Events

The Lift Conference

The first Lift conference edition was created in 2006 in Geneva; it has since become one of the leading European digital innovation conferences. It attracts innovators from around the world for three memorable days of inspirational speeches, interactive workshops, informal networking and knowledge-sharing. Over 1000 participants - from entrepreneurs to senior managers, engineers to scientists, researchers to artists - gather to learn about key trends, to share the knowledge and experience that fuel innovation.

Other Lift Productions

To leverage our extensive innovation event experience, we curate and co-produce events with partners. Since 2006 we have organized and supported over 30 events around the world. The event formats vary from half-day workshop sessions to 3-day conferences and festivals. Our role includes program curation, speakers sourcing and coaching, workshop animation, moderation and event promotion. Visit our projects page to learn more about the Lift projects portfolio.

Past events

Health Game Jam 3rd Edition at Open Geneva

From April 12 to April 14, 2018 | Université de Genève, Campus Batelle, Route de Drize 9, 1227 Carouge

After hosting 2 editions of the Health Game Jam at Lift16 and at the Lift:Lab17 in collaboration with the Fondation Genevoise de Lutte contre la Mucoviscidose and the Swiss Game Center, we have joined forces with the Open Geneva >Festival (of which we are also a proud founding member) to host the next edition of our Health Game Jam!

We invite game designers, health specialists, developers and UX designers to join our 3 days co-creation event to work on the theme of respiratory health and help achieve the third UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG): good health and well-being for all!

Date: 12-14 April 2018

Location: Université de Genève, Campus Battelle, Route de Drize 9, 1227 Carouge

Lift:Youth SDG Hackathon at Open Geneva

April 14, 2018 from 13:00 to 17:00 | STEM Centre - International School of Geneva

During Open Geneva, Lift will host a half day workshop for youth on UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. It encourages the participating students to find and build solutions to the challenges of sustainable development, and learn and work collaboratively in the process of exploring and practicing.

What Lift Youth SDG Hackathon is all about:

Open to all students from 15 to 18 years old
Discover and learn about what are UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
Identify a problem in line with SDG and work on a solution in teams
Get support from coaches and experts
Selected teams will present their projet on stage on Sunday 15 April 2018

THE CREATIVE SELF: Create your personal brand

| HEAD, Geneva

THE CREATIVE SELF came for the very first time to Geneva on February 3, 2018! Lift was proud to present an interactive self branding workshop in partnership with Youri Sawerschel, founder Creative Supply. The creative self workshop helped 10 participants to create their personal brand to live life on their own terms. It was not about selling yourself, but about attracting the opportunities that correspond to you!

Lift:Lab Seoul

November 11, 2017 | N15

Lift:Lab Connect has been designed to foster new ideas in order to co-create, prototype and produce solutions for a better urban future. We are looking for creative minds with innovative ideas to participate in a one-day ideation workshop on November 11, 2017 in Seoul. The goal is to develop projects aiming at improving quality of life, enhancing environmental sustainability and fostering economic development and urban entrepreneurship.

Lift:Lab

March 1-3, 2017 | Geneva, Switzerland

The Lift:Lab is an innovative workplace designed to help you bring your ideas and projects to the next level through hands-on building and experimenting. We designed a 2.5 day program to allow individuals and organizations to tackle business and societal challenges using collaborative innovation.

Prototyping Lab at Lift16

February 10-12, 2016 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

The Prototyping Lab at Lift16 was a gathering of innovators from around the world! During 3 memorable days, teams of participants collaborated to build the future of your products, services and business models!

MassChallenge Startup Summit

February 10, 2016 | Campus Biotech

Lift and MassChallenge Switzerland joined forces in February 2016 to present the MassChallenge Startup Summit & Launch.

A gathering of the most exciting Swiss and international startups as well as leaders from the entrepreneurial and political ecosystems.

Lift Conference 2016

February 10–12 2016 | Geneva, Switzerland

Lift Conference is one of Europe’s key events about innovation and digital technologies. It features a special blend of inspiring speeches by some of the world’s best speakers, truly interactive workshops, exhibitions of interactive media projects and prototypes to play with… and the legendary Fondue!

Lift Basel 2015

Oct. 29–30 2015 | Markthalle, Basel, Switzerland

After a first successful edition of Lift Basel in November 2014 with over 360 participants we will come together again in Basel’s Markthalle for an open and dynamic dialogue on the fast moving ideas, solutions and opportunities generated by the growing confluence of tech, bio and business.

Lift India 2015

October 27 - November 2, 2015 | Bangalore, India

Lift India was a key international event about innovation and digital technologies. It featured a 1-day conference with inspiring speeches and truly interactive workshops, a Swiss Innovation Night with top projects from both countries and an exhibition of interactive media projects and prototypes to play with!

