When I look at the agenda for Quickbase's Empower 2026 event in Houston, my first reaction is excitement (followed by a little bit of overwhelm 🤪). There's a lot happening around AI in particular, and as someone who lives and breathes Quickbase, I want to see where it's headed.

Over the last few years I've been testing out many of the AI features that Quickbase has released, like:

• Create an app
• Import Spreadsheets
• Show App Summary
• Get App Insights
• Get Help
• Pipelines: Smart Builder
• Pipelines: AI Actions
• Pipelines: Populate Fields with AI
• Pipelines: Troubleshoot – this is new and has been very helpful 😃

So far, these tools haven't fundamentally changed the way I build in Quickbase, but there is a lot of potential 🤩

While in Houston this year I'll be paying close attention to the sessions and commentary around AI, both in product and as a general development tool.

... and I don't want to miss any of the other non-AI sessions that will be sure to spark new ideas!

Below is my pre-event take on this year's Empower AI Sessions, Keynotes, Other (non-AI) Sessions, and Customer Stories.

DOWNLOAD THE EMPOWER AGENDA
I put together this 1 page agenda, for easy planning.
no sign-up immediate PDF download

 The AI Sessions

So let's talk about the AI sessions on the agenda... there are quite a few of them!

We've got dedicated AI focused sessions:

• AI in Action: Real Use Cases and What Actually Works (fireside chat)
  Hear how Alaska Airlines and Jacobs Engineering are turning AI experiments into real outcomes. This session promises that you'll leave with a clearer understanding of how organizations are turning AI capabilities into measurable outcomes... Yes please! 😃
• AI Without the Hype: What It Is and Where to Start
  From the folks at Veilsun (Quickbase Service Partner and Empower Sponsor) you'll take away an understanding of what AI actually means and where it delivers value. They'll provide real-world examples and practical guidance. 🌎
• Pivot Less, Predict More: Turning Operational Data into Insight
  Matt from Quickbase will share how to use features like: Quick Insights, Data Analyzer, and the AI Agent to uncover drivers and predict outcomes faster. This is a must attend session if you want to know more about the AI tools currently available in Quickbase 💯
• Talk to Your Data: Working with the Quickbase AI Agent
  A deep dive into using conversational AI to build apps, query data, and automate work faster... AKA the Quickbase AI Agent. I feel this session may be the most insightful when it comes to getting a feel for where Quickbase AI is headed. 👀

And sessions with AI sprinkled in:

• Building a Better Back Office
  Includes how operational AI and predictive analytics help teams anticipate issues, automate routine work, and keep processes running smoothly.
• Scale with Control: Governance Tools for a Growing Platform
  Includes how the AI Command Center works together to give you end-to-end visibility and governance across your platform.
• Smarter Field Operations: What's New in FastField
  Includes AI-powered photo insights that help teams identify issues and respond faster.

Plus the Opening and Closing Keynotes which will undoubtedly include highlights, commentary, and roadmaps relating to Quickbase's AI journey. 🙌

 The Keynotes

If there's one thing I've learned from attending Empower over the years... don't-skip-the-keynotes 📣.

Yes, the breakout sessions will help you up-level your skills. But the keynotes are where Quickbase shows you where they're headed. Which is often the most valuable thing you can take back to the office.

This year's Opening Keynote kicks off with CPO Marcus Torres and interim CEO Kim Eaton. And this is particularly interesting because both of them are relatively new to their roles. Kim stepped in as interim CEO back in December, and Marcus joined Quickbase just last May. That's a lot of new blood at the top.

So this isn't just a keynote. It's kind of a first impression from a new leadership team showing how they view Quickbase and where they're taking the platform. I'll be listening closely not just to the glittering ✨ new feature announcements, but to how they view their services, support, training, community, sales, partners, and really the whole ecosystem around the platform.

I'll also be listening to understand better how Quickbase will continue to incorporate the myriad of acquisitions they've made: Cloudpipes (now Pipelines), MCF Tech (notably plugins), FastField (mobile app), Juiced Tech, and most recently Solvice. The roadmap and end goal here are a bit fuzzy for me. I think a cohesive vision would help me see how to best leverage these "separate" tools as they become more integrated.

The Closing Keynote will wrap things up with Customer Awards, where just last year yours truly was honored on stage with the Qrew Legend Award. CCO Kelly Hall will also likely share some remarkable customer stories to leave us all hyped about using Quickbase in meaningful ways.

AND, here's the best part about the keynotes, you don't have to be in Houston to catch them. 🥳

Quickbase offers free virtual access to the keynotes, so even if you can't make the trip, there's no excuse to miss them. Register, block your calendar, and watch live. The feature announcements and roadmap alone will be worth the watch. 🙌

 The Other (not AI) Sessions

So what if AI isn't something you'd attend Empower for 🤷‍♀️

Is the rest of the agenda still worth the trip?

Alongside all the AI conversation, there are some genuinely great builder-focused sessions that are all about building great Quickbase solutions.

