On Friday (11/10), I will be attending an exclusive event at a wine estate in the Russian River Valley. The conference is called the Harvest Summit. The organizers describe the gathering as a day during which “250 leaders outstanding in their fields will be thinking, talking, tasting, and transforming.” The conference will be a celebration of the art and science and social impact of innovation. They say, “Say hello to a unique and exclusive location, engaging dialogues, interactive collaborations and immediate business impact enhanced by a world class culinary and entertainment experience.” What a mouth full. Jessica, founder and chief harvester, said the participants will be “leading entrepreneurs, tech execs, VCs, scientists, cult winemakers, CMOs, Chefs, and game changing senior executives”. Not sure which one I am, maybe cult winemaker wannabe.
It was not planned this way, but the event will have a philanthropic fund raising aspect to it. The communities of Napa and Sonoma Counties faced the worst wildfires in California’s history, and much of the bay area was impacted with the poorest air quality ever recorded. The Hilton I had planned to stay at was burned to the ground, along with thousands of homes and businesses. It is hard to look at the pictures at ‘Armageddon’: Apocalyptic images show the devastation caused by deadly wine-country fires. Local officials now face a monumental clean-up, rebuilding, and revitalization effort. Leaders on the front lines will share their innovation in action tactics and strategies. There are many people in need of help, hence the philanthropic aspect of the conference. All attendees are urged to make a donation to any of the various fire relieve funds which have been established.
I am looking forward to learning from the long list of impressive speakers and topics. Needless to say, one of the topics will be how automation, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) are impacting the future of work and life at home. I plan to be an active and collaborative participant in the various breakouts. If you are interested in seeing the agenda, click here.
