Historical note, May 18, 2026: This article preserves the earlier full-day Data Nerds plan. The active 2026 public program is now the Oct 28-30 focused-festival edition; Data Nerds material remains useful 2027 and partner planning context.
Wednesday Oct 28 is now Data Nerds Day. Same day -- bigger frame.
The Data Storytelling Hackathon (Rival Technologies, $5K prize, Round 5) still anchors the morning. What's new is everything around it: short showcase talks curated with Data for Good Vancouver, a data governance session from DAMA-Vancouver, and a shared sense of purpose that connects all three communities in one building.
What the day looks like
Morning: Hackathon presentations open at 10:00am. Teams who built over the weekend present their work. Data for Good showcase talks run from 11:30am.
Afternoon: Lunch with nonprofit tables. DAMA-Vancouver leads a practical session on data governance for nonprofits at 1:30pm. A second block of Data for Good showcase talks at 2:30pm. Hackathon finalists present at 4:00pm.
Evening: The Vancouver AI Meetup at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre -- Data for Good takeover edition. Hackathon winners announced live at 7:30pm.
The people behind it
Gord, chapter lead of Data for Good Vancouver, joins as Data Nerds Day co-lead. Data for Good Vancouver runs 1,600 volunteer data professionals and a showcase format that has connected local nonprofits with the data talent they need.
DAMA-Vancouver brings the data governance and management professional community into the festival for the first time.
The April plan also sketched a fifth round of the Data Storytelling Hackathon. No host, partner, or participant for that round is confirmed for the 2026 festival.
Who this day is for
If you work with data, volunteer your data skills, run a nonprofit that needs data support, or care about responsible data practices -- this is your day at the festival.
Data for Good's 1,600 Vancouver volunteers. BC + AI members. DAMA-Vancouver members. Local nonprofits looking to connect with data talent. All in the same room, on the same Wednesday.
Tickets
Data Nerds Day is available as a single-day Wednesday pass or as part of any full festival pass. Partner discount codes for BC + AI and Data for Good members are being developed -- more details coming.
Historical full-day program link: futureproof.website/program/data-nerds. The route now shows a generic future-edition placeholder.
Questions: kk@bc-ai.ca