The ones I'm most excited about:

• Smarter Relationships: Designing Apps That Scale
  Relationships are central to every Quickbase app. Getting them right is the difference between an app that scales gracefully and one that becomes a nightmare to maintain. This session will include notes on refactoring existing apps, which is often one of the first things I need to do for new clients when their app needs to be cleaned up prior to optimizing or enhancing. Picking up some tips & tricks here could be pure gold 🏆
• Advanced Jinja for Pipelines: Techniques Every Builder Should Know
  If you're not using Jinja in your Pipelines yet... we need to talk. And if you are, there's always more to learn. Even as a self-proclaimed Jinja Expert, this one is firmly on my must-attend list. Taylor's session promises to cover advanced techniques like building JSON payloads, handling null values, errors, loops, and more... I may prep some use cases for the Q&A 🤓
• Automating Document Workflows with Extensions
  Document generation and signature capture workflows often come up in Quickbase workflows. This session is sort of a 2 in one. Yes it will have hands-on training for document generation and eSignature workflows... but I believe it will also be an introduction to how Quickbase is now incorporating some of the extensions from their Juiced Tech acquisition. I'm also interested to hear more about how they will be rolling out the extension to Quickbase users (bundles, pricing, plan levels, etc). 🍊
• Solve the Right Problem: A Practical Framework for Better Solutions
  This one might be the most underrated session on the whole agenda. Building the wrong thing really well is still building the wrong thing. This session will provide a framework for analyzing business processes, uncovering root causes, and defining the real problem BEFORE solution design begins. Getting to the root cause really speaks to my Lean Manufacturing roots 😍
• Designing Apps People Want to Use
  This session is not to be confused with "Designing Systems People Actually Use".
  Technical knowhow can only get you so far. If people don't actually enjoy using what you built, adoption suffers. User Experience (UX) thinking for Quickbase builders is a skill that doesn't get talked about enough. Given many of my blog videos focus on design and user interaction (color, images, icons, buttons, workflows, etc) it isn't any wonder clients come to me seeking improvements to their bland clunky apps. I'm looking forward to uncovering new strategies with this session. 👍

These types of sessions are the core of what makes Empower valuable year after year. Solid fundamentals (with a healthy dose of tips & tricks) are always worthwhile.

 The Customer Stories

The Insights & Solutions sessions are worth a careful look before you finalize your schedule. Everyone will gravitate to different sessions based on what they do and the problems they're trying to solve, so I'd encourage you to review each one and pick what resonates for you and your business.

One thing worth knowing going in... several of these sessions are "fireside chat" style. I've found those tend to be more broadly informative than action oriented. You'll walk away with great anecdotal insight and plenty of "ah ha" moments, but don't expect step-by-step playbooks.

The sessions that are on my radar:

• From 70 Days to 2: Automating National HVAC Dispatch
  HD Supply took a national contractor dispatch process that used to take 70 days of back-and-forth and got it down to 2. That's not incremental improvement, that's transformation. Real numbers, real workflow, real results. This is the kind of session I'm interested in. Plus I've spoken with Rich about this workflow, so I'm genuinely curious about how they tackled it 🎉
• Turning Frontline Data into Competitive Advantage (fireside chat)
  Hear from multiple organizations how they're capturing field data in real time and turning it into operational visibility. The cross-industry perspective here could spark ideas you wouldn't get from a single case study. Leveraging Quickbase data to make impactful business decisions is always at the forefront of any of my client engagements, so this session may inspire some new ideas 💡
• Utilizing the Governance Core Apps for Security, Scale, and Clarity (fireside chat)
  Governance isn't the sexiest topic... but if you're managing a growing Quickbase environment, it's the one that keeps you out of trouble. Getting real lessons from enterprise leaders who are managing governance at scale is something I'm more interested in as some of my current clients have 100+ users and multiple admins 👩‍💻
• From Personal Tool to Team Platform
  This one will likely hit close to home for a lot of builders. That moment when the solution you built to make your work easier starts being used by a whole team... and then a whole division. That's exciting and terrifying in equal measure. FIS Global's story of navigating that transition is one I think a lot of people in this community will relate to 🔥
  
  

 The Empower Plan

Phew, I'm exhausted, but it sure does feel good to have a plan!

If you've been on the fence about going, I hope this gave you a little nudge. Houston in May, a community of people who genuinely geek out about Quickbase, two days of sessions that span AI, hands-on skills, and real-world stories, plus a selfie with yours truly 😜... it's worth making happen. Find the budget, make the case to your boss, book the flight. You won't regret it.

And if you're already going, I hope this helps you think a little more critically about how you want to spend your time. With four concurrent sessions running at any given time, there's no way to catch everything. So go in with a strategy.

Ask yourself:

• What skills do I want to learn?
• What inspiration do I need?
• What blind spots do I have?
• What conversations or answers do I want to walk away with?

The best Empower experiences I've had weren't the ones where I attended the most sessions. They were the ones where I was intentional about what I was there for.

See you in Houston 👋

DOWNLOAD THE EMPOWER AGENDA
I put together this 1 page agenda, for easy planning.
no sign-up immediate PDF download

Looking for a Quickbase Expert to help you on your journey? Let's Talk!

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