Snowflake Summit 2023: A tactical guide

How to hit all the right sessions, labs, and afterparties at Summit 2023, sans the post-event burnout.

So you’re headed to Snowflake Summit 2023, and you want to make sure you hit the most important sessions, with enough breathing room to enjoy the process?
Same here! So, we combed the agendas, reached out to coordinators, and talked to attendees to find out what’s really happening, on and off the books.
The good news is, most main sessions are recorded — this way, you can prioritize live-first experiences where they matter most, and watch the ones you missed on the way home.

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(Speaking of live experiences, we’ll be at Summit! If you’re interested in Web3 tech or blockchain data, come chat with us in person.)
Now without further ado, here’s your tactical guide to Snowflake Summit 2023.

Afterparties

The best parts of any conference are the afterparties — So, let’s plan for dessert first:
FSI Party 2023 - Hakkoda, CoreLogic & VGS
Monday, June 26, 6:00 PM PDT

Start the week off by immersing in a whimsical maze, an exclusive evening at the world’s most unique distillery.
Data Par-Tee (TopGolf) - MessageGears, Hakkoda, & SnowplowTues Jun 27, 5:00 - 9:00 PM PDT
Have a cocktail, enjoy delicious bites, and perfect your golf swing while networking with like-minded peers. Register here.
or

Data Lanes (Bowling) - FIveTran, Alation, Sigma, Hightouch, Monte Carlo, & CoalesceTues, Jun 27, 5:30 - 8:00PM PDT
Snacks, drinks, and a perfect game await you at Brooklyn Bowl. Register here.
and

Rooftop Social - phData, dbt Labs, & HEXTues Jun 27, 7:30 - 10:30 PM PDT
After you’ve had your fill of bowling or TopGolf, escape on over to Beer Park for a cold one and some casual conversation in a more peaceful setting. Register here.

and
*FEATURED EVENT*
Blockchain, Bytes and Brews - Off The Strip, The Linq Hotel Wed Jun 28, 5:30 - 7:30 PM PDT
No pitches, no presentations - just free food, drinks and conversation. Hosted by yours truly, Flipside Crypto. RSVP here.
finally
Data + Darts - Monte CarloWed Jun 28, 5:30 - 8:30 PM PDT
Enjoy some libations while playing a round of darts at The Flight Club Las Vegas. Register here.

Hands-on Labs

Since so many of the sessions are recorded, it’s a great use of your in-person time to attend any relevant labs you’re interested in. Since these are highly practical, which ones we’d recommend really depends on your interests.
They’re all going to be powerful opportunities, but here are a few of our favorites:
Cybersecurity Capture the FlagTue Jun 27, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM PDT
Security in the age of AI is more critical and complex than ever. And accordingly, a topic of such gravitas will be taught with war games. Good luck, have fun!
Using dbt for Analytics and ML-Ready Pipelines with SQL and Python in SnowparkTue Jun 27, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM PDT
In this lab, you'll learn how to create data transformation pipelines using dbt, Snowflake SQL, and Snowpark. And the best part, you’ll use Formula 1 data!

Build an App Native to SnowflakeWed Jun 28, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM PDT
This lab will guide step-by-step through creating a Snowflake-native app, which is another foundational skillset you’ll thank yourself for learning. Don’t skip this one!

Get Started w/ Data Engineering and ML Using Snowpark for Python and StreamlitThu Jun 29, 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM PDT
If Thursday rolls around and you still haven’t attended a hands-on lab, “Get started w/ data engineering and ML” will help you cover most of your bases, so you can return home feeling accomplished.

Summit Sessions

You probably won’t make all 430 listings on the Summit sessions page, but there are a few prescient seminars we think will be worth your while:
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Monday
Generative AI’s Impact on Data Innovation in the Enterprise (recorded)Mon Jun 26, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM PDT
Skip an AI session? In this market? Sure, there’s a lot of hype around AI, but this no-nonsense, impact-focused session is a great way to get clear. With NVIDIA’s CEO, no less.
Note: This session takes place on Monday, the night before the opening ceremony.

Tuesday
DataRobot + Sony Interactive Entertainment: Level Up Your AI Lifecycle on the Data CloudTue Jun 27, 11:30 AM - 11:50 AM PDT
“This session will teach you how to leverage Snowflake for collaboration among data teams, including hosting notebooks, creating a full system of record for all your AI artifacts, and automating and enforcing universal ML documentation and governance policies across your models.”
TLDR; spend 20 minutes here and you could save days/weeks/months of OpEx.
and
How Instacart Optimized Snowflake Costs by 50% (recorded)Tue Jun 27, 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM PDT
50% cost savings, and you can watch it on the plane home. Need we say more?

