Meta Connect ended a few days ago. It was my first time going there, and I had a lot of fun. However, I recall that on a few occasions, I’ve found myself a bit lost, and I’ve also made some mistakes here and there. So, as I usually do in these cases, I’ve written a long article to tell you about my experience and give useful pieces of advice for everyone who should attend Connect for the first time, so that you can avoid my mistakes!
Enjoy the people
All the other years I could not attend Connect, I followed it through the eyes of those who were there. And almost all the VR influencers after the event always wrote social media posts about how it was great connecting with the VR community there. Now that I’ve been at Connect, I understand why: meeting people is one of the most enjoyable parts of the whole event.
There is a nice, chilling atmosphere at Connect: everyone is happy, and it is easy to meet new people. I would say it’s a different atmosphere than AWE or the other events I attended. In all the VR events, it is easy to meet people, because the VR community is very welcoming. But at Connect, it’s like people are more relaxed, more welcoming than in other events. It is like they are there just to enjoy their time. So it’s very pleasant to spend your time with other people.
My suggestion is just to open yourself up to other people. Spend some quality time with the people you already know. And whenever you have occasion, meet new people: exchange some words with the others that are in the line close to you, try to meet the friends of your friends, and so on. If there is someone you want absolutely to meet, reach out to him/her on social media and ask for a quick meeting: a few people did that with me on X or LinkedIn, and then we met at the event. Make friends and then, since you are there also for work, don’t forget to exchange some contacts so you can evaluate collaborations in the future: LinkedIn is good for that.
Have fun with the people around you, eat together, discuss together the announcement by Meta, talk about the demos you tried, and dance together at parties. Mix talking about work and just having fun, and enjoy the company of the people around you. You will have wonderful memories of your Connect.
One of the most interesting things about attending Meta Connect has been that I was able to attend the main keynote, where, on stage, there was Mark Zuckerberg. I was able to see for the first time in my life Zuck, not via streaming, but live in front of me, made of flesh… or alien jello… or robot silicone… or whatever he’s made of. And then there was Boz, too!
It was pretty cool to see these guys. I’m not their biggest fan in this world, but still, it’s impressive to see them in real life. Anyway, unless you have some special relationship with Meta (e.g., you’re the head of a company that has a billion-dollar contract with Meta), forget about meeting them or taking a picture with them. You see them on stage, and then they disappear.
Still, sometimes with a bit of luck, you can meet someone important. I went to the booth of the Avatar trailer, and while the steward was putting the headset on my head for the demo, I saw Samantha Ryan (she was the second person speaking in the dev keynote after Boz). I left the poor guy with the headset there and flew to say hello to her. So if you have the luck of seeing someone from the keynote hanging around, just don’t miss the opportunity!
Apart from taking selfies with the VIPs, Meta Connect is a great opportunity to have a conversation with the people from Meta. What type of conversations is up to you: maybe you want some technical details on some SDK, or you want to talk about collaborations, or you want to pitch an idea to get the money, or you just want to know some juicy behind-the-scenes details… or you just want to say Hi.
What you can do is either ask for a meeting to some Meta people you already know on Linkedin; or to ask some friend of yours to have an introduction; or to go to the developer sessions and wait for the session to end and approch the speaker; or to go to some of the Meta events, look for the people of interest, and introduce yourself. Whatever means you choose, find a way to speak with them!
At Meta Connect, you can find everyone at Meta, while in other VR events, this is not always true: for instance, at AWE this year, there were not many people from the company. So if you want to speak with Meta for some reason, Meta Connect is the right place to do that.
Get the VR vibes
In general, being there and having private conversations with people, you can get some vibes about the general status of the Meta VR ecosystem. People in private say things they would never write on LinkedIn, so you get to understand the real status of the VR ecosystem beyond all the bullshit. These insights have been among the most valuable things I’m getting home from Connect.
