Attendee
I listen to both sides, put questions to the speakers and meet other entrepreneurs.
An open debate for entrepreneurs
AI DEBATES
Contested questions with no settled answer yet. Several positions, a live debate and questions from the floor — instead of talks with ready-made conclusions.
- Date
- 18 September 2026, Friday
- Time
- 14:00–18:00 (Almaty)
- Venue
- The venue address is sent to registered participants
- Entry
- Free participation, the number of seats is limited
Three ways to take part
Each role has its own script, its own form and its own payoff. Pick the one your evening is worth spending on.
Debater
I join the debate from the floor: I have a position and the numbers to back it.
Expert
I defend a professional position in the programme and answer for its consequences.
Expert and debater are different roles. An expert is selected and appears in the round; a debater joins the debate from the floor, with no selection and no application.
Debates, not a conference
Each round is one question and several incompatible positions. Nobody arrives with a settled conclusion: the arguments are tested here, in front of the room, and you are the one who takes them away.
Experts debate
Each defends a position and answers for what it costs other people's money.
The room asks
Questions are collected in advance and asked from the floor — not cleared with the speakers.
Nobody stays quiet
Any participant can agree, object or offer a third option.
You draw the conclusion
No final truth from the stage: you take the arguments away and test them on your own numbers.
What you take away
The payoff depends on the role — pick yours.
- Two opposing positions on one question — side by side, not separately
- Arguments you can test against your own numbers next week
- An expert's answer to your question — out loud, in front of everyone
- A clear view of where AI actually saves money and where it only promises to
- Other people's implementation mistakes you did not pay for
- Introductions to entrepreneurs facing the same problems
- A closed Telegram group for participants after the debate
- A vote for the most convincing speaker
- A public platform for the position you defend inside your own company
- Your arguments tested by people working in the same conditions
- Objections your own team will never voice to you
- The attention of a room that holds potential partners and clients
- The right to put an awkward question to an expert
- Influence over where the discussion turns
- A reputation for debating to the point
- Contacts with the people who debated against you and did not budge
- Speaking to entrepreneurs rather than to fellow specialists
- Expertise shown in a debate, not in a deck
- A speaker profile on the event site
- Your position tested by a strong opponent
- Questions from the floor that reveal the market's real pain
- New clients and partners among the participants
- A place in the organisers' professional community
- The audience's verdict in an anonymous vote
How it works
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Registration
A short form — and your claim to a seat. There are as many places as there are chairs.
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Choosing a role
Attendee, debater or expert. The role decides what you do on 18 September.
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Confirmation
Confirmation appears on screen straight away: the seat is tied to your contacts.
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Telegram group
A closed participants' group: the programme, the round topics and the venue address.
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Introductions
A couple of lines about your business in the group — business contacts start before the event.
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The debate
Round after round: several positions, questions from the floor and no ending known in advance.
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The vote
An anonymous vote for the most convincing speaker. The organisers decide when results open.
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Networking
After the rounds — open networking: introductions, contacts and conversations with the people whose arguments got to you.
Question categories
The areas the rounds are assembled from. The full wording of the questions stays with the moderator — some of them will be asked in the room.
- Frontier AI models and AGI
- AI agents and autonomous companies
- Multimodal AI and computer vision
- Generative AI: text, images, video and audio
- Decentralised AI
- Open models and open source AI
- AI safety and control of frontier models
- AI alignment and the values of AI
- AI and human labour
- AI and the future of professions
- AI in corporate management
- AI in finance and investment
- AI in marketing and sales
- AI in media and journalism
- Synthetic media and deepfakes
- AI and education
- AI in medicine
- AI and pharmaceuticals
- AI in biotechnology
- Genomics and gene editing
- Quantum computing
- Quantum AI and quantum machine learning
- Post-quantum cryptography
- Quantum communications
- Quantum sensors
- Robotics and physical AI
- Humanoid robots
- Autonomous systems and drones
- Autonomous transport
- Industrial robotisation
- AI + IoT and smart infrastructure
- Cybersecurity in the age of AI
- AI attacks and autonomous cybercrime
- Identity, digital ID and biometrics
- Personal data and privacy
- AI surveillance and mass monitoring
- Cloud computing and sovereign cloud
- AI chips, ASIC, GPU and compute infrastructure
- Energy and AI data centres
- The semantic internet and the AI-native web
- XR, spatial computing and smart glasses
- Neurointerfaces and brain-computer interfaces
- Synthetic biology and biocomputing
- Space technology and AI in space
- Climate technology and AI
- AI metaverses
Experts
The programme is in progress. It will be published closer to 15 September.
