Kris on stage with raised hands in front of a Vancouver AI audience
A note from Kris · Open call for 2026

I'm looking for the thing you can't stop thinking about.

Talks. Demos. Performances. Experiments. Collaborations. Strange little formats that do not fit anywhere else and might be exactly what this moment needs.

Send me the first honest version. You do not need a polished abstract, a finished deck, or a famous name. Tell me what you want to try, why now, and what might happen in the room.

I'm Kris Krüg. I host the Vancouver AI Community, and I'm building this program with the BC + AI crew. I want it to feel like our best community nights: curious people, sharp questions, something a little weird, and enough trust to try it live.

Priority review July 31, 2026

What I'm looking for

Bring me something alive.

Bring a live question, a point of view, and a reason to happen now. The answer can still be moving.

01

Tell us what you learned the hard way.

A talk, story, argument, field report, or question that changed how you see the work.

02

Show us the thing.

A demo, prototype, tool, artwork, system, beautiful failure, or build that teaches by being there.

03

Make the room part of it.

A workshop, performance, experiment, game, conversation, or collaboration people can enter together.

04

Bring the one with no box.

The strange little format you cannot place anywhere else. If it needs a new name, give it one.

If it does not fit anywhere else, that might be the point.

Send the spark

Five minutes is enough.

Give me the idea, why it matters, and the shape it wants to take. Weird and specific beats polished and vague every time.

01

Send the spark

A few sentences is plenty. This is the beginning of a conversation, not a grant application.

02

We read everything

I read these with the program crew. Priority review begins July 31, 2026, then continues as the program fills.

03

We find the right shape

If there is a fit, we will talk about format, timing, tech, and what would make the idea land in the room.

First replies begin in August. First-time speakers are welcome. Rough first drafts are welcome too.

Where this comes to life

Three days in Vancouver. A room built for trying things.

Futureproof Festival is an international AI culture and ideas festival for people who are curious about what AI is making possible and clear-eyed about what it is changing. Vancouver hosts the room. The conversation crosses borders.

When
October 28 to 30, 2026
Where
Vancouver, BC
Built with
BC + AI
Priority review
July 31, 2026

Venue partner

Hosted at H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, home to the Vancouver AI Community nights that helped make this festival possible.

H.R. MacMillan Space Centre logo