It could have been the heat dome that descended on Toronto this week, but there was a sleepiness in the Enercare Centre as attendees congregated at the Collision tech conference for the last time in the city. 

Toronto has played host to the Dublin-based events company’s tech conference since 2019 (with a pandemic hiatus), welcoming tens of thousands of entrepreneurs, investors and journalists each year for the multi-day event. But six years on, the city seems ready to pass the baton to its next host, Vancouver. 

“I think it’s a good change of scenery,” said Akshat Soni, co-founder and CEO of CanPR, a Mississauga, Ont.-based company that helps ease the immigration process to Canada. “Being in Vancouver next year, it’s great to have that group of entrepreneurs from that area who might not be able to travel here to see what Canada has to offer.” 

Collision’s run in Toronto hasn’t been without its trials. Web Summit, the company that operates Collision, had sought about $40 million to keep the event in the city beyond its one-year extension that ends this week, BetaKit reported last year, despite doubts about the conference’s value for the local economy. While former Toronto mayor John Tory had been a staunch advocate for keeping the conference, his successor, Olivia Chow, has been less vocal about supporting it.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Web Summit CEO Paddy Cosgrave acknowledged Tory for his role in bringing the conference to the city. (He didn’t mention Chow.) “We will miss Toronto,” said Cosgrave, “but we’re very much looking forward to moving to Vancouver. We’re staying in Canada, which is maybe good news for some.”

Lisa Zarzeczny, CEO of Elevate, an annual tech conference in Toronto, said Collision’s departure could make space for other events in the city, including Elevate. “I suspect there will be more attention to it now as the premier tech event every year,” she said by email. 

Not everyone is sold on relocating the conference, which is also being rebranded as Web Summit Vancouver, one of several global events under the banner. Bay Area-based Chris Walker, CEO of Toronto-headquartered semiconductor startup Untether AI, spent this year’s Collision with investors, other executives and reporters. “It’s not just a convenience factor,” he said—the conference helps support the ecosystem. But “you can reach people in many ways and many locations.” 

Walker and head of product Bob Beachler—also Bay Area-based—haven’t yet booked flights and hotels for Web Summit Vancouver next May. “I’m sure we’ll be there,” Walker said.

Michael Yang, head of OMERS Ventures, said the move will be an adjustment. “Everyone has the hang of doing Collision in Toronto,” said Yang, who’s based in San Francisco and uses the conference as an opportunity to connect with his Toronto-based team and the city’s large network of investors and startup founders. Regardless, he said it might be time for something new. “I suppose change is often for the better and keeps everything fresh and exciting.”

With files from Murad Hemmadi and Anita Balakrishnan