DevTernity is a paid, online software development conference with an emphasis on software architecture, development best practices and technical leadership. The conference runs annually. It was first organized in 2015.[1] The conference was hosted out of Riga, Latvia until 2019. There was no conference in 2020.[2]
From 2021, the conference has been online-only.[3] The 2023 annual conference was cancelled[4] over claims of fake, AI-generated speaker profiles,[5] leading to speakers dropping out.[6]
The conference typically features about 20 speakers.
Controversy edit
In November 2023, it came to light that DevTernity had been listing fake women speaker profiles[7] on all conferences organized since 2021.[8] Also, Eduards Sizovs, the organizer of the conference, has been found to be the person behind a popular woman in tech Instagram account advertising the conference.[9][10]
The controversy resulted in widespread backlash against the conference and its organizer.[11][12][13] The fake speakers are speculated to have been created to create an illusion of diversity.[14][15]
References edit
- ^ "DevTernity IT conference set to start in Rīga". Latvian Radio. 30 November 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ "DevTernity announces postponing of 2020 conference to 2021". 10 July 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ "DevTernity announces online-only format". 22 July 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Claburn, Thomas (28 November 2023). "DevTernity conference collapses amid claims women speakers were faked". The Register. Retrieved 6 December 2023. |
- ^ Gall, Richard (28 November 2023). "Meet 'Anna Boyko': How a Fake Speaker Blew up DevTernity". The New Stack. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ "Fake AI-generated woman on tech conference agenda leads Microsoft and Amazon execs to drop out". AP News. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Weatherbed, Jess (28 November 2023). "This dev conference organizer seems addicted to making up women". The Verge. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Orosz, Gergely (2 December 2023). "A Tech Conference Listed Fake Speakers for Years: I Accidentally Noticed". Pragmatic Engineer. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
- ^ Cole, Samantha (27 November 2023). "Founder Is Behind Popular Woman Coding Influencer Account". 404 Media. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Fielding, Sarah (27 November 2023). "A popular female coding influencer's Instagram is apparently run by a man". Endgadget. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
- ^ Belanger, Ashley (28 November 2023). "Backlash over fake female speakers shuts down developer conference". Ars Technica. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Lung, Natalie (28 November 2023). "Tech Conference Faces Backlash on Claims of Fake Women Speakers". Bloomberg. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Kwan, Wei (28 November 2023). "Microsoft and Amazon Web Services executives are bailing on this tech conference after the organizer was accused of using fake female panelists". Business Insider. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Doyle, Andrea (28 November 2023). "Tech Conference Accused of Creating Fake Women Speakers". Skift Meetings. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Josh, Adams (3 December 2023). "Devternity Developer Conference Invents Fake Female Attendees to Bolster Diversity Credentials". CCN. Retrieved 6 December 2023.