More than Just a Cloud Computing Conference—and More Than a Festival
It sounds crazy, but there are people in the world who have never heard of CloudFest! Imagine, working in the internet infrastructure space and thinking that all cloud computing conferences feel like… well, cloud computing conferences.
We’re not hitting Publish on this post to explain why you should come to CloudFest—no, we’re telling you why we created CloudFest in the first place.
WebHostingDay to CloudFest: My, How You’ve Grown!
Technology has changed quite a lot since the computer was known as the “Elektronischen Datenverarbeitungsanlage” (or EDV, if you want to save time). How we use computers has also changed—and how that technology is built, marketed, sold, and managed have evolved as well. So how the companies that build these tools connect needed to change.
The phenomenon that would become CloudFest had its humble beginning as a gathering of just 100 people for a little thing called WebHostingDay. A cloud computing expo, sure, but a small one.
WebHostingDay became WorldHostingDays, because we needed more time to share new insights from new areas of Cloud exploration. We did this because we were tired of boring cloud computing events in boring conference venues.
We weren’t seeing what we needed, so we created it ourselves. This attitude is in our DNA: give the cloud computing industry an event that blows their minds every time.
That’s why we began to produce our cloud conference at German theme parks: first Phantasialand, and then in our spiritual home: Europa-Park. and the vibe became more of a festival.
“Festival” felt right, and “Fest” also means “party” in German, so WorldHostingDays was rebranded to CloudFest in 2018. This wasn’t just a cool name change, but a reimagining of how technologists, executives, coders, artists, and visionary thinkers could reshape a globe-spanning industry so that it could be of the greatest service to the most people. Turns out that process involves a lot of parties and live music!
“Not just a cloud event, CloudFest is a community”
CloudFest 2024, our 20th Anniversary event, was a signal to the internet infrastructure that this is the best way for cloud computing professionals to connect. Can you set off fireworks in a hotel conference room? We don’t recommend it. Can you do it in a replica of the Roman Colosseum with an audience of thousands? Yes!
So what is CloudFest? Not just a cloud event, CloudFest is a community. It’s an ideal. CloudFest is year-round momentum towards meaningful connection and successful business outcomes. And you’re invited.
Constantly Building Upon a Foundation
“Go a little bit out of your depth. And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.”
—David Bowie
If it’s good enough for Bowie, it’s good enough for us: pushing the limits of your comfort zone will take you to some amazing places, even if the journey can be a bit scary sometimes. At CloudFest, we strive to make adventurous thinking the norm, and each year we learn from our attendees where to push next.
While each year we try to outdo the past, that in turn becomes the foundation for the next year’s adventures. For example, our 2024 event saw the launch of the World Server Throwing Championship, which instantly captured the imagination of the cloud industry. That year we also featured a mind reader onstage to highlight the risks of social engineering.
When does the next CloudFest take place?
So that’s what CloudFest is. And that is also why you, the internet infrastructure industry professional, should be there! As a thank you for reading this many words, you can use this link to register for free and join us at CloudFest 2025, March 17-20 at Europa-Park.
When you subscribe to the CloudFest newsletter, you’ll get all the relevant updates for the upcoming festival— as well as a free download of the 2024 State of the Cloud Report, which surveyed over 1,000 Cloud experts to share their insights, goals, and pain points. If you work in the Cloud, this report will be a key element in your business-intelligence toolkit. This is part of our philosophy of providing a year-round experience for our community.