Arrive early, but not too early, for the main keynote
The Keynote with Mark Zuckerberg was at 5 pm PT, but the buses to bring people there were supposed to start at 3 pm. People started a line to enter the keynote, because the seats were very limited. Half of the keynote room was occupied by VIP seats (journalists, Meta creators, partners, etc), so only half of the room was available for us normal VR people. We were warned that after the room was full, the other people would have moved to an “overflow room”, which is a room where you can watch a video of the keynote.
But I did not want to spend 12 hours on a plane to see the same livestream I could have seen from home. So I arrived in line for the keynote very early, like 2.10 pm. I was among the first in the line, so I was sure to see the Zuggity in real life. But maybe 2 pm was really too early: I had to stay in line for more than 2 hours, under the sun… with an Italian suit on (I kinda regret my dressing choices sometimes). It seemed a survival game: we were all cooking under the California sun, and only the strongest of us who survived could enter and enjoy Meta’s announcements! The suggestion here is to arrive early for the keynote, but not too early, or it is going to be too tiresome. And be ready to protect yourself from the sun and the heat!
Use the shuttle buses
Unless you already know the Meta campus, use the shuttle buses to go where you want to go. The second day, when I attended the dev keynote, I asked the Uber driver to take me directly to the conference location instead of going to the Meta main address and taking the shuttle bus from there. He left me at the Uber drop-off place, and from there, I had no idea where I should go, so I had to ask a couple of stewards for help.
Wear comfortable clothes and shoes
I’m Italian, so I need to show some style… I must wear a suit to please my ancestors. But you do not have this duty, so wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Have a little jacket you can put on when you are in a place with air conditioning and take it off when you are under the hot sun. Wear some shoes with which you can stay in line for hours without wanting to cut your legs: the first days I spent 2+ hours in line for the Keynote, and 2 hours in line for trying the Ray-Ban Meta Display. At Connect, you won’t walk a lot, but you may be standing a lot. You’ve been warned.
Register before the keynote
When I arrived at the place of the keynote and I started waiting in line, I noticed I was the only one without the badge at my neck. All the other around me had it for different reasons: some arrived very early, others already attended a roundtable, others were already part of some other event. I started freaking out, fearing that without the badge, I could not enter and see the Zuck. The good news is that, actually, there was a registration desk outside the keynote area, so I could get my badge and enter. The bad news is that I lost my place in line, because while all the others could go directly towards the keynote venue, I had to do the entire registration procedure to get my badge.
In my case, it was not that bad, because in my new place in the line, I could make friends with David from Mighty Coconut. But if I were in the last positions, I could have lost my opportunity to enter the keynote. So my suggestion for you is to arrive a bit early, and before taking the bus to the keynote venue, go to the registration area and get your badge.
Enjoy the free food
I always say this: the most important reason why I go to VR events is THE FREE FOOD. And Meta Connect is gorgeous for that: you have finger food on the main avenue, free drinks in the employees’ fridges, snacks in the snack stations, a free restaurant for lunch, a free pastry shop where to take ice cream and biscuits, barmans preparing cocktails everywehere… on the morning of the developer keynote we even had coffee, tea, pastries, and burritos to eat! (As an Italian, I balked at the idea of a burrito for breakfast, but hey, tastes are tastes!) You do not have to worry about eating or drinking… like NEVER. You have to worry about becoming super obese by eating all the free food that is available on the campus, though!
Find the side events
The main Meta Connect event is cool, but there are also many side events happening around it. I attended a gathering two days before the event, another the day before, then the first day of the event there was the official afterparty, and on the last day, I attended a VR birthday party. And still, I lost other cool stuff, like an SVVR meeting, and when REK opened its offices to showcase the robots. There are a lot of things happening that week, and there are some people who are not invited to the Connect, but who still enjoy coming to the Valley from nearby places to connect to the community in the side events!
Side events are cool. The problem is that there is no place to find them, so you need to speak with other VR people who are going to the Connect and ask them about the side events. Exchange the news you find with your peers, and attend as many side events as you can. Notice that some side events are official and organized by Meta and available only to invited people. But some of these private events are held in public places, so maybe you can still go to the same place and hang out a bit as if you were invited.
Stay for a few more days
As I told you, there are many side events and gatherings happening, so if you can afford it, arrive at least one day before.
