What We Learned Running Sync Conf (And Why Events Still Matter More Than Ever)

Why We Started Running Events at Scale

We’ve been organising events since 2015. Small ones at first, but with pretty big impact (GraphQL among the most notable). But this year shifted something for us: Local-First Conf, PEARL SUMMIT, and now Sync Conf in San Francisco. All three sold out.

Most companies run events as “marketing” - they feel they should, or someone in the team says it’ll “drive awareness.”

‍

That’s not how we see it.

For us, events are strategic infrastructure for the communities we care about. They create the conditions for connection, and human connection is the thing every great brand depends on.

There’s plenty of research around this: belonging increases engagement, commitment, and the likelihood that people stick with you over the long term.

But you don’t need academic papers to see it. Put people in a room, give them a shared problem, and things move. Trust forms and ideas travel in a way you just can’t manage on a Zoom call.

Tech Companies Love Events

You would think that if any group could skip the whole “being in a room together” thing, it would be the people who came to Sync Conf: distributed engineering teams, AI-native companies, developers building the tools that make online collaboration effortless.

But actually, these folks love events.

There’s a reason for that. When you’re working at the edge of what’s possible, information isn’t enough. You need alignment. You need the kind of loose, surprising moments that only happen in hallways or over lunch (or beers).

The fact that these deeply technical communities still insist on gathering tells you something important: connection accelerates innovation.

The people who showed up in San Francisco weren’t just aligned on tooling; they were aligned on worldview. They recognised each other, and that recognition is the thing that turns a conference into a community.

Events as Infrastructure

This is the part most founders overlook.

A strong community needs moments of sync (pun intended) places where people recognise themselves in others, where ideas settle into shape, where identity forms. Digital channels and narrative help, but nothing replaces the emotional clarity of being in the same room, thinking about the same hard problem.

Sync Conf did exactly that. People left feeling part of something bigger than themselves. Companies strengthened their place in the ecosystem, new voices emerged, and existing reputations deepened.

This is why we believe brands that invest in community now will have something truly defensible later. Technology moves fast, and forgets faster. Communities don’t.

What We’re Building Next

Running three sold-out conferences this year made something very clear: gatherings aren’t optional for companies building the future. They’re essential. Not because they’re flashy, but because they create structure around purpose.

So we’re helping more brands design events of their own. These won’t be launch parties, or superficial activations, but thoughtful, well-designed spaces where communities can take root and grow.

Because at the end of the day, we’re not just building brands.
We’re building communities that last.

‍