Shenzhen's Fab Lab Conference You Won't Be Attending

By Sky Gidge, July 30, 2016

“You’re kidding right?” a certain unnamed someone said after being asked if he knew about the upcoming 'Fab 12' conference in Shenzhen. Apparently the Fab 12 conference beginning August 8 is big news for those in the maker community.

It’s the first time the conference—which brings together people involved in the global Fab Lab movement—is being hosted in China.

But what's a Fab Lab?

Think of it as the McDonalds of maker spaces. Started by MIT in inner-city Boston there are now about 670 Fab Labs across the world, according to fablabs.io.

They are essentially maker spaces, but follow a charter and should have USD50,000 of machinery that the Fab Foundation recommends.

Anyone can start one, and, unlike McDonalds, going to a Fab Lab won’t leave you feeling bloated and disappointed with yourself.

The main tenet of the Fab Lab movement is openness, using a Fab Lab is either free or done after bartering services.

But as open as a Fab Lab is, it seems the Fab 12 conference is not. Sporting sponsorship from Google, most of the tickets have already been given out, according to a person who will be attending.

Attempting to purchase the RMB3,700 tickets to the conference’s workshops leads to a page requiring a password.

“It’s kind of like a maker fair, but more education oriented,” said Shenzhen-based entrepreneur Alexis Pons, 27, who attended the Fab 11 conference in Boston last year.

“Maker fairs can be kind of messy, but this will be better organized,” he said.

The conference has been held in countries ranging from Japan to Spain, and it is the first time the conference will be held in China. So why Shenzhen?

“It’s the hardware nerve center of the Earth,” said Joseph Haagensen, director of public relations at a Shenzhen startup. “Shenzhen is the future mate… everything is made here.”

The Shenzhen Civic Center