Call for Speakers

DevFestMN, a premier developer conference in Minnesota, is back for 2026! We're excited to invite developers, designers, technologists, and innovators of all levels to share their knowledge, expertise, and passion with the community. Submissions will be accepted until October 20 at 11:59pm CST.

Submit Your Talk

About the Conference

Theme: Innovate, Inspire, Connect

This year, we're focusing on Building, Securing, and Scaling: Developers and Builders in the Agentic Era. We believe that by coming together and sharing our ideas, we can build a better future for everyone.

When: December 5, 2026

Where: University of Minnesota Health Sciences Education Center, 526 Delaware Street Southeast, Minneapolis, MN 55455 (same venue as 2025)

What We're Looking For

We're looking for interesting proposals across a wide range of topics, including:

  • Google technologies: Gemini, Google AI Studio, Vertex AI, Google Cloud, Firebase, Android, Flutter, Angular, and Web MCP.
  • AI & Agentic Systems: Autonomous AI agents, Gemini API / Gemini Live API, Agent Development Kits (ADK), RAG architecture, and "vibe coding" to production pipelines.
  • Web Technologies: Modern Web Standards (Baseline), WebAssembly (Wasm), WebGPU, Angular, React, and Web Accessibility.
  • Mobile Development: Cross-platform (Flutter, KMP), Android Jetpack, iOS, context-aware applications, and on-device machine learning.
  • Cloud & Infrastructure: Cloud-native architecture, Kubernetes (GKE), serverless, vector databases, microservices, and cost optimization.
  • DevOps, SRE & Security: CI/CD pipelines, site reliability, infrastructure monitoring, supply chain security, and securing AI agents/data privacy.
  • Open Source: AI frameworks (LangGraph, CrewAI), community sustainability, governance, and open-source contributions.
  • Career Development & Leadership: Soft skills, technical leadership, founding startups, and navigating tech careers in the AI era.
  • Diversity & Inclusion: Neurodiversity in tech, building accessible products, and creating inclusive developer communities.
  • Social Impact & Responsible AI: Tech for sustainability, AI safety guardrails, ethical innovation, and tech for good.

We encourage talks to:

  • Be engaging and interactive
  • Share practical knowledge and experience
  • Inspire and motivate attendees
  • Showcase innovative solutions and ideas
  • Foster connection and collaboration

We encourage proposals from speakers of all backgrounds and experiences, including those who have never presented at a conference before.

Session Length

Most sessions are 20-45 minutes in length. If you want to leave time for questions and discussion at the end, plan your presentation accordingly. We'll also be hosting at least one workshop-style session this year, likely in the 60 minute range. Other ideas? Let us know!

Important Dates

  • Call for Speakers Opens: September 29, 2026
  • Call for Speakers Closes: October 20, 2026
  • Speaker Notifications: Rolling basis after first batch
  • Conference Date: December 5, 2026

How We Select Talks

We will review all proposals and select speakers based on the following criteria:

  • Relevance of the topic to the conference audience and theme
  • Expertise of the speaker
  • Clarity and quality of the proposal
  • Potential to deliver an informative and engaging talk

Why You Should Present

DevFestMN is an opportunity to present to a friendly and engaged audience. This is a great way for you to share your passion, increase your network and advance your career. Speakers receive a free pass to the conference and recognition as a thought leader in their field.

Guide for Speakers

Our attendees come to learn, so we'll want you to shy away from sales pitches and anything that sounds like advertising. We welcome you presenting work you've done as long as it's informational and instructive.

All talks will be recorded and published on the internet for free, along with a recording of the slide deck, live-demo or other on-presenter-screen activity. We do this for the benefit of the larger GDG and tech community, and those who can't make it to the conference. We hope you want to help out, but if you are in any way uncomfortable, let us know and we will work things out.

How to Submit

Your submission will ask for a brief bio, a proposed talk title, a 200-300 word abstract (including your desired talk length / format), and any relevant links to your work, such as blog posts, articles, GitHub repositories, or past talks.

Some tips for writing a successful proposal:

  • Choose a topic that is relevant to the conference audience and that you are passionate about.
  • Be clear and concise in your abstract. Explain what your talk is about, why it is important, and what attendees will learn.
  • Use keywords in your abstract that are likely to be used by people searching for talks on your topic.
  • Proofread your proposal carefully before submitting it.

Some resources you may find helpful:

If you have a question, shoot us an email at info@devfest.mn (just don't use this to submit a proposal). Interested in volunteering instead? Email volunteers@gdgtc.com or visit our volunteer sign up.

Submit Your Talk

Let's make DevFestMN 2026 the best one yet!