IBTM World has announced the seven finalists for this year’s Tech Watch Award and opened voting on its website for the People’s Choice Award.

The winner of the People’s Choice Award and the company crowned the overall winner by the high-profile judging panel will be announced at IBTM World 2019, which takes place November 19-21 at Fira Barcelona.

The finalists, all of which are technology companies with new products or services relevant to the meetings and events industry, will showcase their products on IBTM World’s Accelerate stage—a new feature area for 2019.

The year’s finalists are:

• AllSeated, a space diagramming software using VR (virtual reality) technology;
• G-SMATT America, an LED technology wall displays provider;
• Lineup Ninja, a management software used to manage conference content;
• Oveit, a ticketing / badging and NFC (near-field communication) payment system using blockchain technology;
• TrackMany by Pixel Light, an analytics tool providing metrics like traffic patterns, visitor count, engagement, dwell time, age, delegate gender and sentiment;
• wordly, Inc, which uses AI (artificial intelligence) to deliver automated, real time language translation;
• and Zenus, a facial recognition technology used to streamline check-in process, enhance security and retrieve data analytics.

“The excellence in event technology showcased by this year’s finalists is remarkable, both in terms of the wide spectrum of services and benefits they provide to our industry, but also the level of innovation they demonstrate,” says David Thompson, event director, IBTM World. “Our customers will be able to experience and interact with an incredibly diverse range of exciting new technologies that could really make a difference to their business in the future.”

The finalists were selected based on a wide range of criteria, including their level of innovation, how different the product is in the market; concept and business model, how far along the product is in development; and how much value it brings to the MICE industry.

Entries will be judged by a panel of well-known experts from the events and technology industries, chaired by tech industry veteran, Corbin Ball. Judges include Michelle Bruno, President of Bruno Group Signature Events; Dahlia El Gazzar, Founder of DAHLIA+ Inc; Ruud Janssen, Founder of TNOC.org and co-founder EMG; Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner at SoolNua; Martin Sirk, Owner of Sirk Serendipity; and James Morgan PhD CSEP, Principal Lecturer in Event Design and Technology at the University of Westminster.