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- The Allen & Co. Sun Valley conference will return in July after being canceled during the pandemic.
- Moguls like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Warren Buffett, and Tim Cook are all on the guest list.
- The annual, invite-only event is known for being a hotbed for networking and dealmaking.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
Tech executives, media moguls, and other titans of industry are set to descend on Sun Valley, Idaho, once again this year.
After being canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the annual Allen & Co. conference is back on for 2021. Guests will gather at Sun Valley Resort following the Fourth of July holiday for an invitation-only, week-long event that includes panel discussions and power lunches, plus outdoor events like biking, horseback riding, and whitewater rafting.
Allen & Co., the boutique investment bank that holds the annual conference, has not officially confirmed that the conference will return, but Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and local newspaper the Idaho Mountain Express have all reported that the conference is back on.
A spokesperson for Allen & Co. did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
According to Variety, this year's guest list includes the usual lineup of powerful executives and dealmakers. Tech tycoons like Amazon's Jeff Bezos, Apple's Tim Cook, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, Microsoft's Satya Nadella, and Netflix's Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos have all been invited, while media magnates including Discovery CEO David Zaslav, Disney CEO Bob Chapek, and ViacomCBS's Shari Redstone are also on the guest list.
Other notable names like Warren Buffett, former ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, NBA commissioner Adam Silver, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell have been invited as well.
Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey, investor Peter Thiel, AT&T CEO John Stankey, and Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch will not be in attendance this year, Variety reports.
The Sun Valley conference, while exclusive, is known for its remote setting and casually attired CEOs, which has earned it the moniker "summer camp for billionaires." Photos of Wall Street kingpins and Silicon Valley elites wearing the conference's ubiquitous nametag and fleece vest often go viral, most notably in 2017 when Bezos showed off a new, buff physique and stylish attire.
Because of the relative net worth of the attendees, the local airport is often slammed in the days leading up to the event. Private jet charters to Sun Valley are through the roof and locals have described seeing jets double-parked at the airport.
The conference is so famous among tech and media moguls that it's been depicted in pop culture, most recently - and seemingly most accurately - in HBO's "Succession."
But the conference is known for more than just hobnobbing and fleece vests - it's also become a hotbed of networking and dealmaking. AOL's $4.4 billion sale to Verizon was hatched at Sun Valley, as was Comcast's 2011 deal with NBC Universal.
And when Bezos decided to acquire the Washington Post, those early conversations took place - where else - at Sun Valley.