More than 4,000 people from over 15 different countries joined the celebrations as Wales played host to its first-ever Wales Tech Week last week.
Created by non-profit organisation Technology Connected, the virtual festival looked to promote the Welsh technology industry on a global stage, showcasing Welsh tech businesses through a wide range of talks and workshops, streamed in real time across the world.
Throughout this week, highlights and full events from the festival will be able to relived via the Technology Connected website, including talks with speakers from over 50 organisations, such as big brands including, Thales, Starling Bank, BBC, IQE PLC, IBM, SKY, PwC, Spotify, GoCompare and Confused.com, as well as events from Wales’ leading technology organisations and start-ups.
Topics covered included AI, Blockchain, Compound Semiconductors, Cybersecurity, Data and VR across sectors such as Creative, EdTech, FinTech, Investment, MedTech, Skills and Space, along with a range of skills workshops, roundtables and talks setting out the future for Wales as a global tech player.
A full list of talks available to watch again can be found on the new Technology Connected website.
Avril Lewis MBE, managing director of Technology Connected, creator of Wales Tech Week said; “The response to Wales Tech Week has been outstanding, from the overwhelming number of people and organisations looking to host events, to the thousands of attendees across the week.
“The strength of the Welsh technology industry lies in its innate connectivity, agility and ability to collaborate, not just within the technology sector but across markets. Wales Tech Week has been a showcase for these strengths and saw the whole industry and supporting ecosystem come together to create something larger than the sum of its parts and put Welsh technology on the global stage.
“I would like to thank every person and organisation that came together to help make Wales Tech Week a success from event hosts to the 4,000 plus registered over the week. In particular, to all of our partners who truly championed Welsh technology by supporting a totally new concept. We’re already in the process of planning next year’s event which promises to build on this very successful inaugural festival.”
The virtual festival is supported by founding partners Creo Medical, The Development Bank of Wales, Innovate UK, Thales UK and Wynne Jones-IP, media and publishing partners Orchard Media and Events Group & Business News Wales, associate partner nChain, and supporting partners CSA Catapult, Satellite Applications Catapult, Illustrate Digital Mobilise Cloud Services , Philtronics Limited, Risc IT Solutions and Third Space.