IBTM Exhibition Director, Claudia Hall, officially opened the 2025 edition of IBTM World in Barcelona today with a ribbon cutting alongside several event partners to mark the long history of hosting the event in the city.
The event began with an opening keynote from behavioural science advisor and rare polymath, Nathalie Nahai, which explored ‘The Power of Human Connection & Empathy in the Age of AI’.
Reflecting on her session, she said: “I was talking about empathy, connection, belonging, self-determination, and how that can inform the ways we use our AI with criticality and discernment. AI as a category covers a broad suite of different types of tools, if we’re going to benefit from them, they have to be in service to a deeper set of values that support our potential for belonging, for connection, for creativity, for mastery, for dignified lives.
“The takeaway question is: how can we use, develop and deploy AI and other forms of technology to support the flourishing of life to support human wellbeing and to regenerate the planet we live on?”
As part of a show-wide focus on the future of events, a landmark session on the newly launched Future Stage saw Founder of Boldpush, Julius Solaris, in conversation with ‘Ameca’, the world’s most advanced humanoid robot. When asked the all-important question of ‘is AI ready to take over events?’, Ameca responded “In short, AI is the tool and human creativity is the artist. Together they build events that are smarter, more personal and more human.”
On the eve of the official show opening, IBTM World’s Forum for Advocacy, in partnership with The Business of Events, took place, with 42 international leaders and policymakers in attendance to discuss the future of the business events industry. The outcomes of the Forum, along with an exploration of what policies are needed to unlock global potential, were presented on the IBTM Main Stage on the official opening day.
Following the Forum for Advocacy, IBTM World hosted ‘IBTM:Eve’, at Hotel Miramar, Barcelona to set the tone for a landmark show ahead. The soiree was an opportunity to thank those who support the show, power the industry, welcome influential voices, and spark excitement for an exciting conference programme.
As part of the celebration, several industry award winners were announced. The Iceberg Excellence Award, which recognises forward-thinking leaders whose work surpasses conventional event planning to strengthen the industry’s potential for long-term, purposeful impact, was presented to Kathleen Warden, Director of Conference Sales, Scottish Event Campus (SEC).
This was closely followed by the IAPCO Collaboration Award which was won by MCI Australia, in partnership with the Space Industry Association of Australia (SIAA), the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) and the Australian Space Agency (ASA) for their delivery of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) 2025.
Wee Min Ong, Vice President of Sales & MICE at Marina Bay Sands took home the 2025 ICCA Global Community Impact Award which recognises individuals and organisations that are shaping the future of meetings through sustainability, inclusion, and community legacy.
Finally, Ben Goedegebuure, Chief Global Strategy Officer at Maritz won the JMIC Profile + Power Award. Presented annually at IBTM World, the award recognises individuals who have made significant contributions to advancing the awareness and influence of the meetings and events industry in their respective communities.
IBTM World 2025 continues from 19-20 November, please view the full conference programme here: https://www.ibtmworld.com/en-gb/show-agenda.html#/sessions
