Collision 2017: Inside NOLABA’s Work by Louis David

By Louis David, Vice President, Business Development and Strategy

Collision 2017 can best be summed up with one word: giant.  From the physical layout of the Convention Center to the estimated 20,000 attendees (up 60%+ from 2016) to the only-in-New Orleans deluge and lightning show that added a real spark to Wednesday’s nighttime events – this year’s Collision tech conference was big!

Last week’s conference brought more than 4,500 tech companies to the city from more than 100 countries.  For many of these companies, this was their first taste of New Orleans.  That’s why NOLABA teamed up with our economic development partners to staff a booth on the convention center floor and a Sunset Summit Tuesday night to welcome attendees to the city.  Our booth showed off great facts about New Orleans’ growing tech community, and more than 1,100 conference attendees enjoyed our evening event – more than double 2016’s headcount. Now, NOLABA’s focus turns to reaching out to dozens of companies who want to learn more about doing business in New Orleans and planning recruiting efforts based on prospect feedback.

The success of Collision is a true testament to the momentum that continues to move our homegrown and new tech companies forward, as well as the successful collaboration between NOLABA and our economic development partners.  Both of these forces are combining to shine a national and international spotlight on New Orleans as a growing tech hub.