University gears up for Northamptonshire’s digital festival

The University of Northampton’s tech talent is gearing up for Northamptonshire’s third annual digital festival.

Merged Futures is a free-to-attend annual tech innovation showcase organised by Digital Northampton, with this year’s event taking place online, on Friday 18 June.

The event, which runs from 8.45am to 3.30pm, will comprise a full day of different virtual rooms.

University staff will be involved in a number of online talks and workshops, covering topics including digital art, esports and sports crossing over, building virtual teams using digital tools, cyber games and online safety. The University’s Learn Tech team will also be running a stream dedicated to digital and teaching.

There will also be a local innovation room including talks from escooter provider Voi and how the town could be shaped around this new way of travel. Starship Delivery will talk about its ecommerce robots delivering our shopping. There will also be talks on attracting investment into our area to boost our digital economy.

View the event timetable on the Merged Futures 3 website.

Digital Northampton’s Richard Beards said: “Interest and uptake has been great this year so we have tried to really expand the timetable to include something for everyone. Whether you work or study in this sector or just want to learn more, the event is open to all.

“We want to showcase the amazing local innovation taking place as well as invite people from further afield to take part and share their skills and experience and take the message back into their communities that Northamptonshire really is a digital county.”

Lecturer in Digital Marketing at UON, Ken Punter, will be chairing one of the sessions at Merged Futures. He said: “Over the last year, we have seen just how important digital development and connectivity has been to keep business and individuals going.

“The Merged Futures event brings together experts from across Northamptonshire and beyond to share inspiration and best practice examples to further develop and innovate for the benefit of the town’s businesses, students, and residents.

“Effective funding is crucial to delivering and supporting digital and technology businesses, and the session I’ll be chairing will explore existing funding channels, areas of opportunity, and the critical success factors for securing investment.”

Digital Northampton is a collaboration between local digital businesses, the University of Northampton and North and West Northants councils. It is designed to support digital innovation in and around Northamptonshire.

The project connects the new and growing tech community in Northamptonshire through social media, events and competitions, helping to put the county on the map for innovation and promote the benefits of a local digital supply chain.

The overall aim is to bring digital learning and knowledge-sharing to a wider audience, encouraging collaboration across different sectors.

Sign up for Merged Futures and its various online events.

You can also follow Digital Northampton on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.