From agenda to meeting: how to build a great event networking app
We built the apps for Colombia Tech Week 2026 and its festival, Colombia Tech Fest, and the native app of Réseau Mazette. Here is what works, screen by screen, and what Apple, Google and the law require before doors open.
A great event networking app turns an agenda and a guest list into meetings that actually happen. It needs controlled access, a home screen that answers “what's next for me”, a directory that leads to a meeting request and a 1:1 chat, screens that survive a failing venue network, and the safety and privacy rules Apple and Google require.
What makes an event networking app work?
It works when meetings happen; map, notifications and sponsors serve that goal. Plan for three moments: before (invitation, profile, agenda), during (what's next, where, with whom) and after (contacts and follow-up).
Colombia Tech Week 2026 ran in Bogotá from August 10 to 16, and its festival, Colombia Tech Fest, was held open-air at Parque El Chicó on August 13 and 14. We were a Gold Sponsor of the week and built its official app for thousands of attendees and the festival's attendee app, invitation-only and owned by the festival. We also built the native Flutter app of Réseau Mazette, a network of French-speaking professionals and entrepreneurs in Spain.
| Criterion | Event app (Colombia Tech Week, Colombia Tech Fest) | Community app (Réseau Mazette) |
|---|---|---|
| Lifespan | One week, reusable | All year |
| Access | Invitation only | Members only |
| Core screens | Home, map, agenda, networking, chat, calendar | Members, events, resources, messages, Mia |
| How people meet | Meeting requests, 30-minute slots, 1:1 chat | Events by city, circles, messages |
| Where AI sits | Search and filters do the work | Mia, a copilot in its own tab |
| Who owns it | The festival (Colombia Tech Fest) | The network |
Planning one? See how we build mobile apps with built-in AI.
Open signup or invitation-only access?
For a closed guest list, invitation-only: the organizer knows who gets in, the directory stays trustworthy and there is no open signup to moderate.
In the Colombia Tech Fest app, a first-time guest pastes the emailed code or opens the organizer's link, then follows numbered steps: invitation, privacy, password, profile, agenda. The login screen states “Sin registro público” (no public signup). The Mazette app is members-only, with the website's credentials.
Make consent its own step. Colombia's Law 1581 of 2012 requires prior, express and informed authorization that can be consulted later (Articles 3 and 9), with a copy kept (Article 17). The GDPR requires a legal basis and data protection by design and by default (Article 25).
Build in the store rules. If people can create an account, Apple requires in-app deletion (guideline 5.1.1(v)) and Google Play also wants a web link to request it; in our reading, activating an invitation counts as creating one. Adding social login (Google, LinkedIn) would bring in Apple's guideline 4.8, which requires an equivalent option limited to name and email that can hide the email; apps that use only their own accounts, like these two, are exempt.
What should the home screen show?
What's next for this person, first. The Colombia Tech Fest home greets the guest by first name and opens on “Próximo en tu día” (next in your day): the time and zone of the next session. Below: shortcuts to map, agenda, networking and calendar, day tabs and a search by title, speaker or company.
The agenda filters by zone and category (fireside chat, panel, keynote, workshop); a star saves a session to favorites, which feed the personal calendar, and the agenda updates live. The map shows the venue's two zones and its open-access food and brand spaces.
Our recommendation: design for ten-second glances between sessions, with time, place and one action per card. Give sponsors a visible slot, like the home carousel, not a step in the attendee's path; a sponsor who wants more deserves a live experience at the venue (see generative AI in brand experiences).
How do you turn a directory into meetings?
With a short path: find someone, see when they are free, ask, talk. In the apps we built for Colombia Tech Week and Colombia Tech Fest, it takes five steps:
- Profile: role, industry, company and availability in 30-minute blocks.
- Search: by name, company or role, with filters; on a tablet, industry chips such as Fintech or Healthtech.
- Request: one profile button asks for a meeting, another blocks the user.
- Chat: a conversation starts as a request, under “Solicitudes enviadas” (sent) for the sender and “Invitaciones” for the recipient, so both can agree to meet.
