The 2021 conference season is going to be a strange one, with many events still TBA or online only due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 conference season was over almost before it began. COVID-19 shuttered many major tech events, and many planning to relaunch later in 2020 ended up cancelling altogether. This list of tech events in 2021 will look quite different as a result.
Many events have yet to announce dates, and with good reason: The coronavirus pandemic is leaving 2021 shrouded in uncertainty and announcing dates now could result in another bad investment.
Those events that have been announced for 2021 are here, but be sure to check this list regularly for updates. Some organizations that host event series haven't released any dates, but still plan to do so. If you don't see a particular event on this list, check with its host; for instance, some organizations, like O'Reilly, said they're unlikely to return to any kind of in-person event.
SEE: 2021 IT budget research report: COVID-19's impact on projects and priorities (TechRepublic Premium)
January
- Jan. 11-14: CES [online only]
- Jan. 11-16: SANS Security East [online only]
- Jan. 12-14, 19, 21-22: NRF 2021 Chapter One [online only]
- Jan. 14: Samsung Galaxy Unpacked: Welcome to the Everyday Epic [online only]
- Jan. 20: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Intersection of Software Architecture and Data [online only]
- Jan. 25: IBM CIO Leadership Summit [online only]
- Jan. 27: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: CI/CD [online only]
- Jan. 28: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Python: Tips and Tricks, Machine Learning, and What's New in 3.9 and Beyond [online only]
- Jan. 27-29: NamesCon Online [online only]
February
- Feb. 4: HMG Live! Charlotte CIO executive leadership summit [online only]
- Feb. 8-11: 3DEXPERIENCE World [online only]
- Feb. 9: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Data Science Fundamentals [online only]
- Feb. 9-11: Cisco Live! [online only]
- Feb. 21-23: Gartner CIO Leadership Forum in Phoenix, AZ
- Feb. 22-23: Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit (mideast) [online only]
- Feb. 22-24: Esri Federal GIS Conference [online only]
- Feb. 23-25: Mobile World Congress in Shanghai
March
- March: Microsoft MVP Global Summit [online only, opens in March]
- March 2-4: Microsoft Ignite (continuation of Ignite 2020) [online only]
- March 9-11: ESRI Developer Summit [online only]
- March 16-18: SAP Concur Fusion (Americas) [online only]
- March 16-20: SXSW [online only]
- March 17: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: AI/ML in Production [online only]
- March 17-18: Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit (India) [online only]
- March 17-19: SAP Concur Fusion (EMEA, APAC) [online only]
- March 18: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Software Architecture Fundamentals (APAC) [online only]
- March 23-24: Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit (APAC) [online only]
- March 24-25: Domopalooza [online only]
- March 25-26: Re.Work AI in healthcare and pharma summit in Boston
- March 30-April 1: ODSC East [online only]
April
- April 6-8: Okta Oktane21 [online only]
- April 7: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Cloud Engineering for Operators [online only]
- April 13-15: Adobe Summit [online only]
- April 15-16: Re.Work London Summit in London
- April 22: HardwareCon in Mountain View, CA
- April 26-27: Gartner Digital Workplace Summit (Americas) [online only]
- April 27-28: Red Hat Summit (part 1 of 3) [online only]
- April 29: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Go: Generics, Modules, and the Future of Open Source Go Programming [online only]
- April 28-29: Gartner Identity & Access Management Summit (EMEA) [online only]
May
- May 4: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Data-Intensive Applications [online only]
- May 4-6: Gartner Data and Analytics Summit (Americas) [online only]
- May 4-6: Ingram Cloud Summit 2021 in Miami Beach, FL
- May 4-7: Black Hat Asia (location/online status not specified)
- May 11-12: Gartner Identity & Access Management Summit (Americas) [online only]
- May 17-20: RSA streaming online
- May 18-20: Gartner Data and Analytics Summit (EMEA) [online only]
- May 18-20: Digital Enterprise Show in Madrid, Spain
- May 19: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Mastering Your Microservices Stack [online only]
- May 25-26: Gartner CFO & Finance Executive Conference (Americas) [online only]
- May 26: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Creating Your Kubernetes Platform [online only]
- May 26-27: Gartner Application Innovation & Business Solutions Summit (Americas) [online only]
June
- June 1-3: Recode Code Conference 2021 in Beverly Hills, CA
- June 6-10: OFC 2021 in San Francisco
- June 8-9: Gartner Data and Analytics Summit (APAC) [online only]
- June 8-10: Cisco Live! [online only]
- June 14-15: Gartner Digital Workplace Summit (EMEA) [online only]
- June 15-16: Red Hat Summit (part 2 of 3) [online only]
- June 15-17: E3 (location/virtual status TBA)
- June 16: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Responsible AI [online only]
- June 17: Evanta global CIO virtual town hall [online only]
- June 22: Evanta global CISO virtual town hall [online only]
- June 23-24: Gartner Data and Analytics Summit (India) [online only]
- June 28-July 1: Mobile World Congress in Barcelona
July
- July 19-23: Game Developers Conference in San Francisco
- July 31-Aug. 5: Black Hat USA in Las Vegas
August
- Aug. 5-8: DEF CON in Las Vegas
- Aug. 10: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Data Warehouses, Data Lakes, and Data Lakehouses [online only]
- Aug. 17-19: CIO 100 Virtual Symposium [online only]
September
- September: Red Hat Summit (part 3 of 3) in various locations, dates TBD
- Sept. 9-10: Re.Work New York Summit in New York
- Sept. 22: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Scaling AI [online only]
- Sept. 23-24: Industry of Things World in Berlin
- Sept. 27-29: Enterprise Connect in Orlando, FL, and online
October
- Oct. 9-13: NAB Show in Las Vegas
- Oct. 19-20: Re.Work Toronto summit in Toronto
- Oct. 1: CIO Executive Leadership Summit in St. Louis, MO [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 1-2: TNW Conference in Amsterdam [postponed from June 18-19]
- Oct. 4-6: IDC CIO Summit in Vineuil-Saint-Firmin, France [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 5: Future Vision: DTG Summit 2020 in London [postponed from May 6]
- Oct. 5-6: SaaS Connect in San Francisco [postponed from April 15-16]
- Oct. 5-8: Tableau Conference in Las Vegas [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 6: CIO Executive Leadership Summit in Washington, DC [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 8: CIO Executive Leadership Summit in Dearborn, MI [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 15: CIO Executive Leadership Summit in Greenwich, CT [being held as scheduled]
- Oct. 26-28: Mobile World Congress Americas in Los Angeles
November
- Nov. 2: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Business Analysis [online only]
- Nov. 2-4: IoT World in Santa Clara, CA
- Nov. 11-12: Re.Work Seattle Summit in Seattle
December
- Dec, 1: O'Reilly's Superstream Series: Securing AI [online only]
- Dec. 7-10: Cisco Live! In Melbourne, Australia
Editor's note: This article will be updated as more dates are finalized.
Also see
- How to stay safe if you absolutely must fly (TechRepublic)
- How to become a CIO: A cheat sheet (TechRepublic)
- Top 5 programming languages for systems admins to learn (free PDF) (TechRepublic)
- New Employee Checklist and Default Access Policy (TechRepublic Premium)
- ZDNet's top enterprise CEOs of the 2010s (ZDNet)
- CXO: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)