Sarbat · AI & Impact Conference
October 16–17, 2026 · Seattle, WA
A two-day conference fostering dialogue within the Sikh community, bringing together Sikh technologists, entrepreneurs, social activists, and students — both to understand where AI is headed and to shape where it goes.
Venue
The Point at Pier 70, on the downtown Seattle waterfront just south of the Olympic Sculpture Park — 2801 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98121. Plan your visit.
Who Sarbat is for
Technologists, builders & artists
Students & emerging leaders
Activists & changemakers
The wider sangat
Rooted in sangat; substance over spectacle.
Who you'll hear from
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Karandeep Singh Anand Former President & CPO, Brex; ex-VP, Meta. |
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KJ Dhaliwal Founder of Dil Mil. |
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Kulmeet Singh Former CEO, Twistle Inc. |
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Harjit Singh Sajjan Former Minister of National Defence, Canada. |
There are more speakers — see the full lineup at sarbatconf.com.
The Sarbat Hackathon — Let's build the future
Friday, October 16 — day one of the conference, in collaboration with Khalis Foundation. Teams of two to five compete for $10,000+ in cash prizes.
How it works:
(a) You build based on the themes and seed ideas provided, with the option to propose your own idea. Problems gathered from 24 nonprofit partners across healthcare, advocacy, education, human rights, giving and Gurbani.
(b) The expert is in the room. Every nonprofit partner sends someone who owns the problem — they brief you, sit with you, and judge the work.
(c) It doesn't end Saturday. Winning teams get 90-day support: continued partner access, infrastructure and real data, Khalis engineering behind you.
Judging criteria (in order): Usefulness, Rootedness, Craft, Openness.
Winners get: a share of $10,000+ in cash, plus 90 Days Khalis Support — continued partner access, servers/databases/real data, 20+ mentorship hours from expert engineers, and a public demo at the next quarterly Khalis update.
Every project gets published, win or not. You own what you build, and every project has to be published under the MIT license. No extra cost — included with registration. You don't need to be a developer — designers, researchers, organisers and writers are all welcome.
Partner organisations
24 nonprofit partners (more to be announced) — including Dasvandh Network:
Khalis Foundation (Host), Anandpur Institute, Bhai Jaitajee Foundation, Dasvandh Network, Ensaaf, GHK Lab School, GNI, Harvard Sikhs, Jakara, Khalsa Gurmat Center, NASMDA, Panjab Digital Library, Parvaaz, Sabudh Foundation, SALDEF, Sanjhi Sikhiya, Sikh Coalition, Sikh Family Center, Sikhlens, SikhNet, SikhRI, Udaari, USM, WSO.
Agenda & experience
Keynotes open each morning, with parallel tracks through the day. Lunch is served both days; Saturday closes with dinner and a fireside chat. The full agenda will be published closer to the date. No livestream — in person only. Organized by Sikh technologists, founders and community leaders in the Seattle area, supported by Khalsa Gurmat Center (nonprofit).
Plan your trip
Arrive Thursday evening — the conference opens 9am Friday; fly home Sunday. Hotels near Pier 70 with discounted rates (mention Pier 70 when booking): The Edgewater, Seattle Marriott Waterfront, Hyatt Place & Hyatt House, Hotel Crocodile. From Sea-Tac: 30–45 min by car/rideshare, or 50–60 min on the Link 1 Line (~$3). Details: sarbatconf.com/faq.
Registration closed September 15 — the conference is full.
Questions: info@sarbatconf.com