The annual South by Southwest (SXSW) festival, one of the biggest innovation events in the world, will be face-to-face again in 2023, as its 2020 edition was canceled due to the pandemic and the 2021 and 2022 meetings were completely virtual. The exhibition opened on March 10th and runs until March 19th and is taking place in Austin (Texas), in the United States of America.
Announcements of technological innovations are expected in different areas, such as movies, music and, mainly, business.
Read too: The 70 years of evolution of Marketing: from 1.0 to 5.0
Check out 10 historical milestones that have occurred since the first event held:
- 1987 – The first SXSW was held in March 1987 in Austin (Texas), with the aim of promoting local and regional music;
- 1994 – The festival expanded to include cinema, adding an independent film competition;
- 1995 – First interactive conference was added to the festival, exploring themes such as technology, media and culture;
- 2000 – Goes international, bringing bands and filmmakers from all over the world;
- 2004 – Twitter was officially launched during SXSW Interactive;
- 2007 – SXSW released its official mobile app, becoming one of the first events to do so;
- 2009 - The Twitter panel at SXSW became legendary after CEO Evan Williams interrupted the broadcast to show a video of a dog playing with a stuffed monkey;
- 2010 – SXSW launched its first startup competition, the SXSW Accelerator, providing an opportunity for startups to present their ideas to investors and potential partners;
- 2011 - President Barack Obama delivers a speech at SXSW Interactive, becoming the first US president to do so;
- 2019 – The festival expanded further, including a new science and technology-focused segment, SXSW EDU.
Brazilians are part of the largest international delegation at the event, according to Uol
In this edition, many Brazilians are having the opportunity to participate in the meeting.
Brazil will be represented by around 1,900 people from the corporate and advertising world, in addition to entrepreneurs and experts in the technological, cinematographic and musical world.
The presence of 10 companies from the State of São Paulo at the site was counted. With the help of the Secretariat of Culture and Creative Economy of the State of São Paulo, immersion in the event aims to exchange knowledge between companies in the sector, thus encouraging the generation of new businesses, in addition to attracting investments to the capital of São Paulo.
Read too: What can companies learn from the new Artificial Intelligence (AI): ChatGPT and Bard?
Stay up to date with SXSW innovations with us!
“Carro Voador” by a company with a national arm is presented for the first time outside Europe!
Among the innovations taken is Eve Air Mobility, a subsidiary of Embraer, which presents a full-size mockup of the cabin of its “flying car”. For the first time the idea is being shown outside Europe.
“Meu Casulo de Drywall” is the only Brazilian film at SXSW, in 2023
Written and directed by Caroline Fioratti, “Meu Casulo de Drywall” is the only Brazilian film that will make its debut at the SXSW film festival in the edition. Starring Bella Piero and Maria Luisa Mendonça, the film also features Michel Joelsas , Mari Oliveira, Daniel Botelho and Caco Ciocler, shows the story of a condominium after the death of a young woman on her 17th birthday.
Kombi back on the American continent?!
Volkswagen brings to the public for the second time the successor to the Kombi, the electric model ID. buzz. In the immersion study phase in the United States of America, the car has been increasingly successful in Europe.
What will you look for, Bobo? Is there a film there?
Lionel Messi's unpleasant dialogue with Weghorst, after Argentina's victory over the Netherlands in the Qatar World Cup, became a fun Netflix campaign, calling the chatbot for WhatsApp "Bobot".
The expression, which can be understood as “what are you watching?” is interpreted by the robot as a request for a series and movie recommendation.
Digital Privacy – Is it possible to have it?
In a panel on digital privacy, the speakers responsible for the development of “Aura” stated that, in the near future, the main signature that will have to be made in the digital world will be that of privacy.
With several digital crimes gaining space according to technological advances, the fight is tough, but it is believed that it is possible to win. While services like “Aura” do not reach Brazil, here are some digital security tips for you:
- Do not reuse passwords or write them down in your cell phone notebooks;
- Use two-step authentication whenever possible;
- Don't tell things on social media that could be used against you to discover passwords;
- Teach children from an early age not to talk to strangers in the digital world as well.
Curitiba project wins “Best Bootstrap Company” award at SXSW 2023
AMA (Agentes do Meio Ambiente) is a project from Curitiba, Paraná, which aims to promote sustainability and entrepreneurship through technology. The idea, applied in the capital of Santa Catarina, has two integrated applications: one for public janitors, which has more than 600 active janitors, and another for users committed to the environment in their homes, communities and cities.
Based on tasks defined by the Municipal Department of the Environment, janitors carry out the activity in the regions where they live, generating an extra income of up to R$1.1 thousand per month.
The company won in the special category Best Bootstrap Company, which rewards startups that have not yet received investment rounds.
“Lightsaber” in real life exists!