Building a Data Culture at Coca-Cola Bottlers JapanTue Jun 27, 12:30 PM - 12:50 PM PDT
Having good data is just the prerequisite. Knowing how to leverage that data is a different task entirely, and determines its efficacy. Thankfully, Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan have built an effective data-first culture company-wide, and we’re expecting to gain plenty of actionable insights from their short session.
or
Lumin + Snowpark + GPT = Unlocking the Potential of Accelerated Decision-MakingTue Jun 27, 12:30 PM - 12:50 PM PDT
Got your company culture down? Then skip the Coke sesh and come hear how you can harness the power of decision intelligence in your Snowflake data ecosystem.

How Citi Is Revolutionizing Institutional Client Experiences & Transforming AML Capabilities (recorded)Tue Jun 27, 1:00 PM - 1:45 PM PDT

This one’s recorded, but tell me you don’t want to be in the room when Joe Bonanno and Scott Nathan of Citigroup are chatting, and I’ll let you watch the recording.
And, just think who you might run into at a session on KYC/AML, faster analytics, easier data sharing, and modern data collaboration capabilities.

Snowflake Copilot in Action: Continuous Workload Optimization Made EasyTue Jun 27, 2:00 PM - 2:20 PM PDT
If it isn’t obvious by now, we’re big fans of efficiency. In this golden age of data and AI, we know you’ve been wondering how to leverage AI to clean up your workload (we have too!). So, see you at this session!

Wednesday
Winning the Race to the Future: Fast-tracking Data Modernization and Value RealizationWed Jun 28, 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM PDT
Entrenched systems are hard to change, and data architectures are especially difficult (somewhere, an engineer’s hair is standing on end). So save yourself (or your engineers) a lot of pain and attend this session on data modernization.
What It Means to Be a Data-Driven Organization: A Fireside Chat w/ Under Armour & Capital One (recorded)Wed Jun 28, 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM PDT
This session is recorded, but we think it’s worth attending to give yourself a change of pace after a day and a half of practical seminars. Come enjoy a nice fireside chat between Under Armour and Capitol One, rounding out your Summit experience nicely with some qualitative insights.
Demo: Unleashing the Power of Large Language Models with Snowflake (recorded)Wed Jun 28, 1:00 PM - 1:20 PM PDT
Sure, this one’s recorded too, but can you really say you attended a conference if you didn’t watch a tech demo? Grab a snack, a drink, and enjoy yourself a 20 minute break with entertainment (that will probably also yield organization-wide dividends).

How Indeed Achieved 8x Faster Marketing Velocity with Snowflake and Flywheel (recorded)
The #1 jobs site in the world wants to show you how to create a scalable foundation in Snowflake for marketing and other data needs. They’re sharing their experience with decoupling audience segmentation from external tools, launching campaigns based on machine learning and data science models, and more.
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Thursday
Leveraging dbt to Build Blockchain Data Pipelines (recorded)Thu Jun 29, 9:00 AM - 9:20 AM PDT
This one’s our session, and we’ve pulled out all the stops to make it a must-attend — you’ll learn how to easily transform and standardize blockchain data, how to efficiently load millions of rows of data into Snowflake while ensuring data quality and integrity, gain valuable insights into working with Ethereum Virtual Machine data, and much more.
If you’ve got questions before/after the session, snag some time to chat while we’re there. We’re always glad to share insights.
Reimagining the Workforce Experience: Powered by DataThu Jun 29, 9:30 AM - 9:50 AM PDT
It’s always nice to refocus on the last day of Summit with aspirational sessions. Reimagining the Workforce Experience is a session on theory and practice that will help you return ready to create the organization of the future.

Metadata Matters: Salesforce's Secrets to Designing a Cloud Data PlatformThu Jun 29, 11:00 AM - 11:25 AM PDT
Metadata standards are the good hygiene of the data space, and Salesforce is the dentist (but with less sharp objects and more actionable insights). This session is a sure way to leave Summit with a bright smile and a healthy take on data.

There are plenty of repeat sessions on Thursday, so it’s a great time to catch up on any you might have missed. Otherwise, get ready for the final night’s afterparties and make the most of your time in Vegas! Just avoid the slot machines, where the data does not trend in your favor.
And if you’re interested in building relationships in Web3 or learning about blockchain data, drop by and ask our CEO and engineers!