When people talk about South by Southwest (SXSW), it’s typically for its music and film festivities. Under the surface, however, is an epic reunion of creatives and innovators from around the world. The annual fusion of technology, entertainment, business, and arts that is SXSW just took place in Austin, Texas, from March 8-16.

The 2024 event was packed with conference sessions, film and TV festival screenings, music festival showcases, world-class exhibitions, tech competitions, awards ceremonies, vast networking and learning opportunities, and much more. There really was something for everyone in an event that gets bigger by the year.

Attendees could catch one of the 24 chosen tracks at SXSW 2024, including Artificial Intelligence, immersive tech (XR), gaming, design, Tech Industry, healthcare and music and tech. There were daily keynotes and features sessions plus hundreds of panels, workshops, meet ups, mentor sessions and many other formats.

The #SXSW 2024 XR Experience Competition Award goes to The Golden Key, directed by Marc Da Costa and Matthew Niederhauser. pic.twitter.com/IJ7pjGlOgg

— SXSW (@sxsw) March 14, 2024

The visitor lineup included investors Mark Cuban, Vinod Khosla, and Michael Dell; ChatGPT head at OpenAI Peter Deng; AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su; FTC chair Lina Khan; Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi; lawyer and HistoryMakers founder Julieanna L. Richardson; futurist Amy Webb; Facebook co-founder Andrew McCollum.

Head Of @ChatGPTapp, Peter Deng (@pxd), explores the role of humans in the age of AI at #SXSW 2024. pic.twitter.com/aASVJ38AYf

— SXSW (@sxsw) March 11, 2024

In her session, Lisa Su said people’s concerns about artificial intelligence shouldn’t trigger a slow-down in development. Instead, she suggests we actually move faster. “The answer is not to go slower; the answer is to be cognizant of the risks. We must go faster, we must experiment, and we must do so with a watchful eye,” she said.

 

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One of the features of SXSW 2024 was the Creative Industries Expo, which gathered all industries on the cutting-edge of technology and design. SXSW spends the year searching for brands, services and products that will take attendees into the 22nd century and beyond. The expo included hundreds of exhibitors under one roof.

The expo included different pavilions. The innovation one gathered disruptors and thought leaders at the forefront of their industry. The global pavilion explored the full spectrum of worldwide initiatives, trends and creators, while the social impact one focused on businesses that implemented initiatives to secure a positive impact.

SXSW 2024 also presented its annual innovation awards, awarded by a jury of experts and festival goers across 11 categories. Among the winners, Truveta won the award on artificial intelligence for its language model, the app Spoke was selected under audio experience and the robot from Enchanted Tools won under product design.

Head to the #SXSW Creative Industries Expo at the ACC to find cutting-edge #tech, design, social good, health + wellness, and more. Open til 4pm CT. https://t.co/veHpNpHEkf pic.twitter.com/0mYOfrv9zz

— SXSW (@sxsw) March 11, 2024