Serena Williams, Elon Musk to speak at 2017 TED Talks in Vancouver

It's that time of year again, when wealthy philomathsfrom around the globe flock to Vancouver for the week-long festival of ideas known as TED Talks.

The conference, whose name began as an acronym forTechnology, Entertainment and Design,features A-list celebrities on stage alongside some of the world's leading thinkers sharing their knowledge in 18-minute bites on topics ranging from neuroscienceto dance.

• TED Talks in Vancouver

The theme of this year's event, which begins Monday,is The Future You. Some of the key speakers include tennis superstar Serena Williams, entrepreneur and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk, and chess champion Garry Kasparov.

Lesser-known but equally promising speakers includeStill Aliceauthor Lisa Genova,CBS This Morningco-host Gayle King, and comedian and science fan Chuck Nice.

Despite the $8,500 US price tag, the conference is sold out again this year.

For everyone else, TED is offering special screenings of select talksin cinemas around the worldthroughout the week. Usually, the talks are released on various platforms throughout the year.

CBC's Lisa Johnson will be attending the conference all week, reporting on some of the key speakers and ideas.