RightsCon 2025 Outcomes Report | RightsCon Summit Series

RightsCon 2025 Outcomes Report | RightsCon Summit Series 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 the Community 
 

 
 KEY TAKEAWAYS 
 

 
 program highlights 
 

 
 REFLECTIONS 
 
 
 

 
 

 Part 1:

 The RightsCon Community

 RightsCon is proud to be a space shaped and led by its community. Each year, people from across regions and sectors – business leaders, technologists, activists, policymakers, journalists, philanthropists, researchers, and artists – come together with different experiences, ideas, and goals. What brings them to RightsCon is a shared willingness to engage, challenge, and collaborate in the search for a rights-respecting digital future. 

 We’re incredibly grateful for this vibrant community, whose members contribute their time, insight, and work to each edition. They launch campaigns, form new coalitions, share strategies, and push forward conversations on human rights in the digital age.

 Since the first RightsCon in 2011, this community has grown and evolved, and we celebrate the impact it continues to make. Whether RightsCon 2025 was your first time joining us, or if you’re returning as a long-time participant, know that the community is the heart of RightsCon .

 Read on to learn more about the people and networks that made RightsCon 2025 possible.

 

 

 

 
 

 RightsCon in Taipei: our much-anticipated return to Asia 

 

 
 
 5,689

 participants

 

 (3,249 in-person, 
2,440 online)

 

 
 543

 sessions

 

 (638 in 2023)

 

 
 3,249

 in-person participants

 

 ( a new record! )

 

 
 154

 countries represented

 

 (169 from 2023)

 
 
 

 
 
 On the program: 

 Seventeen months after our last summit in Costa Rica, RightsCon 2025 had much to catch up on. The digital rights landscape has shifted significantly, shaped by ongoing geopolitical tensions, rising global conflicts, and the rapid growth of emerging technologies , particularly artificial intelligence. These dynamics were reflected throughout this year’s program.

 
With 543 total sessions , a decrease of nearly 15% from 2023, our schedule ran close to non-stop from Tuesday morning through to Thursday’s closing ceremony. This reduction was a direct outcome of community consultations following RightsCon Costa Rica, with the aim of creating a more focused and manageable program .

 
We recognize that 28% of surveyed participants still found the size of the program overwhelming to navigate. While RightsCon’s broad scope is part of what makes it unique, we’re committed to rethinking the program’s size for 2026 and beyond. We also heard the call for more flexible spaces to address urgent issues that fall outside our Call for Proposals. Looking ahead, we’re exploring ways to introduce more open, less-structured formats that facilitate rapid response and collective strategizing.

 

 
 
 
 Insights from our participant survey 
 

 “My work

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