Visionaries to Create, Exchange Innovative Ideas at Pasadena Startups Conference

Pasadena will be hosting N3xtcon 2017, an “entertainment, technology and startups conference,” as the organizers call it, Tuesday, April 4, at the Pasadena Convention Center.

The event promises to bring together over 40 industry leaders and over 500 participants in a conference that is intended to provide a platform for aspiring individuals through inspirational stories, professional industry insight, and foresight into the newest technology trends, the newly formed nonprofit N3xtcon said.

“Technology and entertainment are two of the most influential industries in Los Angeles, and N3XT CON is about exploring the growing intersection and collaboration between them,” Ling-Yao Chang, n3xt con CEO, said. “We’re bringing together industry leaders to discuss future trends in these fields, which is a great exposure for professionals in these areas. N3xt con saw the need to develop a formal platform that would inspire and help young professionals access the resources they needed to achieve their dreams.”

The organizer N3xtcon, based in Los Angeles, is comprised of professionals from various industries including technology, finance and marketing. The company hosts a variety of events each year including workshops, mentorship programs, and the annual national conference.

Francisco arechiga, organizing committee member, said this is the second year they’re holding the conference, and this time the focus is to be exclusive entertainment and technology startups, matching the unique Los Angeles economy and focusing on the synergy between those two fields.

“We also have panels on areas like PR which as you may know is the new direction for not only consuming digital content but also where entertainment is evolving,” Arechiga said. “So there’s more and more cross-over between these fields, between startups that are in PR and how entertainment is evolving to utilize these technology platforms and we feel the most effective way is to address those areas together.”

“We also recognize that a lot of innovation comes from the growing startup scene from Pasadena, with organizations like Caltech and Cross-Campus to Silicon Beach, and we want to engage the rising talent that will help feed this ecosystem,” Shao-Hua (Nick) Wu, Chief Visionary Officer at N3xt con, said.

The Taiwanese American Chamber of Commerce and the Taiwanese American Professionals of Los Angeles are supporting N3XT CON as co-presenters.

The N3xtcon announcement said founders and thought leaders from Disney Interactive, Buzzfeed, Mucker Capital, Intel, Cisco Systems, Vixio, and Pasadena’s own Spokeo will be at the conference, as will representatives from the city of Los Angeles, Port of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, Digital Domain and NBC Universal.

A sampling of the program topics, as posted on N3xtcon’s website, include Around the World in Zero Steps, VR at Home; Lights, Camera, Story: Innovation in Filmmaking; Gender Equality in the Startup World; Startup Journey; and How IoT Is Unlocking the Real Economy 2.0.

The conference schedule says registration opens at 10 a.m. The program includes a pitch competition called Pitch.co that brings together the brightest early-stage startups for a live demo and judging.

Discussions and the competition go on until 7:20 p.m. followed by an after party.

For more information, visit www.n3xtcon.com.