Brice Wallace
Salt Lake Business Journal
The state’s biggest tech event closes out its first decade this week, but adding elements of entertainment, arts and culture.
“Summit” is being presented by Silicon Slopes, and, new this year, Visit Salt Lake. The innovation festival takes place Feb. 4-7 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, combining Silicon Slopes 10th technology event called Silicon Slopes Summit with VSL’s third Winter Roundup.
Summit programming will feature tracks in technology, sports, arts, culture and gaming, plus pitch opportunities for industry startups. Between sessions, the experiential hall and networking experiences are designed to turn chance encounters into meaningful connections, organizers said. The four-day event culminates Saturday when Winter Roundup transforms downtown Salt Lake into one of the city’s largest outdoor celebrations, offering sports, music, fashion, food and storytelling.
“Summit’s expanded programming reflects Utah’s evolution as a competitive innovation hub,” said Clint Betts, CEO of Silicon Slopes. “We’re creating unprecedented opportunities for meaningful connections between founders, investors and industry leaders while showcasing the breadth of what we have to offer in our state. Every experience, keynote and activation connects back to our core theme of innovation driving the future and a shared ascent toward what’s next.”
“Working alongside Silicon Slopes has expanded our ability to drive economic impact and showcase the best of what Salt Lake has to offer,” said Kaitlin Eskelson, CEO of Visit Salt Lake. “This is a place where Olympic legacy, multimedia innovation and next-gen storytelling collide. Combined with Winter Roundup, Summit demonstrates that Salt Lake is a must-visit destination for global visionaries across industries.”
Among keynote presenters at the event is Mark Cuban, famous for “Shark Tank,” Cost Plus Drugs and being an NBA owner. Other speakers are Dan and Mac Reynolds of Imagine Dragons discussing their new gaming venture, Night Street Games, and their upcoming release titled “Last Flag”; Jared and Jerusha Hess, filmmakers behind last year’s “A Minecraft Movie” as well as “Napoleon Dynamite,” “Nacho Libre” and “Austenland”; Will “King Willonious” Hatcher, writer, comedian and one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in AI”; Kenny Ortega, Emmy-winning director and choreographer (“High School Musical,” “Descendants”); CEOs Sean Desmond of nCino, Henry Schuck of Gong and Jean Oelwang of Virgin Unite; and Kat Kennedy of Kickstart Ventures; Rob Keith of Salesforce Ventures; and Kimmy Paluch of BetaBoom.
Tickets start at $249 for general admission. For attendees who prefer an upgraded experience, the VIP and Founder passes start at $999. A full schedule and registration are at visit www.summit.ing.
The event partnership between Silicon Slopes and VSL was announced last summer.
Silicon Slopes Summit began in January 2017 as a two-day event. Despite being organized in about a month, it attracted 5,000 attendees to the Salt Palace. The next year, it drew nearly 14,300. Over the years, its keynote speakers include tech heavyweights, including Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, Reed Hastings and Steve Ballmer, plus personalities such as Tony Robbins and Dwyane Wade.
Attendance slipped to about 8,000 people in 2022, when the summit was held at Vivint Arena (now the Delta Center) for the first time. The 2025 event was split between two days at Utah Valley University in Orem and two days at Edison House in Salt Lake City, with some activities at the Salt Palace.