Lift China 2015

June 16-21 2015 | Shanghai & Shenzhen, China

Lift China was a key event about innovation and digital technologies. It featured a special blend of inspiring speeches by world-renowned speakers, truly interactive workshops, exhibitions of interactive media projects and prototypes to play with. Join, learn and connect with innovators worldwide!

Lift sous la Coupole

March 18 2015 | Federal Palace, Bern

On March 18th 2015, the first edition of Lift sous la Coupole will be held in Bern within the Federal Palace on the theme “Switzerland a start-up nation?”. This event will bring together representatives of federal authorities, entrepreneurs, investors, experts and researchers to discuss a favorable framework for technology transfer and entrepreneurship, the aim being to ensure the continued development of a healthy startup ecosystem.

Lift Conference 2015

Feb. 4–6 2015 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift Basel 2014

Nov. 6–7 2014 | Basel, Switzerland

In November 2014 a new yearly Lift edition was successfully launched, connecting innovators in Life Sciences and Information Technologies. The first edition explored hot topics like “Big Data and Beyond”, “Shaping Healthy Habits” and “Man-Machine Interface” in the exceptional setting of Markthalle Basel.

Lift with Fing 2014

Oct. 21-22 2014 | Villa Méditerranée, Marseille

A big thank you for having participated in Lift with Fing 2014 and for making it such a great success! It was a real pleasure meeting you all. We really hope that you enjoyed the experience and left inspired and nurtured with new contacts and tools to help you further your ventures.

We extend our thanks to the whole Fing team who did an amazing job all throughout the event.

Lift China 2014

Sept. 10, 2014 | Shanghai

To strengthen our links with Asia and discover more of the innovation and entrepreneurship scenes of China, Lift is going on a scouting event in Shanghai in partnership with swissnex China. Lift China will be the place for makers, artists, startups and pioneers alike to meet and make fruitful connections with our international community.

Lift Conference 2014

Feb. 5-7 2014 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift with Fing 2013

October 15-16, 2013 | Villa Méditerranée, Marseille

Occupy Industry! The 5th edition of Lift with Fing in Marseille will gather those who envision how digital technology could transform design and manufacturing, and those who are actively making it happen!

Open Knowledge Conference

Sept. 16-18, 2013 | Geneva

Lift co-produced the 2013 edition of the Open Knowledge Conference (OKCon), the world’s leading event in Open Data. Presented under the patronage of Federal Councillor Alain Berset, this OKCon edition attracted over 900 participants from 45 countries to Geneva and served as official launch platform for the Swiss Open Government Portal.

ok.con.org

Lift Conference 2013

Feb. 6-8 2013 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Thank you so much for joining the 8th edition of Lift in Geneva. Over 1000 participants coming from 30 countries, including 70 journalists and bloggers came together to share, connect and create new opportunities. We had a wonderful time and we hope you enjoyed it too, and left inspired and lifted! Let's follow-up on the ideas that came out of Lift13 and make innovation happen now.

Lift with Fing 2012

Sept. 27-28, 2012 | Marseille, France

This 4th edition of Lift with Fing was openend by Fleur Pellerin, French Minister in charge of SMEs, Innovation and the Digital Economy. It was different from previous ones: Participants were invited to take part in a new kind of foresight exercise. The 2-day event featured talks and a giant co-creation workshop about digital disruptions.

The outcome of the workshop will be published soon in form of a report here: website Questions Numériques.

Swiss-Korean Innovation Night

Apr. 18, 2012 | Seoul, South Korea

For our 4th Lift event in Korea, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Presence Switzerland mandated us to curate a event in Seoul, taking place prior to the 2012 Expo in Yeosu. The mission was to celebrate innovation and create and reinforce bridges of friendship between Swiss and Korean pioneers. It connected up-and-coming leaders, artists, researchers and young professionals, presented prototypes and exclusive demos of state-of-the-art projects. The projects were presented in a very unique setup, including live interviews by MCs, to stimulate the networking between Korean and Swiss participants.

Lift Conference 2012

Feb. 22-24, 2012 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift12 (Geneva, Feb. 22-24, 2012) featured our special blend of some of the world's most inspiring speakers, truly interactive workshops,exhibitions of interactive media projects, prototypes to play with and ... the legendary Fondue!

