Synapse Summit, a tech and innovation-focused summit known for bringing thousands of attendees to Amalie Arena each spring, will return in 2021 with a new, hybrid focus.
"I would have never imagined what we have gone through over these last seven months; it's been crazy especially when you think of just how much we do at the summit and how exciting the large, in-person event is," Brian Kornfeld, co-founder and president of Synapse Florida, said in an interview with the Tampa Bay Business Journal. "To be able to say, 'Sorry, you can't do that' and then to take that opportunity to be even better has been incredible."
The summit, which had more than 7,000 attendees in February, will return March 8-11, 2021 in a four-day, virtual and in-person event expanding across the state.
There will be both general admission and VIP tickets. The GA tickets will be free, while the VIP will come with a cost and allow in-person attendance across various locations.
"We will be at different venues — the biggest thing we're concerned about is the health and safety of others," Kornfeld said. "And the last thing we want is to be a super spreader event. Synapse has always been about connecting the state of Florida; now we have a real opportunity to do so."
Like summits of years past, there will be panels on various innovation-related topics, networking at both a virtual and in-person level, and keynote speakers. While the keynotes are currently undisclosed, there will be one for each of the Synapse Summit days.
As with other conferences, the virtual component in 2021 will give those beyond Florida the ability to tune in. However, Kornfeld said the summit will still remain focused on showcasing the innovation happening in the Sunshine State, versus making it more generalized for the broader audience. He expects roughly 8,000 attendees for the 2021 summit.
"We're still focused on tech and innovation in Florida — we don't want go away from that," he said. "We do believe it will be a much wider audience. And this is a great way to draw attention to the community. We're always trying to tell the story that 'innovation lives here' and this can show that to people in Europe, California, the Midwest ... it will show they should pay attention to Florida and they will."
The announcement follows Synapse Florida hosting Synapse Converge Nov. 16-19, which will also have panels, keynote speakers, Q&As, happy hours and networking.
"The word that I've been using is the renaissance into new growth or the new normal [due to the coronavirus pandemic]," Kornfeld said. "We didn't want to be too early, but also not that they're fully settled into where life is going to be, because we have zero clue to how life is going to be. We want to have open conversations about it and how innovation can help; what the new future will look like across a variety of industries technology and subjects."
