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Just two weeks are separating us from the Webit Awards ceremony, also known as “The Awards of the Future”, which is with unprecedented scale for the region. The glamorous event will be held on April 25 in Sofia Tech Park and will be broadcasted on television. The evening dresses and suits will be only a fraction of the incredible experience for the hundreds of attendees. Limited amount of seats are still available on the website of the event. Becoming a part of the Webit Global Community, those guests will join the people who draw the future of the world today. The winners of Webit Awards are global leaders, who change the world. Business and academic leaders, along with mayors, legislators and politicians will be nominated and awarded by world leaders from the Webit Community for their achievements and their role in fostering the best business models and innovations, development of digital economy, policy and government initiatives for successful integrations of technology solutions and improving people’s quality of life. The spectacular ceremony is just a part of the agenda of Webit.Festival Europe - the most influential digital and technology event in the region, part of the global series of events and the Webit Community. This year, the festival will gather in Sofia Tech Park 5000 attendees from more than 90 countries. Over 300 speakers will share their invaluable experience from leading global companies and will help us adapt to the trends, which are going to change our lives radically in the next few years. The awards categories are divided in several areas - Enterprise (Innovations in education, transport, banking and finance, cyber security, tourism, enterprise software, advertising, marketing, etc.); Digital Apps (apps for entertainment, banking, finance, gaming, news and sport); Policy (for Smart City Administration, Smart Transport, Smart Energy, Innovative Legislation Initiatives) and Special Awards that will distinguish the most successful woman in the technology sector, the most innovative secondary school and the person with outstanding contribution for the digital industry. The winners in the various categories will have the honor to receive their awards from some of the world leaders in their fields. The award for Innovation in Education will be presented by Conrad Wolfram - the man, who changes the teaching methods worldwide and Founder of Wolfram Alpha. The most successful healthcare innovators will have the opportunity to be awarded by Prof. Shafi Ahmed and Dr Lisa Latts. Ahmed is one of the most famous surgeons in the world and the first one to perform a series of operations with virtual reality gear. Lisa Latts is a Deputy Chief of IBM Watson Health - one of the most developed AI projects in the world of healthcare, which is already replacing doctors in diagnosis. Awards for Marketing and Advertising and the other categories will be presented by the Global President of Havas Worldwide, the Global Marketing and Creative Director of DigitasLBi, editors of Forbes and Huffington Post, leaders from Google and many others. The official Webit.Foundation Awards ceremony will be held on April 25, 2017 in Sofia Tech Park. The seats are limited! You may book yours here!