A real “Lightsaber” was unveiled during SXSW. In addition to emitting the characteristic sound of the Star Wars franchise weapon, it also retracts and expands at the simple push of a button. However, of course, the equipment is not a real weapon. It's just another attraction for the collection of fans of one of the greatest in the saga. Have you ever thought about having your own saber?
Brazilian virtual reality game is featured at SXSW
Yuki, a game designed by Brazilian studio Arvore Immersive is making a splash at SXSW! In a salon that promotes experiences with augmented reality, the game that mixes bullet hell and roguelike genres has been successful in mixing physical and digital elements to create the experience. The object of the game is to shoot enemies, which appear all over the map!
Oscar win for “Everything, everywhere at once” is praised by Tilda Swinton!
In an interview with Eugene Hernandez, Tilda Swinton praised the victory of the feature film “Everything at the same time” at the last Oscar. According to the actress, the film does not follow the traditional Hollywood standards, being a breakthrough.
Is the end of the internet as we know it near? For Amy Webb, yes!
The futurist and CEO of the Future Today Institute, Amy Webb, believes that the internet as we know it today is nearing its end. Well known for her accurate predictions for the technological universe, Webb highlighted the impacts of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), which will grow in the coming years.
Thus, the CEO claims that solutions such as Midjouney, DALL-E and ChatGPT will be used on a daily basis by users.
Patagonia CEO Reinforces Company Concern About Weather at SXSW
In an interview with journalist Katie Couric, the CEO of Patagonia, Ryan Gellert, expressed concern about the global climate. It is worth remembering that, in September last year, Yvon Chouinard announced that he will donate the company, valued at more than R$ 15 billion, to a fund aimed at combating and repairing climate change.
According to Gellert, the company's revenues and profits will be passed on to the cause and that this is the result of preparations begun over the last 50 years.
Robert Downey Jr. and the fight against virtual crime!
The actor known worldwide for his role as Tony Stark in the Iron Man franchise, Robert Downey Jr. was at SXSW representing the company in which he is an investor, Aura. The cybersecurity startup relies on artificial intelligence to function.
Disney and the ability to create memorable experiences
Nearly 25 years ago at The Walt Disney Company, Josh D'Amaro shared a little about how the brand is able to create memorable experiences. In addition to citing hospitality, creativity and imagination, D'Amaro spoke about the immersion that the company's theme parks offer.
According to him, with a meticulous process of working with characters, music, visual effects and even food, the experience becomes unique.
Most Hopeful and Desperate Project in Human History Is Artificial Intelligence, Says President of OpenAI
In an interview with journalist Lauren Segall, OpenAI co-founder and president Greg Brockman said that artificial intelligence is the most hopeful and despairing project in human history.
In the conversation, Brockman also said that, despite the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence tools, there are still more questions than answers. Asked about ChatGPT, he was direct: “The merit of ChatGPT was to transcend fiction”.
Food as a catalyst for global change
The World Center Kitchen, created and idealized by chef José Andrés, is an organization made up of several volunteer chefs from around the world. Thus, it arrives in countries activating the network of local markets and restaurants to feed those in need and then reactivate the economy through business.
Streaming subscriptions galore – Can the salary hold?
Andrew Wallenstein and Heidi Chung, analysts at Variety's intelligence platform, addressed a sensitive topic at SXSW: the number of streaming subscriptions in the world.
According to analysts, there is a relentless race to get more and more customers. However, Netflix is the only major company in the industry to make a profit. Therefore, they came to the conclusion that smaller companies need to structure themselves more to compete and ensure that, in the average income of a family, the salary is not enough for the high number of streams available.
What is the impact of Artificial Intelligence on creativity
Adobe Lead Designer Brooke Hopper addressed the impact of technological evolution on creativity in her presentation at SXSW. There are many questions about the designer's creative process with the use of AI. According to Hooper, the process is no less valid when the machine is involved.
In this way, it can be a creative tool, like a brush, a camera, or a musical instrument. Therefore, Lead Designer argues that AI can help artists to experiment and produce things that were not possible without its help.
Was the metaverse flopped?
That's not what SXSW's top mentors believe. With prototypes increasingly inserted in the population, such as the Seoul Metaverse Cities, created in the city of Seoul (South Korea) to concentrate public services, the metaverse is growing more and more. Retail is also growing, with brands like Nike and Forever 21 having thousands of users in environments with Roblox.
Are humans the new assistants for robots?
With the agility and ease of increment of new technologies, SXSW faced an increasingly latent question: would humans be the new assistants for robots?
According to studies, technologies have created more jobs than they have taken away, but the future is uncertain in the era of exponential AI. Thus, during several lectures, the idea of always working together with AI was reinforced, facilitating our services and using the best of technology.