- Calendar: “Mi calendario” brings together favorite sessions and meetings, with a “Solicitar reunión” (request a meeting) button.
The stores require a safety layer. Apple's guideline 1.2 asks apps with user-generated content to filter objectionable material, act on reports promptly, offer a way to block abusive users and publish contact details; Google Play requires accepted terms, in-app reporting and blocking, and blocking in one-to-one messaging.
(enlarge)
(enlarge)
(enlarge)
What happens when the venue network fails?
The app must stay useful. Colombia Tech Fest was an open-air festival in a park, and its app had to hold up when most guests connect at once: it has offline maps and a live agenda, and it was built for that peak. Our recommendations:
- Store on the phone the agenda, map, calendar and profiles of the people each attendee will meet.
- Queue offline actions (favorites, messages, requests) and sync them when the network returns.
- Load-test the peak: everyone signing in and searching within the same minutes.
- Give organizers admin tools, like Colombia Tech Fest's, for last-minute changes.
Notifications need permission. Since Android 13 (API level 33), apps need the POST_NOTIFICATIONS permission, which Android suggests requesting after a user action, for example. iOS apps must ask too, and Apple recommends asking in context, such as after the person schedules a first task. Our equivalent: after the first favorite, not at launch.
The day before, walk the venue with a phone in airplane mode: agenda, map, calendar and meetings must open. Then reconnect and check that pending actions sync.
What changes when the app must live all year?
The job changes: the app must give members reasons to return between events, not carry them through one week. Réseau Mazette holds events in cities such as Málaga, Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid; its app combines events by city, discussion circles by topic and city, shared resources, messaging, memberships and Mia.
Home greets the member with upcoming events and the newest members. Event cards show a poster, place or “online”, date and price. Resources hold searchable replays of webinars and talks, and the profile shows membership status and directory visibility.
Two decisions carry the rest: the same login and brand as the website, and one Flutter codebase on the App Store and Google Play, so every member gets the same full product.
An event app's job ends with the event, yet Colombia Tech Fest owns its app, ready for future editions. Our recommendation: if your event repeats, budget for an app you reopen, not rebuild.
Where does AI help in a networking app?
Where the question is open and the answer is spread across screens, like Mia's sample question: “What are the upcoming events and who is attending?” Where a list or a filter already works, a copilot adds little.
In the Mazette app, Mia has a dedicated tab and answers about events, participants, shared resources, the member directory and practical information. The screen asks for precise requests (city, topic, first name) and states that Mia follows the same visibility rules as the website: the main lesson. Our recommendations:
- Inherit the app's permissions: a member hidden from the directory must never appear in an answer.
- Treat member-written text as untrusted: profiles and messages can carry instructions aimed at the model (see prompt injection and agent security).
- Say it is an AI: since August 2, 2026, Article 50(1) of the EU AI Act requires telling people they are interacting with an AI system unless it is obvious (see our 2026 regulatory map).
- Explain suggestions and keep them opt-in: if the app proposes whom to meet, it says why.
If a person cannot see a piece of data in the app, the assistant cannot either. Enforce permissions on the server, before the model receives any context, not in the prompt.
(enlarge)
Should you build your own app or rent an event platform?
Our rule of thumb: rent a white-label platform if your event fits its template and you won't reuse the product; build your own to own the product and its data, reuse it each edition or run custom flows (invitations, zones, sponsors).
| Criterion | Own app | Event platform (white-label SaaS) |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership and reuse | Yours, reusable | Licensed from the vendor |
| Brand | Yours everywhere | Depends on the plan |
| Data control | You set hosting, retention and deletion | Set by the contract |
| Custom flows | Whatever the event needs | What the platform allows |
| Time to launch | Longer the first time | Shorter if the template fits |
| Cost model | Build and maintenance across editions | License per event, attendee or year |
Before doors open: the checklist
- Invitations tested end to end: email, code, link, resend.
- Consent as its own step, with a record, and in-app account deletion (plus Google Play's web link).
- Block and report on profiles and chat, published contact, a named moderator.