The transition to clean energy and sustainability is among the key elements for building our better future. But the success of this process depends not only on governments and local authorities, but also on bright minds in science and on bold entrepreneurs, who are ready to invent, invest and collaborate in the fields of renewables, energy efficiency and sustainability at large. This year, Webit.Festival Europe will gather under one roof some of the most innovative founders, scientists and startups. The event will be held on 25-26 April in Sofia Tech Park under the patronage of the President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev, the Mayor of Sofia Yordanka Fandakova and the European Commission. During the Smart Cities Summit mayors, municipality administrations and representatives of government institutions from around Europe will discuss all of the crucial factors that are facing urban administrators in today’s digital world. The Smart Energy track of the conference will focus on the transformation of our local energy systems and dealing with problems, such as pollution and improving the quality of life. The Vice-President of the European Commission, in charge of Energy Union, Maroš Šefčovič will speak about the series of EU initiatives for combating climate change and moving towards a low emission and resilient society. Europe is in the lead of global initiatives like Mission Innovation, which commits major economies to doubling public investments in clean energy innovation. The EU is also supporting the world alliance for efficient solutions to bring 1000 solutions to citizens and businesses by COP24. The commissioner is sure that there is much more we can do to digitize, energize and mobilize our cities and make them more livable, enjoyable and sustainable. The best part is that this transition is not about charity, but profitability. Because it serves investors just as much as it serves people and environment. Alliander’s Strategists for Energy Transition Manon Jutte will share her thoughts on what the city administrations must do to be able to meet the sustainable energy demands of tomorrow. She will also talk about The ZonCoalitie (Solar Coalition), who offers a standard process to speed up the formation of multi-stakeholder coalitions to realize solar energy projects in Amsterdam. Right now the Dutch capital aims at having a solar panel installed for every citizen. However, not every roof is suitable for solar energy panels. Not all house owners do have the money or time to install solar panels. Others do have the money available but their house roof is not suitable for solar panels. This requires cooperation amongst house owners, the local government and solar panels installment agencies. The Deputy Secretary General of International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Malcolm Johnson will speak about the role of the specialized United Nations agency. ITU has been at the forefront of standardization within the smart city domain. International standards and key performance indicators developed by ITU not only propel the momentum of the smart city movement but also help provide a feasible development path for aspiring smart cities. Together with United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), ITU has created the United for Smart Sustainable Cities initiative (U4SSC), a global platform for smart city discussions, to facilitate the refinement of the existing standards, among other things. The U4SSC enjoys the support of 16 United Nations agencies and programmes all of which have committed to advancing on the smart city trajectory and supporting sustainable urbanization. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Creating a brand strategy can be among the most difficult tasks in the process of creating a marketing plan. It is an integral aspect of the business development of every company and has the power to increase the voice and consumer awareness of a brand, while giving it an identity and worth. When it comes to developing your marketing strategy and tactics, all you need is the right balance between the three key components - purpose, consistency and emotional impact. The first will give your business its functional and intentional goals, the second will help the company to survive, while the third is connecting the customers with your brand and develop the emotion you are going after. At this year’s Webit.Festival you can listen to some of the top marketers in the world. During the Marketing & Innovation Summit of the event they will share their thoughts on topics, such as Programmatic, Mobile, Video and Native Advertising, Brand Strategies, Metrix & Data, Mobile Marketing, OmniChannel & Personalisation Strategies and Media & Digital Entertainment. During the Brand Strategies track, recognized experts will give you insight information, that can help you transform your business into the enterprise of tomorrow. The event will begin with a talk between the Founder of Snowfire Ditte Hammarstrom and the CEO of the company Emil Sundberg. They will discuss the flaws and the nitty-gritty of the design work that happens after you ship a product as a startup. The experts will explore how design can affect the business model and enhance the ability to convert visitors into customers. Right after them, the Chief Creative Officer of DigitasLBi Chris Clarke will speak about the death of empathy and will explain why global brand consistency doesn’t matter anymore. Chris will talk about the emergence of filter bubbles and show how this has impacted politics, culture society and by extension, brands. Whether we like it or not, this phenomenon means we no longer understand the world outside our own network, so brands must increasingly play a game of channel authenticity over brand consistency. The Founding Partner of Ready Set Rocket Aaron Harvey, will explain why the consumers make purchase decisions based on brand values and authenticity, as much as they do convenience and price. Twice Reply’s Partner and Managing Director Volker Glaeser, will talk about the most efficient ways of creating and testing future products. He will tell us more about the two most important approaches of today’s leading global innovators - Rapid Prototyping and Constant Beta. The Vice-President for Marketing at TELUS International Europe Gregorie Vigroux will tell us how to use LinkedIn most effectively in our business to business communications. The professional social media now has more than 433 million registered users. Each month it is visited by at least 106 million unique users. The Senior Director for Group Digital Strategy at DHL - Global Headquarters Cristian Citu will talk about the digital marketing capabilities in a Top 20 B2B brand and how to realize them in the best possible way. At the very end of the track, the Vice President for Digital Strategy at DAC Group Nasser Sahlool will share his experience in winning the hearts, minds and wallets of digital consumers. The expert is sure that the path to personalization goes through localization of content, campaigns, creative and calls to action. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Today, healthcare is inefficient, bureaucratic and expensive. It is a multi-trillion industry, that will be among the most transformed sectors over the next 10 years. Thousands of startups, along with giants, such as Google, IBM, Apple, Samsung and many others are entering the race to revolutionize the way we treat human diseases today. This will lead to much more sound, effective and cheap health care. To understand upcoming changes in the best possible way, we asked Prof. Shafi Ahmed a few questions about the future of Healthcare. He is among the most recognized visionaries in the world of medicine and one of the top-level speakers at Health & Wellbeing Summit - part of this year’s Webit.Festival Europe.

