In 2006, South by Southwest was the launching pad for a pre-Elon Musk Twitter. Now, as users flee the renamed X, the latest iteration of the conference (March 7-16) is highlighting what many see as its successor, Bluesky, with the addition of the company’s CEO, Jay Graber, as a keynote speaker.
Her conversation with Techdirt editor Mike Masnick, titled The Future of Social, will tackle the viability of a site that aims to put the user base’s best interest over commercial demands.
Much like social media, AI is going to be a big part of this year’s conference, with more than a few voices attempting to win doubters over to its potential benefits. One of the most significant voices will be CEO of Humane Intelligence and the United States Envoy for Artificial Intelligence Dr. Rumman Chowdhury, whose session Rebooting AI from the Ground Up will attempt to reframe the discussion. Those discussions will likely spill over into Powering Tomorrow: How Big Tech is Redefining the Future of Energy and AI in which Amazon’s Chief Sustainability Officer Kara Hurst and other energy industry leaders (tba) tackle the concerns about generative AI’s massive energy and water usage.
Expect similar topics, if different outcomes, from Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe when he discusses The Moment We’re In: Transitioning How We Move, Think and Change The Planet, one of several panels looking beyond individual products and more at the holistic impacts of business and policy. Case in point, Reproductive Freedom: Good for Workers, Good for Business in which New York Times bestselling author, co-founder of HiddenLight Productions, and Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation Dr. Chelsea Clinton sits down with Center for Reproductive Rights President and CEO Nancy Northup, Institute for Women’s Policy Research President and CEO Dr. Jamila K. Taylor, and ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott in one of the states most antagonistic towards reproductive rights to make the business case for women’s bodily autonomy.
Of course, if you’re really skeptical about all this Panglossian tech talk, don’t miss the return of Molly White, creator of the unmissable Web3 Is Going Just Great, as she explores the ever more unstable digital Ponzi Schemes with Speaking Truth to Crypto Power.
With all this tech discussion, on top of an IT-heavy initial speaker list, it’s good to remember that SXSW is known for its crosspollination approach to culture, and nowhere may that be more true than with the dreamers and makers of Walt Disney Imagineering. After making his SX debut in 2023, Chairman of Disney Experiences Josh D’Amaro returns (this time with Disney Entertainment co-chair Alan Bergman) for The Future of World-Building at Disney. Expect this panel to produce viral clips much as his last visit did with a magical new Tinkerbell, a new and improved lightsaber, and a full-scale Hulk exosuit (and then for fans to spend months wondering if and when they’ll turn up in the parks).
Deeper into the entertainment side, the Music conference organizers have added a genuine hall-of-famer: John Fogerty, who went into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 for his role as singer and lead songwriter for Creedence Clearwater Revival. Of course, he won’t be the celebrity at the fest, as the David Duchovny comes to Austin for a live recording of the “Fail Better” podcast, in which he and guests discuss how all those unexpected lemons turned into personal, professional, and creative lemonade. If that sounds too cheerful, don’t worry: everyone’s favorite miserabilist, Marc Maron, will also be in attendance.
Also announced today:
• Mapping Music Tech Money, From Seed to Exit with Water & Music founder Cherie Hu.
• Meet the Astronauts Going to the Moon with NASA’s Artemis II with astronauts Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, and Reid Wiseman.
• Pattern Breakers: Why Some Start-ups Change the Future with Floodgate founder and partner Mike Maples.
• Prof G Predictions: 2025 with Professor of Marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business Scott Galloway
• Projecting Tomorrow: The Future of Holographic Technology with columnist, author, professor, and co-host of the podcast This Week in XR Charlie Fink and CEO of Light Field Lab Jon Karafin.
• Primal Instincts: Making Social “Social” Again with Mozi cofounders Molly DeWolf Swenson and Ev Williams and Puck founder Baratunde Thurston.
• Featured Speaker sessions from Qualcomm Incorporated President and CEO Cristiano Amon and Backstage Capital founder Arlan Hamilton
SXSW 2025 runs March 7-15. More details and info at sxsw.com. And don’t forget to follow all our coverage, and dig into the archives, at austinchronicle.com/sxsw.
This article appears in January 17 • 2025.