45Drives Creator Summit 2026 in Wilmington to Spotlight AI, Open Infrastructure, and Creator-Tech Convergence

45Drives, a leader in open-source data storage and compute, has announced the complete program for its fourth annual Creator Summit, set for October 20-22 in downtown Wilmington, North Carolina. The event will convene independent technology creators, enterprise infrastructure leaders, open-source experts, AI researchers, academics, media figures, and film and VFX professionals to explore the future of artificial intelligence, data ownership, and modern computing infrastructure.

The 2026 Creator Summit features dedicated Enterprise and Creative tracks. The Enterprise track will address private and on-premises AI, high-performance data systems, data sovereignty, cybersecurity, and open-source infrastructure—critical topics as organizations scale AI workloads. The Creative track will examine how AI is transforming production, editing, design, and storytelling workflows. According to 45Drives, the event aims to put these groups in the same room to work through shared questions and provide actionable takeaways.

The speaker lineup includes prominent creators such as Tom Lawrence of Lawrence Systems, Wendell Wilson of Level1Techs, and Jeff Geerling; Ed Rawlings of Unraid; Brett Kelly, 45Drives Technical Director and Ceph Foundation board member; Bob Henderson of Cass County; Ryan Walker of JR Automation; Dane Adams of Arista Networks; Allan Jude of Klara; Nicholas Wiczynski of NGW Post; Severine Erickson and Fenner Rockliffe of Niche VFX; Tyler Zibaie of Lighthouse Films; Christos Makridis of Arizona State University; and a remote session from Musora Media. Harvard educator and United Nations Senior Expert Alexander Puutio and PhillComm Global Founder and CEO Jon Lindsay Phillips will also join for a cross-disciplinary discussion on enterprise AI adoption, measurement, communication, and understanding.

“This is the strongest program we’ve assembled because it reflects how technology is actually moving,” said Dr. Doug Milburn, President of 45Drives. “Enterprise teams are bringing AI closer to their data, creators are building more of their workflows on infrastructure they control, and open-source communities are influencing both. Creator Summit puts those groups in the same room to work through the same questions and gives people something they can take back and use.”

The summit opens on Tuesday, October 20, at The Skyline Center with an introduction to both tracks, followed by parallel sessions featuring Brett Kelly and Ed Rawlings. Afternoon sessions include Tom Lawrence, a remote Musora Media presentation, Wendell Wilson, and Jeff Geerling. An invite-only Unraid event at Jengo’s Playhouse will feature a livestream and demonstrations of the 45HomeLab x Unraid Signature Series. Wednesday’s programming includes Bob Henderson, Nicholas Wiczynski, Allan Jude, Severine Erickson, Ryan Walker, Dane Adams, Tyler Zibaie, and Christos Makridis, culminating in a live 45Flow Stunt. Thursday at Union Station Auditorium begins with the AI High Speed Stunt, followed by the Enterprise AI Pulse panel with Makridis, Puutio, and Phillips, a panelist livestream, closing remarks, and an afterparty.

Sponsors and partners include Seagate, Unraid, Michael Best, and Cintas, with Seagate maintaining a presence throughout. The event will also spotlight customers and ecosystem partners such as Cass County and JR Automation, alongside influential creators. Now in its fourth year, Creator Summit can be attended in person or virtually, with key talks available via livestream. In-person seating is limited, and registration is available on the Creator Summit page. The original release can be viewed on www.newmediawire.com.