Denver makes history with 1st city-led AI summit
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Denver Mayor Mike Johnston (left) and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt at the DenAI Summit Thursday. Photo: Alayna Alvarez/Axios
Denver made history Thursday hosting the nation's first major city-led AI summit, drawing a thousand attendees and top names in tech, including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
Why it matters: Local leaders hope the inaugural DenAI Summit will cement the state's status as an entrepreneurial hub and position it as a hot destination for AI companies to set up shop.
The big picture: The summit, held at the Colorado Convention Center, was spearheaded by Denver Mayor Mike Johnston as part of a broader effort to put the city at the forefront of tech innovation.
- The sold-out event, hosted in partnership with the 13th annual Denver Startup Week, featured keynotes and panels where industry experts discussed AI's potential to transform local government, solve social challenges and improve people's lives.
What they're saying: "This is both part of our attempt to help this industry grow, but also to put a flag in the ground," Johnston said Thursday. "This is Denver's brand. This is Colorado's brand. This is the place we will embrace this opportunity."
- Gov. Jared Polis echoed Johnston, emphasizing his goal to make Colorado the "No. 1 state for VC funding in AI" — up from its current rank of No. 7, according to the governor.
Zoom in: Hoffman, a conference headliner, highlighted the role local governments play in "enabling experimentation" during a "major wave" of technological innovation.
- However, he cautioned that Colorado's new law regulating AI — which has been adopted as a model by other states — could hinder growth.
- The law "doesn't strike me as a particularly smart play," Hoffman said, suggesting that overly stringent regulations could keep companies from investing in the region.
Schmidt, another headliner, said cities need to be "tolerant" with technologists and entrepreneurs as they develop new solutions to social problems.
- "Now obviously, you want to control … [But] you want to be a place of creativity. You're not going to get there with state-controlled directed mandates," he said.
Yes, but: While advocating for innovation, Schmidt warned of the risks if AI advances unchecked.
- "When the system is beginning to learn on its own and you don't know what it's doing, do you know what we should do? Unplug it," he said.
Behind the scenes: Hoffman, who was a top donor to Johnston's mayoral campaign last year, paid for his own travel and accommodations — as did other speakers — according to Johnston's spokesperson Jordan Fuja.
- No city funds were used for the summit, Fuja said. It was funded through sponsorships from companies like Google, Slalom and the Rockefeller Foundation.
What's next: Johnston hopes to make the DenAI Summit an annual event.
- "We want the city to be the place that … if you have a tool that you've built or a service you've built and you think you can make people's lives better, we want to be an entrepreneurially-minded place to settle."