TokioConf Program and Ticket Sales Are Available Now

Hey everyone. I'm happy to announce that we've posted the TokioConf 2026 program to the website. Our program committee did a great job selecting a breadth of topics that will be of practical use to software developers working with Rust and Tokio to build networking systems. In addition to the scheduled talks, there will be lightning talk opportunities for those who want to share quick insights or demos with the community. We received so many great session proposals. I really wish we had more slots available to feature them all. If you took the time to submit a proposal, thank you. It was genuinely difficult to select talks given the quality of submissions, and I want to thank Conrad Ludgate, Armin Ronacher, Jon Gjengset, Marc Bowes, Sean McArthur, and Alice Ryhl for the time they put into helping craft the program.

Tickets

Tickets are now for sale, with early bird pricing available through the end of January. If you're planning to attend, I'd strongly recommend getting your ticket sooner rather than later. I know it's tempting to wait. I tend to put off buying conference tickets until the last minute too. But here's the situation: this is our first year organizing a conference, and we're not sure how many people will attend. To manage risk, we made conservative commitments on venue capacity, catering, and other logistics. Right now, there are fewer than 200 tickets remaining. If we sell out early enough, there's opportunity to expand capacity, but we'll need sufficient lead time to make those arrangements.

Workshop and Social Events

On Monday (April 20), the day before the main conference starts, we have a few things planned. First, there's a workshop where we'll dive into the depths of async Rust and the Tokio Runtime. I somehow convinced both Alice and Sean to co-lead it with me, so this will be a great opportunity to get questions answered directly from the source.

Monday afternoon, we are hoping to organize some social activities, though we are still figuring out exactly what. Other conferences have done similar things, and I think it's a great way to break the ice and meet others in the community. We would love to hear what kinds of activities would interest you. Options include organized hikes (the Portland area has some really nice outdoor areas), touring local chocolate makers or breweries, or pinball at an arcade. Please share your thoughts in the #tokioconf Discord channel or via email.

Monday night, we're trying something experimental that I haven't seen at other conferences. One thing I really look forward to at conferences is gathering a big group for dinner. I enjoy the casual conversations that happen there. However, finding a restaurant with space and then worrying about splitting the check at the end can be stressful. So we're trying to solve both problems: we've booked a private room at a local restaurant and are offering dinner tickets as an add-on when you purchase your conference ticket. The price includes the meal and tip, so you just show up and leave whenever you want. We're pricing this at cost. If you're interested, book sooner rather than later. If it sells out early and there's demand, we can arrange an additional reservation. There are about 20 spots.

What Happens Next

That's it for now. We're still working through the details, so if you have any questions, please email us. This is our first conference, and a lot of the planning is happening just-in-time based on your feedback and questions. Sign up for email updates at tokioconf.com, or follow us on Bluesky or Mastodon for announcements.