DesignCon 2022: Back to Business as Usual

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It was something of a homecoming as DesignCon returned to the Santa Clara Convention Center this week for DesignCon 2022.

It’s been two years since the last DesignCon was held in this venue just before the pandemic began. I attended DesignCon 2021 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in July of last year, and I could see a big improvement in attendance as DesignCon moved back into its usual venue. 

Technical sessions ran April 5-7, and the exposition floor was open on April 6-7. Keynoters included: John Bowers, Fred Kavli, chair of Nanotechnology at the University of California, Santa Barbara; Laurence Moroney, Artificial Intelligence lead at Google; and José Morey, a consultant for NASA, IBM, Hyperloop Transportation, and Liberty BioSecurity.

Congratulations are in order for Samtec Distinguished Engineer Richard Mellitz, winner of “Engineer of the Year” award, as well as finalists Scott McMorrow, Steven Sandler, and Design007 contributor Bert Simonovich.

Approximately 132 exhibitors were present on the show floor, and the energy was palpable. Over the last few years, some had questioned whether the age of the conference and trade show was over. While attendance numbers may not be quite what they once were, based on the energy and attendance at this year’s DesignCon, both on the floor and in the conferences, I believe conferences will continue to play a vital role in how our industry does business. 

It was great to see the industry moving back toward normality. Let’s hope this is a good sign for the remainder of 2022. Here are a few more photos from DesignCon 2022.