Karnataka government has taken a decision to combine its two flagships events: Bengaluru India Bio and the IT.com as a single technology platform entity. The event in its new avatar will be held from November 16-18, 2017 at the Palace Grounds in the city with the theme as Ideate, Innovate and Invent.
 
While the IT.com is in its 20th year, the Bengaluru India Bio is in its 17 edition. The two are merged and positioned to be India’s premier events displaying Karnataka’s prowess in software, hardware, artificial intelligence(AI), block chain, cloud computing, big data, analytics, robotics, along with genomics, orphan drugs, proteomics and bioinformatics.
 
This year the combined exhibition of the two events : Bengaluru ITE.BiZ and Bengaluru India Bio 2017 will attract around 300 exhibitors showcasing products and technologies for over 10,000 business visitors. The IT conference will cover topics like cyber security, will focus on rare diseases and oncology diagnostics besides latest protocols using advanced technology.
 
The Bengaluru Tech Exchange will witness India’s leading research institutions like CSIR, ICMR, DBT, ICAR, JNCSR display their innovative research initiatives. There will also be a rural IT and Bio quiz held concurrently with the event. In addition, the customary STPI export awards and the Bio excellence awards will be given away along with business awards which is introduced for the first time this year. Over 100 researchers will present their ideas at the Bio Tech poster session and YESS for the start-up sector. The exhibitors will include corporate, STPI pavilion for MSMEs, start-ups NSIC and industry associations.
 
The objective of the joint event is to discover game changing ideas and solutions in IT and BT. The future developments in biotech will come from IT, like for instance genomics and imaging. The event is a platform for new business opportunities to emerge, said Kris Gopalakrishnan, co-founder and executive chairman, Infosys and chairman, Karnataka Vision Group on IT .
 
According to Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairperson, Karnataka Vision Group on biotechnology and CMD, Biocon, the convergence of IT and BT will lead to no boundaries existing between the two sectors. Moreover personalised and precision medicine cannot do without IT. The dual entity will showcase the convergence of technology which is happening for the first time in a synergetic manner.
 
Krishna Kumar Natarajan, chairman Mindtree and ex-chairman NASSCOM said that the platform for technology is expanding and acceleration of this change is important. “We are at a turning point in this fourth industrial revolution which is a fusion of physical, digital and biological world. It will impact ‘emerging technology breakthroughs’ in AI, robotics, Internet of Things, 3D printing, quantum computing and nanotechnology.
 
Karnataka Minister for IT, BT and Tourism Priyam Kharge said that the state has emerged as the leading tech-hub. IT jobs were not just in Bengaluru but has promising avenues in smaller towns. This year’s event will propel progress of the sector.
 
Salma Fahim, director, IT & BT said technology is evolving around Bengaluru which boasts of multiple start-ups addressing needs of various verticals.