Archived events
Vancouver's AI Summit - Vancouver on the Global Tech Stage
May 29, 2024 @ Vancouver, BC
Presenting sponsor
Meet the panelists
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Small businessperson, tech entrepreneur, and change maker, Brenda Bailey was elected MLA for Vancouver-False Creek in 2020 and named British Columbia’s Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation in December 2022.
Minister Bailey brings to her role a passion for expanding opportunity and economic innovation nurtured over a lifetime building new businesses, leading economic development initiatives, and serving the community. In every role she has taken on, she has worked to create a more inclusive community and economy.
Minister Bailey blazed new trails for women in tech as co-founder of Canada’s first women-owned and operated video game studio. She helped strengthen and diversify B.C.’s creative tech industry as head of British Columbia’s interactive and creative digital marketing association, DigiBC.
Today, as Minister of Jobs Economic Development and Innovation, Minister Bailey’s focus is working with business, Indigenous and community leaders to drive the government’s Stronger BC Economic Plan forward. For Minister Bailey that means growing an economy that benefits all British Columbians with support for business, expanded access to post-secondary education and skills training, meeting our climate commitments, and fostering innovation across our economy.
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Mayor Ken Sim has built a life in Vancouver with his wife Teena, their four sons, and their dogs Hank and Kona.
Ken is a proud Vancouverite, having been born and raised in Vancouver. He is an accomplished entrepreneur and the co-founder of two successful Vancouver-based companies: Rosemary Rocksalt and Nurse Next Door.
Professionally, Ken holds an FCPA (FCA) designation and has been a speaker at post-secondary institutions and conferences globally. Ken is a two-time recipient of the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Pacific Region) in the Emerging Entrepreneur category (2006) and Healthcare Services category (2016).
Ken was sworn in as the 41st Mayor of Vancouver on November 7th, 2022.
Ken has committed to delivering on the major issues facing Vancouver including affordability, public safety, and mental health and addictions – leading a City Hall that prioritizes inclusivity, collaboration, and Indigenous Reconciliation.
During his tenure as Mayor, Ken wants to see Vancouver become a city that is once again vibrant, prosperous, fun, and open for business – with a renewed sense of swagger and optimism about the future.
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Olivia Norton co-founded Sanctuary in 2018 and is the Chief Technology and Product Officer. Prior to founding Sanctuary, Olivia led the Vancouver-based Artificial General Intelligence group at Kindred AI and previously worked in consulting for the energy industry and R&D at the Institute for Biomechanics at ETH Zurich. Passionate about creating and scaling impactful technology, Olivia lends her voice and expertise to a variety of organizations and groups in the Vancouver tech ecosystem. She has been a member of the Advisory Board at the Vancouver Economic Commission and a founding member of the Frontier Collective. She is a regular speaker at Simon Fraser University, the University of Calgary, and the University of British Columbia where she has taught AI Commercialization at the Sauder School of Business. Olivia is a 2018 BC Business 30 Under 30 Award recipient and a 2019 Schulich School of Engineering Alumni Award winner.
Olivia holds a Master of Engineering in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Science with Distinction in Computer Engineering, specializing in Biomedical Engineering, from the University of Calgary.
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David Seymour is Vice President and General Manager in Office Media Group at Microsoft Vancouver. He has been part of Microsoft’s Vancouver team since the acquisition of the game development studio Bigpark in 2009. In the last decade, David has delivered a range of products, from experiences for new hardware including Kinect, Xbox One, and Hololens, to software experiences from JoyRide and Kinect Sports 2, to MSN, Office 3D, Mixed Reality Viewer, Paint 3D and 3D Viewer. Today, his development team delivers Windows Photos to 500 million monthly users and photo editing components to OneDrive and the Edge Browser. In addition, he delivers new M365 video experiences within Teams, Yammer, and other productivity apps.
He began his career in IT, working for Compugen and IBM Global Services. Shifting industries to video game development in 2001, David joined Radical Entertainment as a lead designer with successive positions at Electronic Arts and Slant Six Games. As a member of the Vancouver leadership team, David has been a strong advocate for growth and has prioritized local studio culture, product development and thought leadership. David thrives on building software and services that enable people to be more creative, effective, and expressive. He brings this passion to the team and sees tremendous opportunity to leverage it within our British Columbia and Cascadia partnerships.
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Please check back later!
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Walter Pela leads BC's largest professional services firm, KPMG, with over 1,650 employees across 12 offices in the Province. Walter serves on KPMG's National Clients & Markets Committee, the firm’s National ESG Council and its Digital Executive Team. He also co-leads the Vancouver Ignition Centre, which focuses on disruptive innovation and sustainable business transformation. Walter is an active member of the community and serves on the Executive Committees of the Business Council of BC and the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade among other roles. With a 30-year career at KPMG, Walter specializes in tax and real estate and has advised clients on digital transformation and business model disruption. KPMG has a long history of serving clients in BC and globally, with exceptional service and a commitment to diversity, inclusion and doing the right thing.