Preparing for the Northwest Arkansas Technology Summit with Kris Adams

Summary
On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell sat down with his friend and colleague, Kris Adams. Kris is the director of the Northwest Arkansas Technology Summit, a job for which he is clearly passionate. James and Kris discussed their love of Bentonville, what makes a non-Arkansas native like Kris stick around, and of course, the upcoming Northwest Arkansas Technology Summit.

Thank you for tuning in!

Show Notes
(1:24) Introducing Kris Adams
(2:07) Kris’ Passion for Technology and His Role in It
(3:01) All about the NWA Technology Summit
(13:32) Pitch Competition Information
(20:48) Kris’ Journey to the Summit
(25:16) Because Bentonville
(22:02) How to Sign Up for the NWA Technology Summit
(33:30) Superpowers and Closing Thoughts

Quotes
“[The NWA Tech Summit] is the premier technology conference here in the heartlands. And we believe that because of our size, pulling in about 1,400 in-person participants in 2019, and then over the last couple of years virtually, about 1,200, that size alone makes us unparalleled in the region for technology conferences.” Kris Adams (3:04)

“If you have a cool toy to bring with you, bring it and show it off. Because now that we’re back in person, we’re not stuck in the confines of being behind a screen for a virtual event. If you have something flashy and exciting and fun that you can show us, that we can touch and see, that’s what we want to have at the Tech Summit this year.” Kris Adams, (19:35)

“This is the way I [can] have my cake and eat it too. I could get to play with all of this fun tech, and then use it as a way to continue to help make Bentonville and the surrounding area better.” Kris Adams, (22:00)

“You know, when you move somewhere, you move with some hopes and expectations for what the local area will be like. We knew what we had seen on paper and what we’d seen on a screen, and then to really come and experience it in person, it just blew away even our wildest expectations.” Kris Adams, (24:05)

Attend the Northwest Arkansas Tech Summit in 2022
This year, the Northwest Arkansas Tech Summit will be returning for an exciting in-person event all across Downtown Bentonville October 16-18, 2022. The event will focus on technological advancements in five different tracks: Mobility & Supply Chain, Health & Wellness, Entrepreneurship, Cybersecurity, and Web3. Visit www.nwatechsummit.com/ for tickets. We hope to see you there!