The AthTech series started from humble beginnings in 2016. OpenTrack and European Athletics applied to add a one-day track to the Open Data Conference in Madrid. There was a clear gap for people dealing with athletics technology - federations, statisticians, service providers, vendors and amateur athletes - to come together.
In addition to a conference, there's an ongoing World Wide Web Consortium working group which meets regularly, committed to interoperability and standards across the sport.