Smart Meetings

AI-powered personalization, immersive environments, predictive data tools—the list of possibilities keeps growing. And yet, the most impactful events don’t necessarily feel more high-tech. They feel easier. More intuitive. More human. As event tech evolves, the goal is no longer to impress attendees with what’s possible; it’s to create experiences so seamless they barely notice the technology at all.

Chefs, in luxury hotels especially, love meticulously tweezing blooms onto their plated presentations. And for more than prettiness: Edible flowers have been prized since ancient Rome, Greece and China. They’re surprisingly dense in nutrients, often containing higher concentrations than some fruits and vegetables. And they come with intriguing flavor profiles.

Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) serves as an annual reminder that meetings and events are far more than calendar commitments; they are catalysts for connection, collaboration and progress. Led by the Events Industry Council, this year’s GMID is focused on the role meetings play in driving economic growth, collaboration and human connection.

We talked to Robert Dingjan, director of the Conference Bureau Ministry of Foreign Affairs for The Netherlands, and Michiel Middendorf, general manager of World Forum The Hague, the venue for the NATO Summit proceedings, for lessons planners of complex gatherings can learn from this high-stakes endeavor.

When FIFA World Cup comes to Atlanta on June 15, it will be one of the most-played host cities in the United States, hosting eight matches through June and July, including one Round of 32 match, a Round of 16 match and a semifinal.

For the latest trends in attention grabbing, I dropped in on the Experiential Marketing Summit 2026 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.  From Google Director of Events Amy Loskutoff giving career advice to Instacart Head of Global B2B Events Chase Kehoe sharing tricks for making tech tangible, the tea being spilled was based on real life wins and losses. 

Top event professionals gathered at Thompson Palm Springs this week for the Executive Experience designed to turn up the volume on developing an action-oriented mindset.