A Day at a Leading Tech Gathering

by

Reflect Cyprus is a leading Mediterranean tech festival,
transforming Limassol into a vibrant hub of innovation, investment, and
networking.

This year’s event, held on May 30-31, brought together a diverse array
of trading companies, venture capital funds, tech enthusiasts, startups,
investors and more. There were over 1,000 companies represented, investors in
their droves, and some of the largest VCs in the MENA region were also present. Between 8,000 and 10,000 attendees were expected.

Set in Kolla Culture Factory, a multipurpose space that wears different
hats to host a wide range of events over the course of the year, Reflect felt
like what it was, a diverse gathering of people and companies all set in a
charming little location that sat juxtaposed with the often high-tech offerings
inside its main hall and littering Kolla’s streets.

VCs including Global 500, Souq Ventures, Aramco’s Waed and more where
present, though they were often secluded in the exclusive Investor Lounge. No doubt
they were enjoying cakes and the AC on what was a warmish day. Alongside the Investor
Lounge there were also spaces for startups (named “Doers”), co-working spaces,
a relaxation lounge with massages on offer and a lowly media lounge with a
working AC. Thank God for small mercies.

The Main Event

In any case, the main hall – home to the Big Picture Stage – was host
to the leading speakers, with all sorts of interesting people sharing their
wisdom
. It was also the biggest indoor space and home to the largest number
of stalls. Everyone from trading tech firms to recruitment companies, to AI firms,
kid’s video games, and more, they were all present, startups and established
names alike. Think EY, but then also think of a small direct email startup . In
any case, it was nicely AC’d and a good escape from the heat.

In terms of trading, Exness and Pepperstone were there, and big tech
names included Microsoft and Cloudflare along with a load of smaller tech support
and infrastructure firms. There were a series of companies from India, offering
everything from real estate CRMs to biofuels.

Trends

AI was everywhere. From automatic email sales systems to office
assistants, to AI-driven trading algorithms. There was even an AI-powered
cosmetics offering, though I must admit I didn’t check that one out.

Blockchain and cryptocurrency were the focal points for many of the
discussions on the Money Stage. Topics such as decentralized finance (DeFi),
the future of payments , and crypto regulations were on the agenda. E-commerce
and AI dominated the talk on the Tech Stage, with good inputs from a delegation
from the Indian government.

The Future Stage featured talks on education, how to seek funding and
how to grow in a digital age. Beyond finance and digital, interesting topics
also included cultivated meat and living with chronic disease. The Tech Island
and Inventors Stage focused very much on Cyprus, questioning how to avoid
talent drain, how to foster innovation and more.

Over the two days, workshops included How to Get the Most Out of Networking,
Revenue Revolution: Elevate Your Sales Game, Startup to Stock Exchange:
Mastering the Micro Cap IPO and others. There was no clear theme, rather detailed
sessions that aimed to focus in on one or two issues.

Walking and Talking

From walking the event, it became clear that AI is on everyone’s lips.
From how to create marketing materials and content to how it can help you
trade, organize your work life and elevate your sales. The clear takeaway is
that AI is the future. How it will be leveraged effectively is the question.
Are today’s applications the answer? Probably not. That’s not to say that they’re
bad products, but they’re evolving so quickly that anyone who says they can see
the future of AI is either badly misinformed, or lying.

Another issue that came up – though nobody flat out said it – is that
everyone is struggling with sales. It’s tough, for almost every company out
there. The talks on the various stages often covered it, and any chat about marketing
or conversion quickly turned to a (desperate?) need to make sales. Yes, this is
normal, it’s always a problem, but there was a distinct focus among many
companies I spoke to about closing deals. As a content creator, it was abundantly
clear that there was a lot of interest in driving traffic.

So, those are the main takeaways from Reflect 2024. It was a great event,
with the organizers claiming over 10,000 attendees at the time of writing. It was certainly busy and
there was a distinct international feel to the event. AI was prominent, talk
was all about closing.

It’s definitely worth a visit next year.

For more articles about finance-adjacent topics, follow our Trending section.

