Andrea Doyle

The Mattel-sanctioned Barbie fan fest is issuing refunds after attendees described an underwhelming experience. It’s the latest in a growing wave of fan events undone by overhyped promises and underdelivered execution.

For Sina Bünte, innovation isn’t about disruption; it’s about execution. Drawing on lessons from the Olympic Games and Cirque du Soleil, she focuses on continuous experimentation, smarter use of AI, and designing events that match how audiences engage and learn.

AI-powered impersonation is outpacing most organizations’ safeguards. For the events industry, where large payments, compressed timelines, and digital communication intersect, deepfake scams are an operational risk.

Baltimore risks losing major meetings to cities with newer convention infrastructure. New Visit Baltimore CEO Kireem Swinton is making modernization of the city’s convention center a top priority, alongside short-term incentives to keep business flowing.

A boycott threat against one of the world’s most important scientific meetings underscores a broader challenge: geopolitical tensions and cross-border travel barriers are increasingly determining where global events can, and can’t, take place. 

Global companies increasingly want event partners that can own the entire process, from storytelling and design to production and execution, and private equity is fueling the scale to make that happen.

With declining leisure demand, mega-events and conventions have become more important to the city’s tourism mix. 

Destination marketing has become more political and community-driven, reshaping what leadership looks like. Increasingly, that leader is a woman.

For Ally Masi, innovation is consistent, intentional change. At Salesforce, she’s proving that small shifts in planning, alignment, and design can fundamentally reshape how events deliver value.

Freeman's new in-house platform turns convention center floor plans into navigable 3D environments — and has the potential to change how planners visualize, sell, and build events before a single booth goes up.