Twitter to host first developer conference

Twitter will host its Chirp developer conference next week

Twitter is to hold its first developer conference next week, in a further sign of the micro-blogging site's growing ambitions.

The Chirp event will take place on 14 and 15 April in San Francisco. Day one will focus on key development areas over the past year, such as geo-location, OAuth and mobile integration, along with Twitter's business strategies and roadmap.

Day two has been dubbed the 'hack day', during which attendees can meet, share ideas and talk to experts.

Keynote speeches will be given by Twitter co-founder Biz Stone and chief executive and co-founder Evan Williams, while chief operating officer Dick Costolo will deliver an '@anywhere speech' which is likely to focus on the company's recently launched web integration tool.

The Chirp event will also host speakers from venture capital firms including Benchmark Capital, Venrock and Polaris Ventures, and will end with a party at which Twitter promises free food and drink "all night long".

Entrance charges are $469 (£308) for the two-day event or £140 (£92) for just the hack day. Students can get a special offer at $50 (£32) for both days.