Ask people who have already attended Connect for information
Being my first time at Connect, I did not know what to expect. Luckily, I was able to meet with some people who had already attended it, and that gave me an overview of the event and gave me some suggestions.
Hanging out with people already knowledgeable also helped me in understanding better the location: for instance, I did not know that we could eat a big lunch for free in Meta’s restaurant, but my friend Matteo brought me there.
So ask a lot of questions to the more expert attendees and let them guide you!
When in doubt, follow the other people
A couple of times, I was lost about what to do. For instance, after the keynote by Mark Zuckerberg, I did not know where to go. I asked one of the stewards, and he gave me a very simple but wise suggestion: follow all the others. Trust me, it works: most people there have already been to Connect and know what to do, so when in doubt, follow what the majority of people are doing!
Ask for the toilets
No kidding, during the first day, I could not find where the restrooms were. I had to ask a few people, and then finally one of the waiters said, “Follow me, it’s easier to bring you there than explain it”. I propose this guy for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Do the demos!
At Connect, I’ve been able to try the Ray-Ban Meta Display glasses, the Ray-Ban Meta Vanguard, the Avatar trailer, Deadpool VR, the latest Star Wars experience, and some other things. There are many demo stations: enjoy them! You have the unique opportunity to try something in preview, which is cool on its own. And if you are a content creator like me, it is great to be one of the first out there to talk about a new product! Demos have been an important part of my experience.
A little trick you should know is that some VR content was showcased in different places. So I put myself in line for Deadpool VR, but there was one hour to wait. I gave up, but then after I chatted with a friend from VR Monkey, I discovered that there was another place where I could do the demo. We went there, and there was only one person in line. Thanks to him, I was able to try the game!
Prepare for a long day
Meta Connect can be intense because there are a lot of things to do and a lot of people to meet. And if you are a content creator, it is going to be very long and tiresome. Just to talk about my first day:
- I arrived super early to the keynote, as I told you, because I needed to enter the room and find a seat. This meant waiting a lot of time in line
- During the whole keynote, I had to take a lot of pictures and write a lot of tweets
- After the keynote, while everyone was partying, I was in line to try the Ray-Ban Meta Display glasses so that I could review them
- After I tried the glasses, I was ready to party, but the music ended. I said “fuuuuuuuck”
- I recorded a short video review of the glasses from the venue
- I enjoyed speaking with people until we were kicked out of the location
- I arrived at home and started writing the review of the Ray-Ban Meta Display and editing the video
- I went to sleep at 3.30 am
- I woke up at 6.00 am the day after
And this is not only me. Reading his review of the Ray-Ban Meta Display glasses, I’ve noticed how David Heaney had some long days as well. Be prepared for a couple of long days!
Set your goals
This should be the first thing to do, but I decided to put it as the last one to wrap up this article. Like with every event you attend, you should set up some goals beforehand and also do some homework.
Why do you want to attend the Meta Connect? Do you just want to have fun? Do you want to pitch Meta for some content you have in mind? Do you want to try some hardware and make a review video? There is no right or wrong answer… You need to understand what YOU want to do.
Set some goals, and do some homework before you go: for instance, if you want to pitch a VR game to Meta, you had better know beforehand who you should pitch this game to and either connect on LinkedIn or ask for an introduction. And then you also need to prepare a solid presentation. If you want to try some hardware and make video content, you had better plan in mind how to arrive there before the others (e.g., by skipping the last minutes of the keynote), and bring with you a pedestal for your phone and maybe a light. If you want to just eat a lot of food, dress in a jacket with big pockets, so you can bring some snacks and drinks home. Whatever your goal is, prepare beforehand.
If you don’t have any goals, you won’t be able to know after the event if it was a success for you: so set your goals, do some preparation before the event, and then fight for them during the event!
And besides the goal, don’t forget to have fun, because it is always very important!
I hope these pieces of advice will be useful for you. I have great memories of my Connect; it is an event I really enjoy attending, and I hope you have a similar experience. Enjoy your Connect!
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