Annual Dreamforce conference at SF Moscone Center set to begin

Dreamforce 2024, the annual Salesforce conference in San Francisco, was set to begin Tuesday at the city's Moscone Center and was already affecting traffic in the South of Market area.

The conference showcasing the latest developments in artificial intelligence and customer relationship management tools is one of the city's largest annual events. Salesforce says the Dreamforce 2024 event , billed as the largest AI conference in the world, was projected to generate nearly $90 million for the local economy.

The conference returns to San Francisco after previous uncertainty over the event's continued presence in the city. Salesforce CEO Mark Benioff told the San Francisco Chronicle last year he considered holding the event elsewhere because of concerns over homelessness and open-air drug use. In November, Benioff and Mayor London Breed made a joint announcement that Dreamforce would return.

Streets around the Moscone Center have been blocked since last week in preparation for the estimated 170,000 people attending the conference. Howard Street between 3rd and 4th Streets was closed and 4th Street between Mission and Howard Streets, while other traffic was detoured around the area or limited to local traffic.

Detours would also be in effect north of Market Street in the area around Union Square for traffic heading south toward the Moscone Center area through the duration of the conference.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency said Muni service would not require any reroutes during the event, but that could be minor delays in the area of the event.

The 2024 Dreamforce conference is scheduled for September 17-19.