Reflect Cyprus is a leading Mediterranean tech festival,
transforming Limassol into a vibrant hub of innovation, investment, and
networking.

This year’s event, held on May 30-31, brought together a diverse array
of trading companies, venture capital funds, tech enthusiasts, startups,
investors and more. There were over 1,000 companies represented, investors in
their droves, and some of the largest VCs in the MENA region were also present. Between 8,000 and 10,000 attendees were expected.

Set in Kolla Culture Factory, a multipurpose space that wears different
hats to host a wide range of events over the course of the year, Reflect felt
like what it was, a diverse gathering of people and companies all set in a
charming little location that sat juxtaposed with the often high-tech offerings
inside its main hall and littering Kolla’s streets.

VCs including Global 500, Souq Ventures, Aramco’s Waed and more where
present, though they were often secluded in the exclusive Investor Lounge. No doubt
they were enjoying cakes and the AC on what was a warmish day. Alongside the Investor
Lounge there were also spaces for startups (named “Doers”), co-working spaces,
a relaxation lounge with massages on offer and a lowly media lounge with a
working AC. Thank God for small mercies.

The Main Event

In any case, the main hall – home to the Big Picture Stage – was host
to the leading speakers, with all sorts of interesting people sharing their
wisdom
. It was also the biggest indoor space and home to the largest number
of stalls. Everyone from trading tech firms to recruitment companies, to AI firms,
kid’s video games, and more, they were all present, startups and established
names alike. Think EY, but then also think of a small direct email startup . In
any case, it was nicely AC’d and a good escape from the heat.

In terms of trading, Exness and Pepperstone were there, and big tech
names included Microsoft and Cloudflare along with a load of smaller tech support
and infrastructure firms. There were a series of companies from India, offering
everything from real estate CRMs to biofuels.

Trends

AI was everywhere. From automatic email sales systems to office
assistants, to AI-driven trading algorithms. There was even an AI-powered
cosmetics offering, though I must admit I didn’t check that one out.

Blockchain and cryptocurrency were the focal points for many of the
discussions on the Money Stage. Topics such as decentralized finance (DeFi),
the future of payments , and crypto regulations were on the agenda. E-commerce
and AI dominated the talk on the Tech Stage, with good inputs from a delegation
from the Indian government.

The Future Stage featured talks on education, how to seek funding and
how to grow in a digital age. Beyond finance and digital, interesting topics
also included cultivated meat and living with chronic disease. The Tech Island
and Inventors Stage focused very much on Cyprus, questioning how to avoid
talent drain, how to foster innovation and more.

Over the two days, workshops included How to Get the Most Out of Networking,
Revenue Revolution: Elevate Your Sales Game, Startup to Stock Exchange:
Mastering the Micro Cap IPO and others. There was no clear theme, rather detailed
sessions that aimed to focus in on one or two issues.

Walking and Talking

From walking the event, it became clear that AI is on everyone’s lips.
From how to create marketing materials and content to how it can help you
trade, organize your work life and elevate your sales. The clear takeaway is
that AI is the future. How it will be leveraged effectively is the question.
Are today’s applications the answer? Probably not. That’s not to say that they’re
bad products, but they’re evolving so quickly that anyone who says they can see
the future of AI is either badly misinformed, or lying.

Another issue that came up – though nobody flat out said it – is that
everyone is struggling with sales. It’s tough, for almost every company out
there. The talks on the various stages often covered it, and any chat about marketing
or conversion quickly turned to a (desperate?) need to make sales. Yes, this is
normal, it’s always a problem, but there was a distinct focus among many
companies I spoke to about closing deals. As a content creator, it was abundantly
clear that there was a lot of interest in driving traffic.

So, those are the main takeaways from Reflect 2024. It was a great event,
with the organizers claiming over 10,000 attendees at the time of writing. It was certainly busy and
there was a distinct international feel to the event. AI was prominent, talk
was all about closing.

It’s definitely worth a visit next year.

For more articles about finance-adjacent topics, follow our Trending section.



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