In May, Dublin hosted its first-ever Dublin Tech Week, which featured over 40 fascinating events that brought together the region’s top innovators, global digital leaders, creatives, educators, and the general public. Together with numerous significant partners and stakeholders across the region, Smart Dublin was proud to support Dublin Tech Week by organising a number of events in partnership with our colleagues at Dublin City Council, the Dublin brand team, Hugh Lane Gallery, the DCC Arts Office, the LEO, Dublin City Economic Development, and the Dublin City Council Culture Company.
A community-driven event, Dublin Tech Week celebrated technology and innovation by curating a dynamic schedule of events. These events were aimed at promoting cooperation and establishing Dublin as a major worldwide innovation hub. The initiative came about to bridge the gap between the city’s tech industry and its residents by creating opportunities for participation, and, in doing so, it has created a dynamic ecosystem of engaged individuals and groups.
Smart Docklands
The Smart Docklands teams hosted two events – a Connective Detective family workshop at Pearse St Library and the Smart City Urban Quest—Adventure in the Docklands. Urban Quest is a self-guided educational tour showcasing the numerous Internet of Things (IoT) devices that use data to help manage city services.
South Dublin
In South Dublin, the Data Art, From a Crusty Chart hackathon was hosted by Work IQ in Tallaght. Many community-minded young adults came together to brainstorm solutions to some current problems using data sets that are publicly available on the region’s “Dublinked” open data platform. Some of the societal problems explored included planning, urban vacancy, homelessness, and mobility.
Dublin City
Hosted by The LAB Gallery on Foley Street, Art, Tech & the City was an experiential afternoon that revealed some unexpected intersections of art, technology, and our city. This interdisciplinary event demonstrated a brilliant collision of creativity, technology, and civic imagination. Curated by Jo Mangan and presented by Dublin City Council Arts Office and The LAB Gallery in collaboration with Smart Dublin, the event invited artists, technologists, and #SmartCity thinkers to explore how emerging technologies are reshaping storytelling, public engagement, and urban design.
Katie Richardson shared her work in immersive spatial and binaural sound, exploring the emotional and narrative potential of audio in urban spaces.
Ciara Del Grosso Bates offered a critical take on AI in the creative process and demonstrated a mixed reality (MR) experience in progress with audio-reactive visuals and facial motion capture (mocap).
Caoimhe Wandel-Brannigan explored how motion capture and choreography intersect in digital space and showcased a virtual reality (VR) mocap installation on embodied presence.
Nicola Graham presented Smart Docklands’ use of 3D modelling and immersive graffiti to support public engagement, youth creativity, and smart city development.
A thought-provoking event that examined the potential of new and emerging creative technologies and looked at how they could open up new avenues for the city to thrive. Dublin Tech Week has helped to reaffirm Dublin’s leadership in the IT industry and bolstered our reputation as a welcoming and successful hub for both local and foreign enterprise.