What do we need to change in our medical education system to answer the needs of tomorrow?

Medical teaching is still very traditional yet technology is advancing exponentially. We need to look at modern methods of teaching the digital doctors of tomorrow. With my company Medical Realities we are utilising augmented and virtual reality to add a different dimension in immersive learning. I have also introduced a new programme called Barts X for our medical students which teaches our students on innovation and entrepreneurship which is essential in creating future leaders.

You are known as a visionary. How do you imagine the medicine after ten years?

We are currently undergoing the 4th industrial revolution with the fusion of technologies like AR, VR, Robotics, AI, Big Data and the use of wearable technology which will radically change the doctor patient relationship and how we practise medicine. This is the most exciting time to be involved in medicine. When a patient asks for advice the first point of contact will be artificial intelligence rather than a doctor. The doctor’s role will undoubtedly change. A number of specialties like radiology and dermatology will be largely replaced by sophisticated AI. We will consult remotely using AR and VR and monitor our patients using a mixture of wearables, injectables and ingestible sensors. The cost of genomic profiling will be cheap and will allow us to deliver precision and personalised medicine.

What are the biggest medical threats to humanity?

The biggest threats are going to be new infectious diseases like the Ebola virus which can cause devastation quickly. The inequality of the provision of basic surgery globally will affect the well-being of 5 billion people.

How will technology improve our health and increase our life expectancy?

There is much interest in looking at ageing as a disease which will be modified with either medicine or a gene altering process allowing us to live longer.

What is the biggest technological breakthrough in medicine in recent years?

The unravelling of the complete human genome and reducing the cost of profiling to $1000. The discovery of the CRISPR - Cas9 gene editing which is currently the simplest, most versatile and precise method of genetic manipulation. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

