This year, CultTech Summit introduces a new program track: CultTech Community Roundtables.
Any ticket holder can propose a discussion topic. Each roundtable seats up to 20 participants — speakers and listeners — in a dedicated room. The session lasts 50 minutes in total, with time for both presentations and open discussion with Summit attendees. Full rules below.
This year, CultTech Summit introduces a new program track: CultTech Community Roundtables.
Any ticket holder can propose a discussion topic. Each roundtable seats up to 20 participants — speakers and listeners — in a dedicated room. The session lasts 50 minutes in total, with time for both presentations and open discussion with Summit attendees. Full rules below.
(+) read more and join:
The idea is to explore how theatre partnerships can create brand value through depth rather than scale:
– how sponsorship of theatre builds authentic narratives and reputation,
– what companies gain from smaller but deeply engaged audiences,
– cases of meaningful collaborations between theatre and business,
– and how such partnerships foster long-term loyalty and trust.
I will be happy if artists, producers, brand managers, CSR leaders, marketing & PR experts join to share their perspectives and experiences.
Join this Panel:
The relationship between art, technology, and business is often framed in terms of innovation and opportunity — but it is also marked by deep skepticism — especially on the side of art. Artists worry about instrumentalization, while businesses seek measurable impact; a cultural and linguistic gap often makes it hard to get together – and many art-tech projects seem to really lack either in art or in tech.
This roundtable will open a candid discussion on the frictions and misalignments shape harm art–tech collaborations and look at ways to overcome them. Rather than rehearsing celebratory narratives, we will ask: what can each side genuinely contribute to the other? What gets lost in translation? And where do meaningful partnerships emerge? Drawing on perspectives from both practice and theory by artists and technologists alike, we will explore the conditions under which skepticism can give way to synergy.
Join this Panel:
The earlier you apply, the better your chances of securing an audience and being included in the Program.
Roundtables proposed by partners are automatically approved. To become a partner, you can secure your spot at the CultTech Expo—please fill out the form on this page or send your offer to ds@culttech.at.
This year, all participants and guests with valid tickets can host their Roundtables at no additional cost.
5 min – intro by Roundtable curator/initiator. Presentation (if applicable).
3 min x 5 speakers opinion
25 min – open discussion moderated by Roundtable curator
15 min – preparations for the following Roundtable
No, you can propose only 1 Roundtable per ticket.
If you find a topic similar to yours, we recommend joining the already proposed Roundtable as a speaker.
The more participants a Roundtable attracts — and the sooner they register — the higher its chances of being admitted. In other words, the decision lies with the community, not us.
Either we haven’t reviewed your proposal yet (please be patient — it may take several days) or it was deemed not relevant.
You can join only one of the proposed Roundtables.
Up to 20 people per room.
No. The format doesn’t allow it — each speaker will have 3 minutes to speak.
Your vote will appear within 10 minutes.
Yes, but please pay attention to the dates. Sessions may run in parallel, and the exact schedule will be available after October 1.
For any technical or other questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Community Manager Ilya Lobanov at il@culttech.at
Pre-register now to gain early access to event information and exclusive offers.
Startups are at the core of our ecosystem. As Oliver Holle once put it, startup founders are like artists — except instead of a canvas, they use business plans, investor decks, and way too many Slack channels (who’s not guilty of that). At CultTech, we admire this mindset, especially when it’s built on sustainability, because every great startup needs a strong foundation to last.
At Summit 2024, startup pitches were brought to the stage by our partners at CultTech Accelerator, a program that helps early-stage founders shape their ideas into investable businesses. Divided into two Demo Days, the pitches showcased startups transforming creative productivity, education, cultural networks, and content distribution. From AI-driven music tools to new models for digital art ownership, each team presented their vision for the future of culture-tech in front of investors, aiming to take their business to the next level.
At CultTech Summit, startup pitches aren’t just presentations—they are glimpses into the future of creative industries.
Panels are where ideas collide. Instead of just hearing one perspective, these discussions bring together experts with different backgrounds to explore complex topics from every angle. Moderators guide the conversation, making sure it’s a real exchange — not just a series of separate speeches.
At Summit 2024, we tackled everything from the evolution of museums in a digital-first world to the future of fashion and media storytelling. We questioned whether Web3 is here to stay or just another tech bubble, and we explored new investment models for culture, moving beyond government funding and philanthropy.
Panels don’t just cover industries — they explore how culture reshapes entire systems. So last year, we also looked at how cities and culture influence each other, from Ars Electronica’s role in Linz’s transformation to NEOM’s vision of building culture into a futuristic city from the ground up. Another discussion tackled AI’s growing impact on EU cultural policies, while ‘Making Culture Inclusive’ invited the audience into a live conversation on diversity in tech, art, and creative industries.
