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Here's what I've seen so far at Dreamforce, the Salesforce mega-conference that draws the likes of Barack Obama and Tim Cook while turning downtown San Francisco into 'Burning Man for people with jobs'

Nov 21, 2019, 02:12 IST

Joe Williams // Business Insider

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  • Dreamforce is Salesforce's signature conference that takes over downtown San Francisco every year.
  • It's a chance for employees of the software giant, customers, and vendors to network, attend one of the 2,700 sessions, and party at exclusive events over the course of the four-day event.
  • This year, former-President Barack Obama, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Games of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke are all on the schedule. Fleetwood Mac is also performing for the more than 170,000 attendees.
  • Business Insider attended and took pictures to give a behind-the-scenes look of the first few days of the blockbuster conference.
  • Click here for more BI Prime content.

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA -- Dreamforce is in full-force.

The four-day conference put on by software giant Salesforce takes over downtown San Francisco - literally. It's hard to walk on the street and not be surrounded by blue lanyards and the Dreamforce backpack, the hottest accessory of the year.

The event is a chance for Salesforce to announce new offerings. It also lets employees, customers, and vendors network, learn more about the company's signature products, and, yes, party. Companies rent out whole restaurants, bars, and other locations for the week to host events for the conference's more than 170,000 attendees. On top of that, 13 million people are expected to follow along online. One attendee told me is was like "Burning Man for people with jobs."

Data visualization-firm Tableau, which Salesforce purchased in 2019, even had the rapper Macklemore perform on Tuesday at Masonic, a music venue in San Francisco. Fleetwood Mac performs at Oracle Park on Wednesday. And at the conference, attendees are treated to free espresso-based drinks, live music, and speeches from luminaries like Apple CEO Tim Cook and former-President Barack Obama.

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This year wasn't without its controversy. Protesters interrupted Salesforce CEO and co-founder Marc Benioff's keynote address over the company's controversial contract with Customs and Border Protection.

The festival continues until Friday. Many people told me to brace myself for Dreamforce before coming and the conference has exceeded all expectations so far. As a big classic rock fan, I'm most excited about Fleetwood Mac on Wednesday evening and will report back on whether the band has still got it over 40 years after the release of the blockbuster "Rumours" album.

Below are a few pictures that sums up what makes Dreamforce such a standout event for so many people.

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