The automotive industry is changing rapidly under the pressure of challenges on multiple fronts. The shift towards electric transport is making the engineering accomplishments of the past obsolete, while building electric cars requires less workers. In this new business environment, automakers, freight forwarders, transport companies and national and local governments must find the most effective ways to build the mobility of the future. This year, Webit.Festival will gather in Sofia Tech Park more than 300 speakers from every corner of the world. Within two days (25th and 26th of April) they will share invaluable experience from the largest enterprises in the digital industry and will explain to more than 5000 attendees from 90+ countries the key factors that will shape our future. During the Mobility Summit you will get the chance to listen to learn about the crucial factors, that are shaping the future of our transport systems. At the beginning of the conference you will get the chance to see the “New Mobility, New Paradigms” fireside chat between the Managing Partner at New Mobility Consulting Alexander Renz and the Senior Manager of innogy Innovation Hub at innogy SE Carsten Stoecker. Right after that, the Founder and CEO of StartBurst Francois Chopard will share his expectations about the development of space industry in the next decade. StarBurst Accelerator provides seed funding from the business angels and venture capitals firms dedicated to aerospace defense and security as well as access to the largest aerospace group stakeholders to get your first 1 million dollars contract. Then the audience will get the chance to see the fireside chat between the Digital Director for EMEA region at Oracle Luisella Giani and the Co-founder and CEO of Blacklane Jens Wohltorf. At the end of the Summit, ladies will take over the stage for a panel discussion about mobility innovation and business models. The talk will be between the Investment Principal of BMW i Ventures Sohaila Ouffata, the Managing Director of Smart Transportation and Energy at Startupbootcamp Tanja Kufner and the Director for Urban Development at Siemens Julie Alexander. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Despite the fears of a slowdown last year, the investment in European startups hit $12 billion mark, which has put 2016 on par with previous year’s record levels. The Old Continent already has prominent hubs for startups and innovation. But right now we can see that the well established centers, such as Berlin, Stockholm and London are stepping aside to an emerging destinations in Central and Eastern Europe. This has led to an increasing volume of smaller investment deals, which helped to offset the decline in larger rounds across the region. In 2016 Europe registered 943 deals between $1m and $10m. Right now, there is also a growing appetite for tech investment among the private equity funds. This year, Webit.Festival will again give promising startups from Europe and around the world the floor to present their ideas in front of top-level investors. The event will be held on 25-26 April in Sofia Tech Park under the patronage of the President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev, the Mayor of Sofia Yordanka Fandakova and the European Commission. We not only provide free grant for startups to get a free expo table, free festival tickets and opportunity to meet unparalleled selection of top enterprise leaders, but also a chance to win €200 000 seed investment in our Founders Games. With over 93% startup failure overall rate, the selected Webit startups for the Founders Games’s semi-finals in the past 7 years have less than 30% failure rate. Being among the Webit's Founders Games startup list is a statement of the company's credibility, innovation and potential in front of enterprise and investors as well as a great marketing opportunity. During Investments Summit you will get the chance to listen to the Partner Innovation Leader for Europe of IBM Watson Christoph Auer-Welsbach, the Vice President of IBM for Cloud and Mobile Technology Jonas Jacobi, the Global Head of Siemens Technology-to-Business Center Sven Scheuble, the CMO of AngelHack Brian Collins, the Partner at SpeedInvest Michael Schuster, the Partner at Flint Capital Sergey Gribov, the Co-founder & Managing Partner at AVentures Capital Andrey Kolodyuk, the Investment Director of 3TS Capital Partners Marius Ghenea, the Co-lead for Growth Capital & Venturing Services at Deloitte Sriram Prakash, the Investment Director of iTech Capital Alexey Telnov, the Advisor of 8VC Jon Soberg and the Partner at Hummingbird Ventures Pamir Gelenbe. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Over the last few decades, the Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) have become the modern economy’s greatest driver of innovation, productivity and growth. This industry managed to transform every element of business and society and to enable productivity and innovation in every sector of the economy. But to realize the full potential of this amazing opportunity, we first have to transform our education systems, so that they can create people with the right skill set to reap the benefits of the digital economy. This year, Webit.Festival will gather in Sofia Tech Park more than 300 speakers from every corner of the world. Within two days (25th and 26th of April) they will share invaluable experience from the largest enterprises in the digital industry and will explain to more than 5000 attendees from 90+ countries the key factors that will shape our future. During the IoE Summit you will get the chance to listen to the Director of Strategic and International Development at Wolfram Research Conrad Wolfram, among many others. The physicist, mathematician, and technologist, is uniquely operating at the intersection of computation, data and knowledge. Wolfram technology and consulting solutions drives innovation in data analytics, software development and modelling from startups to Fortune 500 companies, in industries as diverse as medicine, finance and telecoms. They include Mathematica software, the Wolfram|Alpha knowledge engine (powering knowledge answers for Apple's Siri), Enterprise Private Cloud and the Wolfram Language. Conrad is also recognised as a world authority on fixing maths education, including advocating a fundamental shift to focus on computer-based computational thinking rather than hand calculation. He founded computerbasedmath.org (CBM) to drive implementation of the change — now a worldwide force in re-engineering the curriculum with early projects in Estonia, Ireland, Sweden and Africa.Conrad attended Eton College and holds degrees in natural sciences and maths from University of Cambridge. On Webit’s stage, he will explain how the importance of quantitative understanding for jobs, society and management has exploded over the last few decades. He will also talk about the importance of understanding the changing role of computers and automation of knowledge is crucial. Conrad Wolfram will address these questions, explaining the fundamental shift needed in education, and describing the major project he's founded to build a dramatically new, problem-centric computational thinking curriculum. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