- Agenda, map and calendar offline; offline actions queued.
- Notification permission requested in context.
- A peak load test and admin access for last-minute changes.
- Review buffer: Apple says it typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48, and accepts expedited requests tied to an event.
- Test tracks: TestFlight takes up to 10,000 external testers once App Review approves a first build; on Google Play, personal accounts created after November 13, 2023 need a closed test with at least 12 testers for at least 14 days before production.
- On-site help for lost invitations and forgotten passwords.
- After the event: contact export or follow-up, and a date for deleting data.
In Colombia, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) supervises Law 1581 of 2012: keep proof of every authorization.
In Europe, under GDPR Article 25, personal data must not by default be made accessible to an indefinite number of people without the person's intervention: make directory visibility a choice. An AI assistant also falls under Article 50 of the AI Act. General information, not legal advice.
Key takeaways
- Measure a networking app in meetings that happen; design the path from profile to meeting first.
- Invitation-only access keeps the directory trustworthy; make consent its own step.
- Home answers “what's next for me”; favorites feed one personal calendar.
- Plan for the venue: offline agenda and map, queued actions and a peak load test.
- An AI copilot inherits the app's permissions, distrusts member text and says it is an AI.
Sources
- App Review Guidelines (1.2 User-Generated Content, 4.8 Login Services, 5.1.1(v) Account Sign-In)
- Understanding Google Play's app account deletion requirements
- User Generated Content
- App Review (review times and expedited reviews)
- TestFlight
- App testing requirements for new personal developer accounts
- Notification runtime permission
- Asking permission to use notifications
- Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR), Articles 6 and 25
- Ley Estatutaria 1581 de 2012 (protección de datos personales)
- AI Act, Article 50: transparency obligations for providers and deployers of certain AI systems
- Colombia Tech Fest 2026 llega a Bogotá: el festival de tecnología a cielo abierto más grande del país
Editorial note: this analysis reflects the public information available on the review date. Models, prices and rules change fast; every third-party figure links to its source, and our opinions are labeled as such. Spotted an error? Write to contact@slash-digital.io.
The questions we hear often
What features does an event networking app need?
At minimum: controlled access, a home screen with what's next, an agenda with filters and favorites, a venue map, a searchable directory, meeting requests, 1:1 chat, a personal calendar and notifications. Add offline access for the venue, and blocking, reporting and account deletion for the stores.
Open signup or invitation?
For a closed guest list, invitation: the organizer knows who gets in and there is no open signup to moderate. For a membership network, a members-only login with the website's credentials, as in the Réseau Mazette app.
Must attendees be able to delete their account in the app?
Yes, if the app supports account creation: Apple requires in-app account deletion (guideline 5.1.1(v)), and Google Play requires an in-app path plus a web link to request deletion.
How long does publishing on the App Store and Google Play take?
Apple says it typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48, and accepts expedited requests for releases tied to an event. On Google Play, a personal developer account created after November 13, 2023 first needs a closed test with at least 12 testers for at least 14 days. Our advice: leave weeks, not days.
How much does an event networking app cost?
It depends on the platforms, custom flows (invitations, zones, sponsors), integrations, offline mode, AI features, on-site support and maintenance between editions. Slash has not published prices for this service; we quote after a free first read.
More analysis to read next
Generative AI in live brand experiences and DOOH: what works
AI photobooths, face swaps and DOOH screens: latency, moderation, biometric consent, AI Act labelling and how to measure a live activation.
CybersecurityGuardrails that work in production
The seven layers of a guardrail stack, the 2026 guard models compared, how to measure them in your languages and two reference architectures.
Strategy and regulationThe 2026 AI regulatory map
The AI Act after the Omnibus, GDPR, Colombia's Law 1581 and SIC rules, LatAm, the US and ISO 42001: dates, duties and a 10-step plan for companies.
Let's put it in production
Tell us your challenge. We reply within 24 business hours with an honest first read: if we can help, we'll say how; if not, we'll say who can.
I reply personally. No endless forms, no canned replies.