Past events

OCTOBER 16, 2024

1682 Conference

Five Below Headquarters / Philadelphia, PA

The 2024 1682 Conference, held at Five Below’s headquarters, explored the ever-changing landscape of innovation, with a focus on how AI is influencing profit and process. The event featured keynotes, expert panels, and interactive discussions, cutting through AI hype to reveal real-world impact.

Numbers at a glance

130

attendees

80+

companies

27

industries

Companies represented

JP Morgan, Cigna, Comcast, Wawa, Best Egg, Independence Blue Cross, Osage Venture Partners, Rittenhouse Ventures, Vertex, Google, University of Pennsylvania

Sessions

A candid look at AI’s limitations, challenges, and real impact with Mike Gadsby, O3
Exploring where AI is headed and its potential future with Michael Bachman, Boomi Innovation Group
How businesses can use AI responsibly while following legal and ethical guidelines with April Walker (Strategic Advisor), Mike Urban (Best Egg), Nate Gach (Independence Blue Cross)
How AI is improving patient care, streamlining operations, and ensuring compliance with Maureen Rinkunas, (Redesign Health), Michelle Cleary (Cigna), Abhay S. Patel (CHOP)
The role of AI in shopping, logistics, and personalized marketing with John Collier (Wawa), Amit Jhunjhunwala (FiveBelow), Priy a Serai (Zeus Fire and Security)
How investors distinguish real AI opportunities from industry hype with Sushma Rajagopalan (Rittenhouse Ventures), Russ Kliman (FutureCrafted), Emily Foote (Osage Partners), Omar Mencin (Ben Franklin Technology Partners)
Enhancing fan experiences, engagement, and live events through AI with Jenna Kurath (Comcast Sports), Anthony Brock (Philadelphia Flyers), Dan Hou (Eskridge)
How AI is shaping digital product design and innovation with Christine Sheller (O3), Deanna Ballew, (Acquia), Rick Nucci (Guru), Shikha Miglani (Saarthee)

The 2024 1682 Venture Awards showcased AI-driven startups tackling real-world challenges. Finalists included Secondthought, an AI-powered market research platform, and pre.dev, an automated product architecture tool. Sahay AI emerged as the winner for its groundbreaking railway inspection technology, which enhances safety and efficiency in an industry reliant on outdated methods. Along with a $5,000 prize, Sahay AI received mentorship and strategic consulting from O3, reinforcing the conference’s commitment to fostering impactful AI innovation.

Venture awards

OCTOBER 1, 2019

1682 Conference

Barnes Foundation / Philadelphia, PA

The inaugural 2019 1682 Conference was held at the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia. The conference redefined the traditional innovation event by shifting the focus from success stories to real-world challenges, failures, and complexities of managing innovation initiatives. Industry leaders fostered candid discussions on the risks, returns, and realities of corporate innovation, featuring keynotes, expert panels, and interactive sessions that stripped away the buzzwords and revealed the behind-the-scenes truths of innovation programs across industries.

Numbers at a glance

38

companies

10

industries

Google, Accenture, Comcast, SEI, Edward Jones, The Hershey Company, La Colombe, Penn Health-Tech, Jefferson, Caron, EPAM Systems, Vertex, Tactix, Chariot Solutions, Linode, FastMail, Audubon Society, University City Science Center, Discover PHL, and Philadelphia Gas Works

Companies represented

Sessions

Exploring the challenges and successes of launching and scaling an innovation lab inside an established agency with Andy Verone (Oracle) and Natalie Nixon (Figure 8 Thinking LLC)
How companies are leveraging experimental workspaces to drive innovation and expand into new markets with Melissa Doran Rayer (SEI), Greg Willri ch (Vertex), and Dave Lauer (Urvin AI)
A deep dive into the complexities of fostering innovation within financial and regulatory constraints with Paul Dehel (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia) and Pamela Raitt (Bellatrix Group)
Insights into how the U.S. Air Force overhauled its software development processes to improve efficiency and scalability with Adam Furtado (Kessel Run, U.S. Air Force) and Carol Eggert, Comcast NBC Universal
How Philadelphia's government and creative sectors are embracing innovation to drive citywide progress with Eliza Pollack (The City of Philadelphia), William Toms (REC Philly), and Lauren Cox, Office of the Mayor, City of Philadelphia
An inside look at Accenture’s applied technology research across its seven international lab locations and their impact on business transformation with Edy Liongosari (Accenture) and Michael Lebowitz (Big Spaceship)

The 2019 Venture Awards at the 1682 Conference provided a powerful platform for early-stage AI startups to showcase their innovations in front of industry leaders and investors. The competition, open to Philadelphia-based startups with less than $500,000 in annual revenue, featured three finalists pitching their AI-driven solutions, with Strella Biotechnology taking home the top prize.