Sysco LABS teamed up with TEDxColombo 2023 as the Main Partner for the event’s return after 5 years. This year’s theme: ‘R-Evolution’, attracted an audience of more than 750 who gathered to explore a series of compelling ideas and stories. The event was held on the 27th of August at the Monarch Imperial.
TEDx platform’s ‘ideas worth spreading’ is an ethos that resonates deeply with Sysco LABS’ dedication to nurturing creativity and unconventional thinking. The US technology corporate has a rich history of promoting knowledge sharing and supports initiatives that focus building knowledge capital within and outside the tech industry.
Speaking about being the Main Partner for TEDxColombo, Rasika Karunatilake, Managing Director, Sysco LABS, said: “Globally, TED has become synonymous with promulgating new ideas and knowledge. TEDxColombo has done a commendable job in bringing the platform to Sri Lanka and giving local thinkers the opportunity to communicate their learnings and experiences. As a technology company, we understand the importance of building knowledge capital. The continuous pursuit of knowledge enabled us to evolve from a startup to a global technology center, and that is why we continue to support important knowledge-sharing platforms like TEDx.”
Safra Anver, the licensee of TEDxColombo, expressed, “Sysco LABS shares our vision of a world enriched by transformative ideas – we are extremely glad to have an industry leader come on board for this year’s edition. The ‘T’ in TED stands for technology, so having Sysco LABS as our Main Partner for TEDxColombo was a perfect match. The ‘Sysco LABS Delivery Dash’ interactive installation which was custom designed for the Social Space at the event was immensely popular with our attendees as well.”
Sysco LABS has evolved as an innovation and solutions-driven company with a strong culture of continuous learning that it extends outside to support the technology industry and universities. Sysco LABS employees regularly visit industry forums and university programs as speakers and mentors to share their expertise, domain knowledge and technical experiences gained from transforming a global, trillion-dollar industry.
About Sysco LABS:
Sysco LABS is the captive innovation arm of Sysco Corporation (NYSE: SYY), the world’s largest foodservice company. Sysco is a Fortune 500 company and the global leader in selling, marketing, and distributing food products to restaurants, healthcare, and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other customers who prepare meals away from home. Its family of products also includes equipment and supplies for the foodservice and hospitality industries. With more than 70,000 colleagues, the company operates 330+ distribution facilities worldwide and serves approximately 725,000 customer locations. For fiscal year 2023 that ended July 1, 2023, the company generated sales of more than $76 billion.
Operating with the agility and tenacity of a tech–startup, powered by the expertise of the industry leader, Sysco LABS is perfectly poised to transform one of the world’s largest industries.
Sysco LABS’s engineering teams based out of Colombo, Sri Lanka and Austin and Houston, TX, innovate across the entire food service journey – from the enterprise grade technology that enables Sysco’s business, to the technology that revolutionizes the way that Sysco connects with restaurants and the technology that shapes the way those restaurants connect with customers.
Sysco LABS technology is present in the sourcing of food products, merchandising, storage and warehouse operations, order placement and pricing algorithms, the delivery of food and supplies to Sysco’s global network, the in-restaurant dining experience of the end-customer and much more.
