Dreamforce 2024: Thousands arrive in San Francisco for the 'largest AI event in the world'

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — It’s packed right now in San Francisco as Dreamforce 2024 is about to get underway.

“I flew in from New York today which was a mistake. Next time I’m going to fly out Sunday. There is so much going on!”

That from Kevin Stagg, one of the thousands who arrived in San Francisco on Monday, and one of more than 40-thousand who will attend Salesforce’s annual tech conference in-person.

Monday there were crowds of people and long lines of cars near the Moscone Center. The conference goes from Tuesday through Thursday but some of the fun stuff is already in full swing.

“I mean even tonight there is happy hours and dinners and after parties but it’s already been a long day for me,” said Stagg.

San Francisco businesses say they are ready for the economic boost that Dreamforce will bring to the city.

Those from Salesforce say Dreamforce 2024 is the largest AI event in the world and those we spoke with Monday were eager to talk about that very topic.

“Definitely AI is on everyone’s mind I believe and definitely mine,” said Florencia Lamdani from Argentina.

“How close do you think we are to using it in your field?” asked ABC 7 News Reporter J.R. Stone.

“Just a little, we are like here. We gotta take it there,” responded Lamdani.

Many attendees we spoke with, like Florencia there, say they’re not sure if the AI implementation is widely there yet, but just knowledge about AI systems and how they can operate seems to be key this year.

“The biggest buzzword of the year is AI. I think we got a ways to go. Just understanding the use cases, what is the right time to use it? When not to use it? How do you bridge that gap between technology and humans also at the same time?” said Fazir Ali who is in town from Dallas, Texas.

“I’m not threatened by it, I’m excited by it. If we can do the basics using AI or some sort of automation, we can free up the human talent to do some of the higher investments or meatier stuff,” said Stagg.

As we were outside of the Dreamforce setup Monday we didn’t spot any of this year’s speakers which include Jane Goodall, Matthew McConaughey, Ayesha Curry, and Kerry Washington, but all four are scheduled to be here.

We also didn’t see Pink or Imagine Dragons who will be performing at Oracle Park on Wednesday night, but there was certainly a good vibe in the air.

“It’s such a great community and I’m hoping to get to Tiburon and Sausalito if I get some free time at the end of the week cause it’s just so wonderful.”