Yes, we know what you’re thinking, but no that’s not what it means. We’re talking about the Wine + Tech + Food (WTF) Conference, which took place last week in the gorgeous Santa Ynez Valley of California and brought in speakers from London, New York, Boston, Florida, San Francisco, and yes, Fargo, to talk about everything from how to use drones when making wine to building the town of your dreams.
It was hosted by David Baeza, past 1 Million Cups Fargo speaker and founder of Vine Rangers – a startup that harnesses drone tech to aid in precision agriculture and is currently looking to open their first office outside of California right here in Fargo, ND.
“We interviewed winemakers, farmers, restaurant owners, tasting room managers, hotel executives and small business owners and many of you had similar questions,” it states on the WTF conference website. “So we’re bringing in twelve of the world’s best experts to specifically answer your questions.”
WTF Conference speakers from around the world, and Fargo
Baeza invited Emerging Prairie co-founder Greg Tehven to speak at the WTF conference on how to create your ideal community. From the looks of it, Baeza is a pretty big Fargo fan himself.
David Baeza, reppin’ the Fargo love.
Greg Tehven, raising the roof.
Another familiar face in the WTF Conference lineup was AJ Leon of the Misfits. He and Tehven joined a panel of eleven other speakers, including a top crowdfunding expert, the author of the #1 book on Facebook Marketing, a robotics PhD from Oxford, and a variety of experts in the field of wine, farming, and community-building.
The entire event was catered with local wine and beer, and filmed by a world class drone pilot. People could also put their own hot rods on display, like this one:
It appears there was also a fair amount of barbecuing involved as well…
Baeza otherwise known as the “King of Tritip” at the grill.
Overall, Baeza saw the first annual WTF Conference as a great success.
“The goal was to inspire and provoke the community into action,” Baeza said. “It worked. We’ve had tons of amazing feedback.”
It truly did motivate people to take action – one attendee started a new business, and another started a Kickstarter in the first 72 hours after the event, Baeza said. And they will have to show their work at next year’s WTF Conference, Baeza said.
“The WTF Conference for 2016 is in the works,” he said. “We’re keeping people accountable by showing their work next year.”
A clink of the glass to Baeza and the WTF Conference. Learn more, here.
Check out the rest of the awesome photos – courtesy of CC Chapman – right here.
All photos courtesy of CC Chapman.
