What you need to know
- This year's Microsoft Ignite will be split into two events.
- One will take place on September 22-24, while the other is planned for early 2021.
- Both will be free, digital-only 48-hour events.
Microsoft Ignite is going to look a little bit different this year. Like Microsoft's other recent events, Ignite is going all-digital in response to the current global health crisis. What's more, Ignite is being split into two separate events.
The first event will take place over 48 hours on September 22-24. The second event, Microsoft says, will take place in "early 2021." Both will be free, and registration for the first event will open on September 3.
Additionally, Microsoft says that it won't hold Ignite Tour events around the world this year. From Microsoft:
We've learned from the global digital events we've held this year that we now have the opportunity to bring the whole global community together in one place to create a truly worldwide event. For this reason, we're not going to be holding Microsoft Ignite Tour events in different cities around the world this year; instead Microsoft Ignite will bring all global participants together and include the opportunity for local community meetups, will have language localization, and participants will also be able to get skill building with Microsoft Learn and certifications.
Lastly, the early-2021 Ignite event will not replace Microsoft Build. "We'll continue to host Microsoft Build as the forum for our developer communities to come together," Microsoft says. Microsoft has already signaled its intention to make all events digital-only through July 2021, so it's likely we'll see a digital Build conference next year as well.
