Microsoft Cancels Inspire Conference, Will Explore Alternatives To In-Person Event

The massive partner conference had been scheduled to take place July 19-23.

The cancellations of tech events in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are stretching into July with Microsoft's disclosure that it will cancel the in-person Inspire 2020 partner conference.

The massive partner gathering had been scheduled to run from July 19-23 in Las Vegas.

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"The safety of our community is a top priority. In light of health safety recommendations from public health authorities, we will not be holding Microsoft Inspire 2020 as an in-person event," the company said in a note Monday, which was added atop a recent blog about Inspire. "We are exploring alternative ways to bring our partner community together to connect and learn. Stay tuned for more details to come."

Microsoft had originally planned to open registration for Inspire 2020 on Tuesday. The partner conference has drawn an estimated 18,000 attendees in past years.

The move follows a nearly across-the-board cancellation of major tech events in March, April and May, though fewer conferences for later in the year have already been canceled.

Microsoft previously said that its Build 2020 developer conference, originally scheduled for May 19-21, will be turned into a digital event.

At last year’s Inspire conference, Microsoft made a number of partner-focused announcements across Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, security and specializations.