Cvent flexed its muscles as a global leader in event management during the milestone 25th iteration of its annual meetings, events, and hospitality technology conference, Cvent CONNECT Europe. 

Held Nov. 5-7 at the Hilton London Metropole, this year’s Cvent CONNECT Europe was the software giant’s largest yet, with more than 1,500 industry professionals onsite and thousands more tuning in virtually. Rachel Andrews, Cvent’s senior director of global meetings and events, attributed the 15% year-over-year attendance surge (there were roughly 1,300 in person in 2023) to the company’s increased focus on all industry professionals—not just its roughly 22,000 customers. 

“Cvent CONNECT Europe has evolved from a user-based customer conference to a true industry event with content that appeals to both Cvent users and industry professionals alike,” Andrews explained to Corporate Event News. To handle its largest audience yet, Andrews' team infused “more attendee meet-up sessions” into programming aside from an additional 55-plus educational panels.  

These meet-ups—more like “curated networking groups,” per Andrews—took on industry-specific themes such as Financial Services and Life Sciences, as well as subjects like “CONNECT first timers” to foster connection. Other forums were dedicated to Cvent’s key partners and decision-makers at gratis agencies, while the “Open Forum” welcomed attendees with "head of events” roles, Andrews explained. Such segmented programming is part of Cvent’s “focus on community-building [...] and creating an experience that supports professional growth,” she added. 

When it comes to professional growth in today’s digital landscape, there’s no doubt that people are learning more about techy tools to optimize their workflow than ever—and yes, that includes artificial intelligence. Thus, one of the most popular experiences at Cvent CONNECT Europe was the Tech Tours, which Andrews described as “expert-guided tours [that] provided attendees with a hands-on look at how Cvent event technology supports every part of the delegate journey on-site—from check-in and badging to RFID tracking and real-time session reporting.” And though the tours aren’t new to Cvent CONNECT events, Andrews gushed that these immersive tours are exciting time and time again for their ability to bring Cvent’s offerings to life. 

This year, there was a lot to showcase, especially considering Cvent has been ramping up its own reliance on AI with product launches and strategic acquisitions, as Cvent founder and chief Reggie Aggarwal explained in an opening keynote. In fact, there are a whopping 200 tech experts on the Cvent team working on more than 20 AI initiatives.  

“We’re doing the heavy lifting with AI so our customers don’t have to. We believe planners, marketers, and hoteliers should be able to leverage AI so that they focus on what matters most: creating impactful moments,” Aggarwal said, as recapped in a press release on his keynote address. The sentiment was similar to that of Aggarwal’s remarks during Cvent CONNECT’s US edition in Texas back in June—and of Cvent’s annual Planner Sourcing Report that was unveiled at the London event.  

In the report, Cvent said it found that “AI is becoming an important part of planners' processes, with more than half (54%) already using AI tools during the venue sourcing process,” including “for tasks such as comparing bids (53%), venue searching (48%), and creating RFPs (47%).” 

It also reported that an impressive 90% of event planners feel positive about the current state of the events industry, with optimism that there will be more on-site and off-site events come 2025. 

The announcement of the Cvent Excellence Award winners made its return in 2024, too. Applications for the awards program were in the thousands, with hundreds scoring nominations, and only a handful taking home the highly coveted award across categories such as “Best In-Person Experience,” “Cvent Advocate of the Year,” and “Planner’s Best Partner.” 

Speaking of partnerships, Cvent “deepened our partnership with Fast Forward 15—a regional non-profit dedicated to encouraging and empowering women in events, hospitality, and related industries—by hosting their Autumn Education Day during the conference,” Andrews recalled. As part of Fast Forward 15’s annual event, 15 ambitious women are selected “to be mentored by seasoned industry experts, creating a powerful network of trailblazing professionals,” Andrews explained. 

And for attendees who didn’t attend Education Day, live programming included a full day of “Training Camp” sessions on the first day of the conference—where Cvent offers CMP-accredited workshops—plus what Andrews described as “more fun sessions” throughout the rest of Cvent CONNECT, like “a Q&A session with our CEO, hosted by TV and radio presenter Dermot O’Leary, and a fireside chat with Latin dance champion and TV personality Oti Mabuse.” Off-stage programming also allowed attendees to leave the Hilton London Metropole—which is just steps from Hyde Park—and explore the city of London. 

But even in its largest year yet, Cvent CONNECT is already looking at expanding further. “While we’ve found London to be a fantastic innovative hub to host our European event, we’ve expanded our event programming to include smaller one-day localized events, such as our Cvent Accelerate event in Berlin, because we recognize the importance of content that not only speaks to related market trends but also—quite literally—speaks to, and in, the local language,” Andrews concluded. 

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