Sharon Kennedy Vickers delivering the opening Session 0 talk at Minnebar14

“I enjoyed hearing many attendees comment on how inclusive they felt Minnebar has become. This is pretty rare for technology events & speaks to many actions taken to create a great community culture.”

On Saturday, April 27th a record-breaking over 1,400 techies, designers, investors and entrepreneurs descended on Best Buy’s corporate headquarters to attend Minnebar14.

First held in 2006, Minnebar is an annual technology (un)conference, and one of the largest events that brings together the MN tech community. Minnebar, like other BarCamps, is an (un)conference that is participant-led and has a very loose structure.

BarCamps are held around the world from Swaziland to Seattle; Minnebar is rumored to be the largest in North America. There are no formal or curated workshops (although we sometimes host minor web celebrities), and all sessions are led by people from the tech and business community. Want a fun snapshot of the day? Check out the video from community member Tom Hart, and some fast facts below!

Fast Facts:

  • This was the 11th Minnebar hosted at Best Buy’s HQ
  • 157 sessions led by community members (+18% from previous record)
  • Complimentary child care & a mothers/lactation suite
  • 36% increase in attendance from previously largest Minnebar (2017)
  • Attendees at a glance:
      • 41% first Minnestar event (+1% from last year)
      • 26% Female &/or nonbinary/gender nonconforming (+1%)
      • 22% People of color (+5%)
      • 9% CEO/CTO/Founder/VP/Executive (-1%)
      • 40% Developer/engineer/programmer (+4%)
      • 8% student (-3%)

We are always looking to improve the quality and experience of our events, so we want to know: what would you like to see from Minnestar? What is your vision for our tech community and how can Minnestar help us get there? Shoot us an email any time (we love hearing from you!) at support@minnestar.org.

See you at Minnedemo32 July 18th at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts!