Northwest Arkansas tech summit returns in 2019

The Northwest Arkansas Tech Summit is returning to Northwest Arkansas for its 7th year, introducing a conversation among leaders in business and technology to enhance, diversify and prepare Northwest Arkansas for its future.

The theme for the year is ‘What’s Next … After Next,’ which will allow attendees and participants to look beyond where we are today, focusing collective attention on what could come tomorrow – and what that may mean for our future.

As home to three of the country’s Fortune 500 companies in Walmart (1), Tyson (93) and J.B. Hunt (354), Northwest Arkansas is the foundation to an entrepreneurial ecosystem that now houses offices for 400 out of the 500 Fortune 500’s, each here to play a role in the future of commerce as it unfolds.

The Northwest Arkansas Tech (NWA) Summit Keynote Speakers

Keynote speakers for the event include Arlan Hamilton, whose venture capital fund Backstage Capital is dedicated to minimizing funding disparities in tech by investing in high-potential founders who are people of color, women, and/or LGBT. Other speakers include Sujata Gosalia, Erik Lindbergh, Sanjay Srivastava, and Karen Gillespie.

The Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce is the organizing body behind the NWA Tech Summit. Chamber President Graham Cobb said the goals of the summit are multifaceted, but its overall aim is to showcase the area as an engine of economic opportunity through technology.

“As the Heartland’s premier conference in this space, the NWA Tech Summit is a mechanism for enhancement and diversification of the economy here,” Cobb said. “The strategic focus of recruiting and retaining top-tier tech talent is at the forefront of our community, and we want to seize on the opportunity to build on the emerging tech hub that is Northwest Arkansas.”

With support from the Walton Family Foundation, the 2019 NWA Tech Summit is placing an even greater emphasis on increased attendee experience, offering programming sure to satisfy those in all corners of the technology and entrepreneurial landscapes.

The 2019 NWA Tech Summit will also implement another of Northwest Arkansas’ emerging technological outlets with an increased focus on cycling as it relates specifically to emerging tech in bikes. Companies like Allied Cycle Works, based in Bentonville, build high-quality carbon frames with innovative features and manufacturing practices that are disrupting the industry and winning races at the same time. 

“In this region, culture and commerce collide with adventure,” Cobb said. “Cycling is a natural accent to elevate our life experiences.   Leveraging this attribute serves the mission of the NWA Tech Summit as an engine of economic development and tool for attracting and retaining top talent.”

Presenters include through leaders in retail technology, e-commerce, and supply chain as well as brand leaders using technology to impact cycling. 

Bookending the 2019 NWATS will be outdoor gatherings that weave together arts, culinary, technology and cycling; and opening event near The Bucky Ball and a closing event at Coler Mountain Bike preserve.  Leveraging regional resources to juxtapose speakers on the forefront of tech trends against a backdrop of rugged yet refined Ozark beauty, Tech Summit events will highlight some of the area’s most innovative spaces, like the community-focused food hub known as the 8th Street Market or the regional trail system connecting Northwest Arkansas, the Razorback Regional Greenway.