At the end of October, Vienna once again becomes the meeting point for the world’s leading minds in culture and technology. The CultTech Summit 2025 will bring together artists, scientists, developers and investors to rethink what creativity means in the digital age. More than just a conference, the two-day event acts as a living laboratory where the cultural ecosystems of the future begin to take shape.
From 22–23 October, the baroque halls of Vienna’s Aula der Wissenschaften will transform into a hub of digital revolution and cultural innovation. The summit sits at the crossroads of art and technology, inviting its participants to explore how we can consciously shape the technological future of culture — and how, in turn, culture can reshape technology itself. After last year’s sold-out debut, this year’s edition expects around 1,000 participants from across the globe: people eager not only to discuss but to actively build the future of culture. The programme is structured around three central themes: Tech for Cultural Impact, Sustainable Revenue Models for Culture, Democratising Culture. These strands aim to deliver tangible answers to pressing questions: How is AI reshaping European cultural policy? How can creative projects be funded sustainably? And how can digital access to culture truly become democratic?
More than 70 speakers will take the stage, ranging from world-renowned artists and researchers to startup founders and cultural leaders. Among them are German theatre director and composer Heiner Goebbels, Katerina Cizek, co-founder of the MIT Open Documentary Lab, and Jonathan Fine, director of Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum — each offering unique perspectives on cultural transformation. On the economic and structural side, experts such as Adriano Picinati di Torcello (Global Art & Finance Lead at Deloitte) and Laura Callanan, U.S. investor and creative economy thinker, will discuss the evolving business and investment landscape of cultural innovation. Nobel Prize-winning physicist and practicing artist Kostya Novoselov will explore new pathways between science and art, underscoring that the intersection of culture and technology is no mere metaphor but an increasingly interdisciplinary reality.
One of the hallmarks of CultTech Summit is its open, participatory format. Through the Community-Driven Programme, attendees can shape the agenda themselves — hosting roundtables, proposing ideas and collaborating on new projects. The approach turns the event into a genuine community platform, where knowledge emerges through dialogue rather than hierarchy.
The summit also features a dedicated Artistic Programme, capturing its spirit through creative expression. Students from Vienna’s University of Applied Arts (Die Angewandte) will present their latest digital projects, while highlights include a “drone theatre” performance in collaboration with Voices Festival Berlin, a VR installation exploring life and death (End of Life), and experimental works combining sound, motion and play developed through the CultTech Residencywith Sony CSL. These artistic experiments don’t just use technology — they invent new languages for art itself. Running alongside the main programme, the CultTech Global Expo will showcase the fast-growing cultural tech ecosystem, with more than 40 partners — from startups and cultural organisations to innovation companies — presenting their latest developments. The exhibition aims to go beyond technology alone, creating a space where creativity, business and social responsibility converge and thrive together.