tracks: This year will feature eight content tracks, including favourites like AI and fintech, along with new developments in cybersecurity, product engineering, and more. A new addition is Moonshots, where leaders and innovators will tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges and opportunities, from climate and healthcare to space exploration.
- Networking: Elevate has teamed up with Braindate to bring curated 1:1 and small group meetups on topics of your choice. With plenty of networking opportunities already, attendees can start making connections through the festival app before they even arrive.
- Founder Focus: Elevate is putting a major spotlight on founders this year. With over 350 startup-investor meetings, 20+ roundtable discussions tailored to startups, stage pitch opportunities for emerging entrepreneurs, and a significantly larger Startup Lounge, this is a prime chance for founders to make valuable connections and showcase their innovations.
Elevate Festival is made possible thanks to the generous support of its partners and sponsors. This year’s event is backed by some of Canada’s most influential companies and organizations, including Interac, Moneris, TD Bank Group, Google, Telus, KPMG, Lighthouse Labs, University of Toronto, Amazon Web Services, CPA Ontario, Calgary Economic Development, Stifel, Gowling WLG, MaRS Discovery District, DMZ, City of Toronto, Protexxa, Dell Technologies, Mastercard, Discover Global Network, Kids Help Phone, Intellectual Property Ontario, Spur Innovation Centre, the Government of Canada, Black Innovation Zone, Black Founders Network, Black Entrepreneurship Alliance, Federation of Black Canadians, and Nobellum Enterprise. Elevate is also grateful for this year’s programming partners: BetaKit, Creative Destructive Lab, and Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst.
For more information about Elevate 2024, visit www.elevatefestival.ca. To purchase tickets please visit https://elevatefestival.ca/tickets. Join the conversation on social by following @ElevateTechCa and #ElevateFest2024
Media can apply for accreditation at https://elevatefestival.ca/press-room by Friday, September 27th.
About Elevate
Elevate is a Canadian non-profit that unites world-class innovators to catalyze transformation in the Canadian tech ecosystem. Through year-round programs and events, including the annual Elevate Festival and CIX Summit, Elevate shines a spotlight on Canadian innovation, facilitates global connections with startups and investors, and inspires Canadians to embrace a go-for-gold mentality to help shape the future of the Canadian innovation economy.
Elevate has hosted global icons such as First Lady & Author Michelle Obama, Businesswoman & TV personality Martha Stewart, CEO of OpenAI Sam Altman, Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, and U.S. Vice President Al Gore, each of whom has inspired millions of people.
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