APIdays: The Ultimate Event for Custom CPaaS

APIdays Amsterdam, June 18th & 19th

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APIdays Amsterdam
CPaaS

Published: June 12, 2019

Rob Scott

Rob Scott

Publisher

In recent years, the communication landscape has changed drastically

We’ve seen the arrival of countless innovations, ranging from artificial intelligence to collaborative tools that support the new era of remote working.

One of the most significant transformations of all is that today’s companies don’t need to settle for a one-size-fits-all solution to their UC stack. With APIs and CPaaS, anyone with a developer on their team can build on their communication and collaboration experience with new features and functionalities.

APIdays is a celebration of that freedom and versatility. An event on the cusp of going global, APIdays introduces attendees all around the world to the opportunities presented by APIs, giving insights into how these tools support scalability and business strategy.

I caught up with Rob Kurver, the Co-Founder of APIdays Amsterdam, to learn more about the event.

Where did the idea for APIdays come from?

Rob Kurver
Rob Kurver

Rob Kurver co-founded APIdays in 2018 after decades spent learning about and leading businesses in the communication industry. “I’ve been in the cloud communication industry for many years, but my focus has always been more on the innovation side of things.”

Kurver told me that for him, the communication space seems to be focusing more aggressively on things like Mergers and Acquisitions for growth right now, rather than what companies can do to make their offerings different. “I wanted to put an event together that focused on innovation in communication, and a lot of that area belongs to APIs and CPaaS these days.”

Kurver met the people who helped him to create APIdays around 6 years ago. Since then, the team has delivered more than 30 events in 11 countries. Combined, these explorations into CPaaS and APIs have attracted the attention of more than 10 thousand attendees, and over 1200 speakers.

The APIdays Amsterdam event started last year in 2018 and focuses on the communication space, and how APIs and CPaaS are becoming crucial to the development of modern companies.

What Kind of Audience Does APIdays Amsterdam attract?

Rob told me that APIdays will be returning to Amsterdam on the 18th and 19th of June this year.

“It’s going to be a little bit bigger this year, and next year, we’re looking for ways to make the experience even more global”

“We’ve seen a lot of interest from companies, developers, and innovators around the world.”

The Amsterdam conference is set to attract about 600 unique attendees over 2 days. According to Kurver, these people are usually split into 3 separate categories:

  • Developers: The people who want to learn about and use the latest APIs
  • The business or product owner: The people who want to deploy and monetise APIs
  • Commercial attendees: Analysts, consultants, and other attendees looking to network and grow

CPaaS and APIs have both been gaining a lot of attention recently, particularly in the communication space, where they give businesses more freedom to evolve and grow. APIs can even open the door to AI, voice assistants, and programmable numbers.

The diversity of APIs means that APIdays is in a great position to attract a diverse mix of attendees, including developers, who often avoid the traditional event environment. “Usually it’s a challenge to get developers out in the field, testing things out – but that’s something that we do extremely well.”

What makes the APIdays event different?

APIdays is an experience intended to give developers, business owners, and other attendees a new taste of the CPaaS industry. It provides a unique way to explore the opportunities that APIs have to offer. Rob told me that while there is a little bit of coverage for CPaaS available at Enterprise Connect, the experience is nowhere near as specialised as what people can find at APIdays.

“I think CPaaS is an area that merits a lot more attention than it has had so far. A lot of the press is just starting to hear about CPaaS for the first time, yet we’re already managing to attract a range of attendees, all the way from developers to business users”

Kurver also noted that it’s interesting to see the dynamic between new and traditional players in the APIdays event environment. The conference usually includes speakers from up-and-coming disrupters in the CPaaS space, as well as conventional brands like IBM, Avaya, and Alcatel Lucent. Everyone seems to be open to the idea of APIs.

“The world of UC is evolving. We’re moving from an environment where everyone had to sit and wait for a release or update from their favourite vendors. Now, people can customise their own solutions with increasingly more impressive tools and strategies”

What are the Key Takeaways for Attendees?

According to Rob, the APIdays event is an incredible experience for anyone who attends. However, each person may take something unique away from the event. “For some people who come to the event, the aim is just to become more knowledgeable about APIs, and how the technology is changing things in the industry.”

For developers and the tech-focused attendees in the APIdays crowd, there are also plenty of opportunities to find out what’s going on in the marketplace, and how things are changing.

“More traditional players can also pick up potential customers, form relationships with other brands, and learn more about what’s going on in the CPaaS space”

Rob noted that as well as discussing current trends, new technology, and existing opportunities, the people at APIdays also look into the future too. There’s a lot of innovation happening in the API and CPaaS space, which means that opportunities are everywhere for both new and existing communications companies.

“There’s plenty of space for people to come together, mingle, and explore new opportunities with things like bots and AI. In the age of APIs, Telcos aren’t just thinking about whether they should use SIP or PSTN anymore. They’re looking at the possibilities of big data, machine learning, and AI. There’s a lot of radical change happening. APIdays is a place where people can come to get ahead of the rapidly transforming environment.”

 

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