From art to policy, from emerging tech to social impact, panels are the pulse of the CultTech Summit — expect even bigger conversations in 2025.
Keynotes set the stage for the Summit. Unlike panels or debates, they give one speaker the floor to present a big idea—something that shifts perspectives and sparks new ways of thinking about culture and technology. They help us step back from day-to-day challenges and ask: Where are we headed?
At Summit 2024, Adriano Picinati di Torcello brought insights from the Deloitte & ArtTactic Art & Finance Report, exploring how financial models are reshaping the creative economy. As a key figure in the art finance sector, he examined what these shifts mean for artists, collectors, and investors alike.
On the other side of the conversation, Sylvain Levy reflected on the evolving role of digital tools in art collecting. His family’s DSLCollection, one of the most forward-thinking private collections of Chinese contemporary art, has embraced virtual museums, AR, and interactive experiences to make art more accessible in the digital age.
Debates at the CultTech Summit are where ideas clash head-on. Unlike panels that explore topics from multiple angles, debates pit experts against each other, each defending opposing viewpoints. This format sharpens the focus on contentious issues, encouraging critical thinking and deeper understanding.
In 2024, we took on some of the most polarizing questions in culture and technology. Is AI Art — Art? brought media artist Stephanie Meisl, who embraces AI in creative expression, into a direct clash with Jan Svenungsson, a visual artist and professor questioning whether AI can ever replicate human intentionality. Moderated by Klaus Speidel, the debate pushed the boundaries of what we define as art.
Meanwhile, in To Learn or to Unlearn, Bistra Kumbaroska argued for breaking away from rigid knowledge structures to foster innovation, while Vivek Velamuri defended structured learning as the foundation of entrepreneurship. With Hannah Scott moderating, the discussion explored how we navigate knowledge in an era of rapid change.
Performances are a great way to reflect culture, and that’s why they are a huge part of the CultTech Summit. We bring together artists who push the limits of music, theatre, and digital arts, often using tech to take things to a new level.
Last time, we had Mahamaya Electronic Devices by Ivan Vyrypaev — a fusion of electronic music, rapid-fire dialogue, and hypnotic visuals. This high-energy performance blurred the lines between theatre, philosophy, and digital art, leaving the audience both mesmerised and deep in thought.
At the closing party of the Summit, Cécile DeLaurentis took the stage, turning sound into a full-on sensory experience. Blending her jazz roots with AI-driven production, she performed using Embodme, a next-gen synthesizer designed by one of the CultTech Accelerator alumni. The result? A performance that felt both futuristic and deeply personal.
For 2025, expect even more performances that push creative and technological boundaries.
The CultTech Summit isn’t just another business conference — we’re here to push boundaries and mix things up. That’s why we put just as much focus on art as we do on tech. Our exhibitions aren’t just something to look at; they challenge, question, and make you see things differently.
Last year, we had Who Smiles Through Me, an exhibition curated by Where Dogs Run, an artist collective known for its experimental approach to art and technology. Their work often plays with perception, human-machine interaction, and the ways digital systems shape our reality. This exhibition explored how our senses—sight, hearing, touch—are being reshaped by technology. Works from artists like Alexandra Dementieva and Aernoudt Jacobs made us ask: how much of what we feel is still ours, and how much is filtered through digital control and media influence?
Networking is at the heart of the CultTech Summit — it’s what makes this community thrive. Bringing together artists, engineers, investors, and founders isn’t just a nice extra — it’s the whole point. The magic happens when these worlds collide, sparking ideas that wouldn’t have come up otherwise.
This year, we’re taking it up with a dedicated networking space — somewhere designed just for those in-person conversations that lead to real opportunities. And of course, it’s not just about formal meetings. From flying dinners to exhibitions and even late-night parties, the Summit is full of moments where connections happen naturally.
Mahamaya Electronic Devices is a performance that addresses all the main current issues of our lives: society, psychology, science, philosophy, and spirituality. This show, featuring electronic music and computer graphics, centers around a unique text by Ivan Vyrypaev, composed entirely of questions and answers, delivered at a fast pace by four actors, attempting to address them before the audience’s eyes. The performance is both a contemporary entertainment show and a psychological training as well as a spiritual experience. According to many viewers from various countries who have seen the performance, in the end, we receive not only the pleasure of the quality of the show but also a truly valuable life experience. What kind of experience? An experience is an experience because it cannot be described in words. One must come and live it.
The performance is conducted in English.
Director and playwright — Ivan Vyrypaev
Graphic designer — the Full Metal Jacket Team
Composer — Jacek Jędrasik
