SmashingConf Live: A New Kind of Online Conference Experience

In August, Smashing Magazine is launching its first entirely online conference, SmashingConf Live, taking place on Aug 20–21. Rather than attempting to recreate the feel of an in-person event, the organizers have built a format from scratch that emphasizes live interaction and collaboration over passive viewing.

The conference is broken into two half-days rather than full days, which keeps screen fatigue in check and leaves room for breaks, informal chats, and video recordings that you can revisit later at your own pace. Like traditional SmashingConfs, it remains a single-track experience, but during the breaks attendees can jump between various discussion zones.

  • A friendly online conference. Focused on practical insights in front-end & UX. Aug 20–21, two half-days, each 4.5 hours long.
  • A diverse, kind global community. The code of conduct applies to everyone.
  • Interactive, live sessions. Attendees can shape sessions with speakers in real time.
  • Single-track with discussion zones. Mini-sessions with experts run during the breaks.
  • Easy access to experts. Q&A sessions and discussion zones give direct access to speakers.
  • All video recordings and slides. Re-watch anything you missed during the event.
  • Collaborative note-taking. Attendees can compile notes together in shared docs.
  • Live site/app audits and challenges. Ask experts for a live audit of your project.
  • Online workshops before & after the event. Sessions cover accessibility, performance, front-end and UX.
  • Live captioning. Subtitles are available throughout.
  • Early-bird tickets. Save $50 off the regular price — only 100 tickets are available.

Interactive Sessions in the Driver's Seat

The biggest departure from a theater-style conference is in how sessions work. Instead of watching a talk unfold without input, attendees bring up topics and challenges during the live event. These get promoted on stage, where experts — as well as the rest of the community — can respond live or during the subsequent Q&A.

During breaks, you can wander between rooms with mystery guests, check the front-end & UX job board, tackle design and coding challenges, and request a live audit of your own site or app. English live captioning is provided throughout, and the whole event is designed to be highly practical.

Two ticket tiers are available. The Conf + Workshop pass is $475.00 and includes a conference spot plus a choice of an additional online workshop — sessions of 5 × 2.5 hours. The Conf Only pass is $225.00, covering the two half-days with interactive live sessions and expert discussions, with only 100 early-bird seats.

Speakers and Topics

Sessions are selected for practical value so Attendees can leave with insights usable right away in their work. The speaker lineup:

Hosts Cassidy Williams and Phil Hawksworth MC the event, with dozens of other experts joining discussion zones and Q&As. Speakers are available in breakout rooms as well, before and after their sessions.

Discussion Zones and Expert Guests

Beyond the main stage, invited experts will host Q&As and short workshops in discussion zones with topics that shift throughout the day. Moderators help guide conversations, often with the expert sharing their screen to answer questions in depth. Invited guests include:

Timing by Region

The live portion runs across these city times on Aug 20–21:

  • San Francisco, USA — 8 AM–2 PM
  • New York, USA — 11 AM–4 PM
  • Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — 12 PM–5 PM
  • London, UK — 4 PM–9 PM
  • Antwerp, Belgium — 5 PM–10 PM
  • Kyiv, Ukraine — 6 PM–11 PM
  • Mumbai, India — 8:30 PM–1:30 AM
  • Sydney, Australia — 11 PM–5 AM

Community Notes and Beyond

Attendee notes from past events often miss important URLs or details. For this conference, SmashingConf organizers will use collaborative Google docs where participants can add, correct and expand on notes together — capturing comments, resources, tips, questions and answers all in one place so that by the end you have a comprehensive report of the session insights to take straight back to your team.

To keep conversations alive beyond the event itself, a Slack channel will connect attendees before, during, and after the two days, helping friendships and follow-up discussions persist rather than dissolve quickly. Social extras include a conference DJ, Tobi Baldower, hidden cats to discover across rooms, a scavenger hunt, a quiz trivia show, and a set of challenges and group projects with prizes.

More Than Just Talks

SmashingConf Live is designed to feel less like a broadcast and more like a shared space. The organizers are aiming for a warm, family-like atmosphere where attendees can genuinely connect, whether that means catching up with familiar faces or meeting new people from across the globe — something even in-person events don’t always manage. The team is still fine-tuning details, with more announcements on the way.

Pricing and Packages

Two ticket options are available for the event.

  • Conf + Workshop — $475.00. Includes a full conference ticket plus your choice of an online workshop, adding five 2.5-hour sessions to your schedule.
  • Conf Only — $225.00. Two half-days of interactive live sessions and expert discussions. Only 100 early-bird tickets are offered at this rate.
Meet SmashingConf Live (Aug 20–21), a friendly online conference right at your fingertips.

Going Deeper

For those looking to sharpen their skills further, the accompanying materials cover planning and running a successful conference, getting the most value out of a web conference, and exploring broader topics like autonomy online and the importance of project retrospectives.

Smashing Editorial