Across Asia-Pacific, business events are entering a new era: one where technology is not the headline act, but an enabler of something bigger.
The days of flashy gadgets and impressive displays are giving way to tools that bridge connections, support inclusion, and leave lasting legacies in host communities.
At BestCities Global Alliance, we have always believed that innovation should make events more meaningful for delegates, destinations, and communities. With the tech revolution accelerating, our 13 partner cities – including Singapore, Tokyo, and Melbourne – are using artificial intelligence (AI) and immersive tech to transform events into intentional, inclusive, and impact-driven experiences.
BestCities: Tech with purpose
For 25 years, BestCities has advocated for business events that leave positive legacies. Our Global Forum embodies this mission. At the 2025 event in Dublin, for example, we introduced AI-powered translation, sustainability tracking, and social impact projects.
Through our new collaboration with Snapsight, attendees gain real-time, personalised insights from AI analysis of live discussions – making engagement smarter and more impactful. And through Engage for Good, every delegate interaction supports local causes, like the Solas Project in Dublin. It’s tech and impact, working hand in hand.
Singapore: AI as a delegate ally
Singapore is breaking new ground as the first destination in Asia to partner with OpenAI, embedding generative AI into tourism and events. For delegates, this means multilingual support, immersive storytelling, and more intuitive and inclusive conference experiences.
At GITEX Asia 2025, over 1,000 innovations debuted – 75 per cent of them for the first time in Asia-Pacific – showing Singapore’s role as a testbed for business events tech. Events like the Singapore FinTech Festival use AI for smart matchmaking, taking networking to another level.
Supporting this innovation ecosystem are organizations like the VR/AR Association and Plug-In@Blk71, alongside national leadership through the Digital Education Council, which ensures responsible AI adoption.
Tokyo: Tech with empathy
Tech meets empathy in Tokyo with events such as SusHi Tech Tokyo and WebX, where attendees do not just observe – they interact, operate robots, and step into virtual environments across city infrastructure, healthcare, and WEB3.
With backing from collaborations like Microsoft Research Asia – Tokyo, which focuses on “societal AI” for wellbeing and neuroscience, Tokyo proves that experiential storytelling can be meaningful and human-centre, not merely spectacle.
Melbourne: Innovation with purpose
Recognised as Australia’s hub for ethical innovation, Melbourne hosted The Economist’s Progress 2030 Summit – its first-ever event in Australia – attracting over 400 global leaders.
The city’s commitment is evident in the Australian Centre for Artificial Intelligence in Medical Innovation, the world’s first university innovation centre advancing vaccines, immunotherapy, and medical breakthroughs with AI. In parallel, Monash University and partners are developing MAVERIC, Australia’s first AI supercomputer, designed to solve some of humanity’s most pressing challenges.
Looking ahead: Purpose as priority
In Singapore, Tokyo, and Melbourne, business events tech is evolving – shifting from what tech can do, to what tech can help us achieve.
At BestCities, we’re proud to help lead this transformation – from gadgets to goals, from passive participation to lasting impact.
Loren Christie brings more than 25 years of experience in Tourism & Hospitality to his role as Managing Director of the BestCities Global Alliance.
He held various leadership positions with Starwood Hotels & Resorts during his 17 year career. From 2017 to 2020, he moved to Destination Toronto, the Destination Management Organization for Canada’s largest city, where he led the International Congress and Canadian sales teams.
For the last three years he has been running his own consulting and project management company working with a number of clients including IAPCO – as faculty, #Meet4IMpact and the Global Destination Sustainability Movement teaching their masterclass on Legacy and Impact. He recently wrapped up two years as the vice-chair of the Global Business Travel Association’s meetings & events committee for Canada.
