World-Class or Bust: The Next Era of Vancouver Tech
Six months out from Web Summit Vancouver 2026, the city’s tech ecosystem is once again in the global spotlight. But what will it take to turn that attention into lasting impact?
At World-Class or Bust: The Next Era of Vancouver Tech, presented by VanHack, Web Summit, and Vancouver Tech Journal, we’ll gather founders, investors, and ecosystem leaders for a candid conversation about how Vancouver can compete—and lead—on the world stage. From attracting global talent and investment to scaling world-class companies, we’ll explore what’s working, what’s holding us back, and how we can move faster together.
Join us for this special Web Summit 6-Month Countdown event, as we take stock of where we are, where we’re headed, and what it will take to build a truly global tech city—right here in Vancouver.
Our speakers include:
Rogayeh Tabrizi, PhD, Founder & CEO, Theory+Practice
Ilya Brotzky, CEO, VanHack
Erika Borgenson, VP, Marketing, BC Tech
Casey Lau, EVP, Asia Pacific, Web Summit
Thank you to our Presenting Partners:
VanHack
VanHack has helped companies like SkipTheDishes, Deloitte and Brex hire over 2,200 senior software engineers. Hiring? Post a job for free and get vetted candidates in just 24 hours from our community of over 500K engineers.
Web Summit
Web Summit was founded in Dublin in 2009. It started as a 150-person tech conference in October 2009. Since 2009, Web Summit has gathered together over a million business people from around the world. Its flagship event is Web Summit in Lisbon, which takes place every November. During the year, Web Summit now hosts events around the world, including Web Summit Rio in South America, Web Summit Qatar in the Middle East, Collision and Web Summit Vancouver in North America, and RISE in Asia.
Web Summit’s mission has been to create software that enables meaningful connections between the CEOs, founders, investors, media, politicians and cultural figureheads who are reshaping the world.
Overview:
#VTJTalks
When: Tuesday, Nov 4
Time: 5:00-7:00pm
Where: Northeastern University Vancouver
Tickets: $10
VTJ Insiders get 50% off events. Check your Thursday Insiders newsletter for the signup code.
Agenda:
5:00-5:30pm Networking
5:30-6:30pm Panel Discussion with Q&A
6:30-7:00pm More Networking!
Questions? Contact Nicole Hsueh ([email protected])
Thank you to our supporting sponsors!
Venue Partner: Northeastern University Vancouver
A huge thank you to all of our core sponsors — who continuously support our events. Your contributions are pivotal in helping us drive impact in Vancouver’s tech ecosystem and bring together the community.
Interested in partnering with us? Contact Nicole at [email protected]