Launch Tennessee has canceled its signature 3686 conference, citing the renewed spread of Covid-19.
The public-private partnership, aimed at boosting entrepreneurship and business creation across Tennessee, informed ticketholders of the decision on Aug. 5 and will begin processing refunds today.
The 3686 Festival, named for Nashville's geographic coordinates, has become one of a few business-focused events to shine a light on the city — drawing investors from around the country. Past speakers have included Steve Case, former CEO of AOL; cable news host and Reform Alliance CEO Van Jones; Julia Hartz, co-founder and CEO of Eventbrite; and Scott Kupor, managing partner at heralded Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
The 3686 Festival was set to happen in-person between Sept. 21-23 in downtown Nashville. The event went all-virtual in 2020, with speakers including country music icon Garth Brooks. The event's most recent in-person gathering, in 2019, attracted more than 1,200 attendees to sessions at four downtown venues.
City officials and businesses tied into the city's prominent convention and hospitality industries will be watching to see if LaunchTN's decision to cancel its 2021 event, "due to recent Covid-19 developments," turns into a harbinger of more cancelations to come as the Delta variant of Covid-19 surges.
The decision appears to reflect the fast-changing spread of the Delta variant: Within the last two weeks, LaunchTN promoted 3686 on its LinkedIn page multiple times.
"Every 3686 Festival for the last eight years has sought to provide a high-quality experience for our guests and speakers. Considering this is an indoor event with an expected high attendance, we are unlikely to meet those expectations, as our community’s health and safety is our biggest priority," LaunchTN said in its Aug. 5 message to ticketholders.
On Aug. 6, the state Department of Economic and Community Development announced that LaunchTN president and CEO Van Tucker was stepping down. She joined the organization at the start of 2020 as its chief operating officer, and ascended to the roles of president and CEO after the departure of Margaret Dolan.
"We look forward to connecting again in person in 2022 and we encourage you to engage with our many LaunchTN programs in the meantime," LaunchTN said in its 3686 announcement.
