CosmoLocal CNX runs for a full month this September. Four tracks, four weeks, global and local talents and curious minds building side by side in Chiang Mai. Main Week is the final stretch, September 23 to 28, and it's where all of it converges. Every track surfaces what it made over the month. The prototypes, the outputs, the ideas that started as one sentence in week one and turned into something you can point at.
Main Week is two things at once. It's the finale of the month for the people who stayed the whole way. And it's the way in for everyone who couldn't give a month but still wants the real thing. Not everyone can clear four weeks. You have a job, a family, a business that needs you, I understand. Main Week is the condensed version of CosmoLocal CNX, six days built to give you the heart of it.
I want to stress how much thought I put into designing Main Week so it justifies every the money and time you put into it. Every choice about what to include, and just as importantly what to leave out, was made so the week is genuinely worth your participation
Why the keynotes are light on purpose
The keynotes are kept small intentionally. Three half-days, one track.
I've been to conferences with endless keynotes running back to back. You lose track, you tune out, half the rooms sit empty. I wanted the opposite. Streamline it down to the best few, and have everyone gathered in one room giving their full attention to just one person/panel at a time. So we kept the stage time tight and built the rest of the week around you doing, not just watching.
The speakers we do put on that stage, I handpicked every one. None of them are here to sell you something from the stage. I picked them because they understand the vision, they know their domain, and they have a story worth sitting still for. These are people whose work I deeply respect. Amarit "Aim" Charoenphan knows just about everything there is to know about the startup ecosystem in Thailand. Benjamin Hies is a seasoned entrepreneur who has built the most sophisticated sales funnel and working system I've seen from a company of one. Jon Jandai is a local food ecosystem legend, the founder of Pun Pun and a Chiang Mai TEDx speaker whose talk has crossed 15 million views. More legends to be announced.
Workshops that go deep
With the stage kept light, the workshops are where you roll up your sleeves. Small groups, hands-on, led by people who actually do the work. You pick your favorite and you leave with something you'll still be using months later.
A taste of what's coming. Yeji Cheon, a rock star community builder from South Korea, on nonviolent communication and building real relationships across difference. Ian Borders and his crew running hands-on AI workshops at both ends, a beginner track to get comfortable and an advanced track to go deeper building with LLMs. And most likely a bean-to-bar session with Siamaya Chocolate, making chocolate by hand from the raw cacao up.
Seats are limited and RSVP is required. You reserve your spot in the app.
The special events
A few gatherings big enough to stand on their own.
The AI for Chiang Mai Hackathon, two days of real Chiang Mai problems and creative solutions, officially endorsed by Anthropic and run by their ambassador Ian Borders and his crew.
The CosmoLocal Potluck, a 200-person dinner where every table is half local and half visitor, and everyone brings a dish and a story.
The Solopreneur Show & Tell, where residents put a month of work on the floor and the room opens up for pitching, feedback, and prizes.
Excursions off the map
On September 27, we head out of town. A curated set of day trips to some of the most beautiful spots within two hours of the city, and half of them you won't find in any travel guide. Sticky waterfalls you can actually climb, a working cacao farm, a regenerative eco-farm, a guided mushroom foray. Each runs at an additional cost, spots are limited, and you book in the app.
The last day is yours
September 28, the floor is yours. Side events are participant-led. If you have something to teach or share, we give you a free venue and basic support, and you run the session. Skill shares, talks, jam sessions, hands-on workshops, whatever you want to lead. It's the community teaching the community. Set one up or find one to join, all in the app.
Then we close with the Handover Party. Colive Fukuoka is one of our key sponsors, and we're throwing this one Japanese-style, fun and cool, because it's the send-off to what comes next. Fukuoka is the next stop, and I'll be heading there right after myself.
Make the call
Six days. September 23 to 28. Keynotes chosen by hand and kept deliberately light, workshops with real depth, a hackathon Anthropic stands behind, a dinner for 200, excursions off the map, a Japanese-style send-off toward Fukuoka, room to host your own thing, and people worth knowing all around you.
Spots are finite and the week is built to fill. If you've read this far, you already know. Commit now, grab your ticket, and I'll see you in Chiang Mai.
