Developing the next generation of tech leaders as BelTech returns

Northern Ireland’s BelTech will return in March with its 11th annual conference aimed at Belfast’s growing tech community.

Taking place at Titanic Belfast on March 7 and 8, this year’s conference will be attended by around 400 technologists working in the local tech industry.

In partnership with Allstate and Expleo, BelTech is curated by Kainos and supported by some of the region’s leading technology companies including Liberty IT, Options, Unosquare, Synechron, Belfast City Council and Women Who Code.

Pointed at a diverse and growing tech community, BelTech gives technologists the opportunity to immerse themselves in a day of learning and forge new connections with some of the sector’s finest leaders and emerging talent. With a stellar line-up of leading technologists from AWS, GitHub, and Elastic, BelTech will offer a day of unparalleled learning and networking opportunities for technologists.

The conference will provide a platform for the next generation of female tech entrepreneurs with its ‘Dragons Den’ style pitching process. BelTech encourages female founders with game-changing tech startups to step into the spotlight and pitch their revolutionizing ideas for the world of AI, apps, and tech engineering.

The sold-out BelTech EDU day will see 450 students gain insights from leading industry experts and hear from exciting guest speakers. Students will have the opportunity to discover the power of AI with live demonstrations and take part in an online app competition to design an app prototype for young people.

Speaking at the launch Síona O’Reilly, solution architect from Kainos, said: “BelTech is a fantastic way to get away from the screen for the day and get inspired by other people in our sector who are doing outstanding things.

"The conference is buzzing with people sharing great ideas or talking about the fascinating projects they are working on. It’s an engaging way to learn about significant advancements in the industry and how we use them to meet the many challenges of modern life.”

Stephen McKeown, vice president and managing director of Allstate, explained: “The technology sector in Northern Ireland continues to grow and provides no end of opportunities for tech enthusiasts who want a career in a sector that is constantly evolving. Our industry in Northern Ireland certainly punches above its weight and conferences like BelTech play a big role in showcasing the depth and breadth of the talent we have here.”

Sharon Ross, technical engineer in quality engineering at Expleo, added: “For us, one of the best things about BelTech is its commitment to bringing young people on board and carving out an entire day in which school children can get involved. The future of our sector depends on demonstrating to younger generations that there are amazing opportunities to be had if they go down this route.”

This year, the conference will focus on the following themes:

Generative AI (Artificial Intelligence): The capabilities of AI have advanced exponentially, and Generative AI is the next frontier. The conference will look at what engineers are doing now and how they can leverage new capabilities. This track will explore practical applications, ethics, cyber security, and sustainability/environmental considerations.

Developer experience: With tech accelerators such as GitHub Copilot, Amazon CodeWhisperer and low code solutions becoming more commonly used, BelTech will examine how the developer and architect experience is evolving and what next-generation software development looks like.

Trust architecture and digital identity: Secure-by-design software systems and shift-left security are becoming increasingly important. Embedding these practices can be crucial to business survival. These talks are aimed at developers and architects applying best practices to secure software against cybersecurity threats.