Ok folks. It’s that time of year again. SEMICON West 2018 is upon us. By the time you read this – IF you get the time to read this – it’s almost curtain time. Everything that needs to be prepped is done, and if it’s not, it’s too bad, because the show will go on!

It seems like every year, there’s more and more content to choose from. And you must choose because it’s pretty much impossible to see and do everything. This year, SEMICON West is not only co-located with Intersolar but the International Wearable Technologies Conference as well, making choices that much tougher.

After carefully reviewing the agenda-at-a-glance, accepting press briefing requests, and checking out all the new Smart Pavilions, I’ve had to make some strategic decisions about where to focus my attention this year. My plan is to hit some key talks, and then spend the majority of my time exploring the exhibitor floor, because that seems to be where the action is this year. Here are my top picks:

Monday afternoon from 1pm-5pm, you’ll find me at the SEMI Market Symposium learning how emerging markets like artificial intelligence (AI), the blockchain, machine learning, and autonomous vehicles, combined with a  slowing Moore’s Law will impact the industry.

Attending the Tuesday morning kick-off keynote at the Yerba Buena theater goes without saying. I plan on being inspired by Melissa Schilling’s talk on breakthrough innovators who have changed the world. Schilling, who is a renowned author and professor of management at NYU, holds a Ph.D. in strategic management and is an innovation expert.

I’ve targeted AI and blockchain as areas I’d like to understand better, so will attend Dr. John E. Kelly’s keynote, on the Era of Artificial Intelligence, also at the Yerba Buena theater. Then it’s over to North Hall Room 22 to catch a session on blockchain technology applications. Later in the afternoon, I’m venturing off-site to a press event hosted by Leti, prior to their evening workshop.

Wednesday morning, it’s back to the Yerba Buena Theater for more keynotes: Mark Papermaster, AMD will be talking about how machine learning could transform the semiconductor industry; Wolfgang Juchmann, AutonomouStuf will talk, quite literally, about semiconductors in the driver’s seat; and Amir Husein, SparkCognition, will talk more about AI and edge computing. Then it’s over to the Smart Transportation Pavilion to find out how this all comes together to impact our transportation and cities.

On my radar for Thursday is the session on Smart MedTech: Digital Medicine and Remote Patient Monitoring at the North TechXpot stage, just because I’m interested in that application space. Like I said, there’s lots of content to choose from, this is just a small sample. There’s something for everyone! A final word of advice: don’t try to cram all the sessions in. Be sure to leave enough time to check out the exhibitor floor and network with your colleagues! That’s usually where you’ll get the most useful information.

By the way, 3D InCites has its own booth in the South Hall: #2330! That’s where you’ll find me when I’m not running around the floor. Stop by to join our mailing list, participate in our heterogeneous integration nomenclature poll, and get a pin. Tell Amber I sent you! Enjoy the show! ~ FvT

Francoise von Trapp

They call me the “Queen of 3D” because I have been following the course of…

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