The Synapse Summit is coming back and wants to be bigger (and more connected) than ever.
Synapse Summit, which brought in 5,500 people under one roof in Amalie Arena for the two-day conference, will be back on Feb. 11-12, 2020 for its third year. The venue will still be the arena, but shifts in the venue will be made after survey results were taken into consideration.
Brian Kornfeld, Synapse co-founder and president, said 83% of survey respondents stated they came to the summit for networking, so there will be an increased focus on facilitating that. There will also be new usage of the ice level, where the keynotes were held last year along with some companies and their tables.
"We're making it very experiential, hands-on, less trade show," he said. "'We'll have more immersion into Florida innovation. And you cannot sponsor your way onto that, you have to have best of the best experience to be chosen."
On the club level where the breakout sessions will be held, there will be some slight changes. In the past, company tables were placed next to breakout sessions, causing a noise issue on both ends. This year there will be no tables near the breakout session stages.
"We wanted to reduce noise issues during breakouts and this way it makes both groups happier," he said. "We listen — we really listen."
And as for keynotes, Synapse is still finalizing details but Kornfeld said to expect national and even international speakers.
"We’re going to see enhanced keynotes this year, with big names and big companies at later dates," he said. "But we’re really excited about the opportunities for keynotes. This is really an event for the community, but for the community we need to make something that will continually excite the community and get them engaged. So if they have things they want to see or do, we will do our best to make it happen for the summit."
Vendor and sponsor applications are now open. Tickets for the summit go on sale Aug. 1 and 6,000 people are expected for the event.
"The summit is really our flagship event — we want to connect the state and believe connecting it in a region near the center of the state to get a lot of people under one roof is the best avenue," he said. "Yes, we will do other things throughout the state and they will be significant as well, and there will be other significant activity in Tampa Bay, but we want to keep the summit as the place to be seen, to come and connect and be a part of the community."
