Vinod Khosla, VC Khosla Ventures (l).

The IIT Global Leadership Conference, one of the prominent conferences for technology professionals globally, recently took place at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley from July 23- July 25, with over 2,000 people in attendance, writes Vasudha Badri-Paul.

IITGLC attracts business and technology professionals with its keynote speakers, educational tracks, and networking opportunities. While a majority of the volunteers and attendees are alumni from the distinguished Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) branches in India, the conference was open to all professionals. The theme of the current conference was “ The Internet of People.”

Sample speakers.
Sample speakers.

This year, there were over 100 prominent speakers, delivering thought leadership on a diversity of topics. Keynote speeches were from investment gurus such as Vinod Khosla, successful entrepreneurs of the like of Elizabeth Holmes, and CEOs of prominent companies such as John Chambers of Cisco. There were also speeches from Nobel Prize winners, leaders in the art, and investors in the future of technology.

Elizabeth Holmes, CEO Theranos.
Elizabeth Holmes, CEO Theranos.

The conference also hosted a Women’s Day on July 23 with several prominent women speakers, discussion groups, and ending with dinner and dancing. This was the first such dedicated women’s event for IITGLC and was well attended.

Karl Mehta, CEO EdCast.
Karl Mehta, CEO EdCast.

Sponsors for the event ranged from large U.S. companies like Amazon and Google to start-ups such as Nutanix and Indian companies like FlipKart and Snapdeal. Event partners were American Society of Engineers of Indian Origin (ASEI), Women in Technology International (WITI) and The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE).

Speakers held sessions in multiple halls and each speech ended with Q&A session from the audience. The EXPO area was occupied by international companies exhibiting their products and services, IIT university chapter members, and social organizations.

Tweet Wall @IITGLC
Tweet Wall @IITGLC

The conference was abuzz with media coverage – Press, TV, and Radio. NewzSocial’s Social Radar displayed a Twitter wall with live tweets, analyzed the tweets and included a newsroom with IITGLC related news items.

Live entertainment was also provided at the end of each conference day, for attendees to relax, mingle, and enjoy some fine entertainment.