CTO Craft Con is back – and we’re hard at work crafting the 2026 agenda!
While we put the finishing touches on what’s coming next, here’s a curated selection of standout sessions from past events. Consider this your sneak peek into the ideas, conversations, and insights you can expect to experience in Amsterdam, 2026.
Stay tuned – we’ll be sharing the full agenda soon!
Bootstrapping the CTO Role: The Best First 100 Days in a New Leadership Position
Roxana Diaconescu, CTO, SilverRail
In this session Roxana shares proven strategies for making the first 100 days as a technology leader count.
Drawing on her own leadership transitions, she explored how to rapidly build trust, align with stakeholders, and set a clear strategic direction.
Packed with practical frameworks and real-world examples, this session equipped CTOs, engineering leaders, and aspiring executives with the tools to establish credibility, foster team engagement, and deliver meaningful outcomes from day one.
Tristan Sherliker, ofCounsel,
Bird & Bird
Tristan Sherliker, ofCounsel at Bird & Bird, takes the audience inside one of the most high-profile legal battles in the crypto world – the effort to expose false claims of being Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto.
Blending technical forensics, legal strategy, and lessons in leadership, Tristan shows how a coordinated community effort dismantled years of deception that threatened the open-source ecosystem.
A fascinating case study for CTOs, engineering leaders, and anyone invested in the intersection of technology, law, and trust.
Defending Open Source: The Attack on Bitcoin
The CTO Spectrum: Which Archetype Are You?
Pat Kua, CTO Coach and Founder, Tech Lead Academy
Pat Kua blends poetry, humour, and sharp insight to explore the evolving relationship between human creativity and artificial intelligence.
Drawing on the energy of two days of shared ideas, lively debates, and community connection, Pat challenges the audience to consider where the human voice ends and the algorithm begins — and what that means for the future we are building together.
A playful yet thought-provoking session for technology leaders, creatives, and anyone curious about the intersection of human ingenuity and machine intelligence.
Crystal Hirschorn, VP of Engineering,
Zoa.io
Crystal Hirschorn, VP of Engineering at Zoa, draws on more than two decades in tech – from software engineer to principal engineer to senior leadership – to share her hard-earned playbook for leading high-performing product and engineering teams.
Through real-world lessons and practical frameworks, Crystal shows how to galvanise teams, align stakeholders, and deliver repeated success in fast-changing environments.
A must-hear for engineering leaders and aspiring CTOs who want to navigate the challenges of tech leadership with clarity, confidence, and lasting impact.
A Tech Leader’s Playbook: Galvanising Product & Tech Organisations to Deliver Repeated Success
Innovating at Pace with Simpler Decision-Making
Matej Pfajfar, CTO,
Monzo
Matej Pfajfar, CTO of Monzo – the UK’s largest digital bank – shares insights from a career spanning leadership roles at Monzo, Google, and high-growth startups.
Drawing on his experience enabling machine learning at scale, leading Android platform innovations, and building resilient systems for millions of users, Matej explores what it takes to innovate at pace while maintaining trust, reliability, and clarity of vision.
An inspiring keynote for technology leaders, engineers, and anyone interested in the craft of building impactful, scalable products in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Act Now to Connect, Share, and Learn Together
Secure your spot among Europe’s leading CTOs and engineering leaders. Together we’ll tackle the challenges of growth, leadership, and technology, and leave with strategies you can put into action.