Lift with Fing 2011

July 6-8, 2011 | Marseille, France

Robolift@Inno-Robo

Mar. 23-25, 2011 | Lyon, France

In 2011 the Lift team curated a special Robolift Conference to complement Innorobo, one of Europe’s leading robotics trade shows taking place in Lyon. Robolift explored the major opportunities and challenges presented by the emerging field of robotics, from the possibilities of artificial intelligence to the prospect of autonomous military robots. In three days, participants saw hundreds of robots in action, met the international pioneers who build them, and listen to the ideas driving one of tomorrow's largest market.

Lift Conference 2011

Feb. 2-4, 2011 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift11 gathered over 1000 participants in Geneva to explore current and emerging usage of digital technologies such as online communities, social media and casual games. It was at Lift11 that Kevin Slavin made his ground-breaking speech about “those algorithms that govern our lives”, which resonated deeply with the audience and led to an invitation to TED Global a few months later. Since then the influence of algorithms on our lives has been explored in many Lift workshops and even a dedicated session.

Lift with Fing 2010

July 5-7, 2010 | Marseille, France

In 2010 Lift France with Fing gathered 560 participants and explored how the technologies and concepts of the web are changing the real world today and in the future. For the last 20 years, networked technologies have redistributed the power of imagining, evaluating, and acting. But this change extends far beyond the digital. It transforms manufacturing, learning, cities, public policy, perhaps even our own minds… Themed “dot.real” Lift France with Fing 2010 explored how the real world is being “webified”.

Lift Conference 2010

May 5-7, 2010 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift10 gathered 1000 participants to explore the most overlooked aspect of innovation: people. Known in techno-parlance as users, people ultimately define the success of all technological and entrepreneurial projects. Their approaches are unique, influenced by cultural and generational diversity. During 3 days Lift10 explored the myths and uncover the reality behind the "connected people" in speeches, workshops and the interactive “Lift Experience” exhibition, curated by HEAD.

Lift in Asia 2009

Sept. 17-18, 2009 | Jeju, South Korea

The third edition of Lift in Korea explored how social networks, online games, robots and communicating objects, once designed for entertainment purposes, are giving birth to a whole new range of opportunities and challenges. The two-day conference welcomed 450 participants on Jeju Island and featured an open program where members of the audience presented their ideas and projects.

Lift with Fing 2009

June 18-20, 2009 | Marseille, France

In 2009 a second international event was added to the Lift conference roaster: With our friends at the Fondation Internet Nouvelle Generation (FING) in Paris we kicked-off a new event series in Marseille, targeted at exploring digital innovation around the Mediterranean. French minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet closed the event with a personal wrap-up.

Lift Conference 2009

Feb. 25-27, 2009 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

Lift09 welcomed over 800 participants, looking back to look ahead, exploring topics like change, solidarity, love, or design, during three days of intense networking and inspiration themed around a simple question: "Where did the future go?". A special highlight of this 4th edition of Lift in Geneva was the speech by one of the “fathers of the internet” and Google Vice-President Vint Cerf.

Lift in Asia 2008

Sept. 4-6, 2008 | Jeju, South Korea

The first full-scale event of Lift in Asia took place in a breath-taking setting on the beautiful Korean island Jeju-Do. Besides inspiring speakers and workshops the 2-day event offered participants a great exhibition of interactive design prototypes in collaboration with Seoul-based Nabi art center.

Lift Conference 2008

Feb. 6-8, 2008 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

The 3rd edition of Lift Geneva offered 650 participants three full days of workshops, talks, social activities and discussions to get a look at the most important technological trends and meet the people behind them. It was in 2008 that the first edition of the start-up event “AlpICT” Venture Night was launched in a full room at Salle Communale de Plainpalais.

Lift in Asia 2007

Sept. 12, 2007 | Seoul, South Korea

After being invited to speak at Lift Geneva in February 2007, Korean star entrepreneur Jaewoong Lee encouraged the Lift Team to launch a Lift edition in Korea. Only a few months later the Lift Team organized its first Korean Event: on this first Lift Night in Seoul 180 participants came together from to connect with speakers like Adam Greenfield, Bruce Sterling, XL games CEO Jake Song and Korean architect Yoo Suk Yeon and discuss real and digital spaces.

Lift Conference 2007

Feb. 7-9, 2007 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

At the 2nd edition of Lift in Geneva 550 people came together. For the first time selected participants were offered the opportunity to talk during the open stage sessions or share and learn with others during a pre-conference workshop. 2007 was also the year the interactive experience exhibition space, LIFT+ was launched to stimulate active interaction between the participants.

Lift Conference 2006

Feb. 2-3, 2006 | CICG, Geneva, Switzerland

At the very first edition of Lift 350 participants came together in the CICG, Geneva. The goal of Lift06 was to connect people passionate about new applications of technology and propel their conversations into the broader world to improve life and work. A new series events was born!