Invited experts
The organisers are in talks with specialists whose positions genuinely diverge. The entry for each of them will look like this.
Your photo goes here
Sample
Name Surname
Founder of a manufacturing company
Position: until the processes are rebuilt, any tool stays a cost.
- 18 years in the industry
- Manufacturing, 400 employees
- Rolled out AI in planning
Your photo goes here
Sample
Name Surname
Chief data officer, bank
Position: the cost of a data error outweighs the gain from the strongest model.
- 12 years in data
- Retail bank
- Owns the risk models
Your photo goes here
Sample
Name Surname
Founder of an IT company
Position: agents are already taking whole jobs, not helping to do them.
- Custom software
- 60 engineers
- Writes about agents and automation
Your photo goes here
Sample
Name Surname
HR director, retail
Position: the layoffs start before the promised productivity shows up.
- Retail, 2,000 people
- 10 years in recruitment
- Rebuilt hiring around AI
The cards above are a layout sample: photo, name, short intro and credentials. Real names and credentials will take these places as soon as the experts confirm.
Confirmed speakers
This is where the people who passed selection and are already in the programme appear.
The line-up is still being assembled. Confirmed speakers will appear in this block.
Who do you want to hear
One participant, one vote. Neither the organisers nor the speakers can see who voted for whom.
Voting opens once the organisers approve the line-up of experts.
This is the result of a participants vote, not an independent professional assessment of qualification.
A seat in the room
Registration takes a minute. After that: the closed Telegram group and the venue address.
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Step 1. Registration confirmed
You are on the participants list. The seat is tied to your contact details.
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Step 2. Join the Telegram group
The programme, round topics, venue address and schedule changes are published there.
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Step 3. Introduce yourself
Tell the group briefly about your business or send your card — introductions start before the event.
Keep the date
Add the debates to your calendar and the reminder will come on its own.
Not a conference. Not a lecture. Not a presentation. Debates.
Here you may disagree even with the experts.
Questions and answers
Short answers to what people ask most often.
Who can attend?
Business owners and managers, specialists and experts interested in the topics of the rounds. Registration is open to everyone, but there are only as many places as the venue holds.
Do I need to understand AI?
No. The conversation is about money, processes and people, not about how the models are built. Most participants come to listen and to ask questions.
Can I just come and listen?
Yes, that is the attendee role. You listen to the debate, ask a question if you want to, and take part in the vote.
Can I ask my own question?
Yes. Send it in advance through the form on this site or ask it from the floor during a round. Submitted questions are reviewed by the moderator.
How do I become a speaker?
Fill in the form «I want to apply as a speaker»: describe your expertise and topic and attach a photograph. The application goes to moderation.
How are experts selected?
The organisers review applications by hand: the topic, the experience and how strongly the position collides with others. Approved profiles are published on the site; the rest stay private.
How does the voting work?
Each participant casts one vote for one of the approved experts. The administrator opens the results; until then they are hidden from everyone.
Is the vote anonymous?
Yes. No name, email or phone number is stored next to a vote — only a technical marker that prevents voting twice.
How do I get into the Telegram group?
The link appears right after registration, on the confirmation screen. The group is closed and holds only the participants of the debates.
Can I take part in the debate without being a speaker?
Yes, that is the debater role: you take part from the floor, ask questions and offer your position, but do not speak in the programme.
Do I have to pay to take part?
No, participation is free. The only limit is the capacity of the venue.
How do I add the date to my calendar?
In the «Save the date» block there is a Google Calendar link and an .ics file that opens in Apple Calendar and any other app.
Our supporters
The organisations supporting AI DEBATES.
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Qalqan public association of security experts
qlq.kz -
LynxCustodia legal group
lynxcustodia.kz -
Mental Shield educational project
mentalshield.kz -
JoiConsulting international investment and consulting group
joiconsulting.asia -
Qalqan Media portal
qalqanmedia.com -
Sport Games Club community
sportgamesclub.com