The world as we know it is collapsing and the change is happening so quick that even intelligent people struggle to understand exactly what is going on around them. In today’s public environment the whole concept of enterprise image is transforming. And while for the last several decades advertising was considered morally neutral, now we can see that big brands are more and more involved in politics. If you don’t believe this ascertainment, just take a look at the USA State Department, which is now led by the ex CEO of the biggest oil company in the world (ExxonMobil) Rex Tillerson. This year, Webit.Festival will address the transformation processes that are shaping the digital enterprises of the future in Europe and the world. The event will be held on 25-26 April in Sofia Tech Park under the patronage of the President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev, the Mayor of Sofia Yordanka Fandakova and the European Commission. During the Marketing & Innovation Summit you will get the chance to listen to the Chief Creative Officer of DigitasLBi Chris Clarke. He oversees the agency’s creative output internationally, has overall responsibility for DigitasLBi’s point of view on the world, and is the father of the famous unicorn emblem. Known for his provocative views, Chris is a regular commentator in titles like The Guardian, Marketing and Campaign, and was among the first in this industry to highlight the darker side of digital disruption. He is a passionate proponent of the idea of enlightened self-interest, and believes that businesses can build their brands by creating work which has a social purpose at its heart - a view which is reflected in DigitasLBi’s initiatives for clients like Durex and AstraZeneca. On Webit’s stage, Chris will speak about the death of empathy and will explain why global brand consistency doesn’t matter anymore. He will talk about the emergence of filter bubbles and show how this has impacted politics, culture society and by extension, brands. Whether we like it or not, this phenomenon means we no longer understand the world outside our own network, so brands must increasingly play a game of channel authenticity over brand consistency. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Over the next few years the world will undergo spectacular changes, driven by the rapid development of new technologies. Only prepared people can be successful in this new complex and increasingly digital world. Creating such people is among the biggest missions of Webit.Festival - the most influential forum for digital economy and technology in Europe. The event begins in less than a month, and the tickets for it are already running out. This year, Webit.Festival will gather in Sofia Tech Park more than 300 speakers from every corner of the world. Within two days (25th and 26th of April) they will share invaluable experience from the largest enterprises in the digital industry and will explain to more than 5000 attendees from 90+ countries the key factors that will shape our future. The agenda consists of several parallel conferences and events, workshops, round tables and exhibitions, such as: Marketing & Innovation Summit, Digital Transformation Summit, FinTech & Blockchain Summit, Big Data & Cloud Summit, Security & Privacy Summit, Health & Wellbeing Summit, IoE Summit, Mobility Summit, Smart Cities Summit, Digital Economy Leadership Summit and a series of social events. Here you may find a full list of the confirmed speakers. Part of our mission is helping startups with great ideas present themselves to a wider audience and giving them a chance to compete for a seed investment in Webit’s Founders Games. Webit.Festival gathers 100 of the most promising startups from all over the world. During the event they get the opportunity to pitch their ideas in front of an audience of business leaders, policy-makers and investors from more than 90 countries. This year our prize is €200 000.That is why a separate area of the festival will be dedicated to startups from Bulgaria and the world.

“We are creating density of opportunities for Bulgaria and the world. We are drawing in Sofia the most innovative companies in the world, policymakers, investors, entrepreneurs and scientific communities and motivate them to work together for a better life for the people through development of entrepreneurship and innovations”, says the Executive Chairman of Webit.Foundation Plamen Russev.

The event is a brilliant way to stimulate your mind and imagination so that today we can be where our competitors will be tomorrow. It acts as a compass and a barometer, giving us an image of the situation worldwide and setting our development direction for the coming years. Come to Webit.Festival and adapt in the best possible way to the changes of the future. You may book your ticket for the event here.