The South by Southwest Conferences & Festivals may have global recognition, but many local organizations and individuals are taking the opportunity to share their expertise at the annual event in Austin.
SXSW Interactive runs March 11-15. Sessions listed below are open to any SXSW Interactive badge holder. The Changing Times: Restaurant Survival in Real Time session is also open to SXSW Film badge holders. Visit the websites for more information about the sessions.
Here is a sampling of panels with Austin representation:
Now in its 30th year, South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals was first held in 1987.[/caption]
March 11
• Two Ways to Keep the Austin Startup Scene Weird
11 a.m.-noon, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce offices, 500 E. Fourth St., Austin
Features: Dan Graham, CEO and co-founder of BuildASign.com, headquartered in North Austin, and founder of Austin-based Notley Ventures; a professor from St. Edward’s University in South Austin; and representatives from Austin-based SoftMatch and Verb
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP92722
• Exploring Austin’s Startup Funding Landscape
12:30-1:30 p.m., Austin chamber offices
Features: Representatives from four Austin-based organizations—ATX Seed Ventures, Central Texas Angel Network, Triton Ventures and Meritage Capital
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP93005
• Weird Goes Galactic: Austin’s New Space Economy
3:30-4:30 p.m., Austin chamber offices
Features: Stephen Kreher, senior director of economic development for the Austin chamber, and Tom Markusic, CEO of Firefly Space Systems based in Cedar Park
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP92975
March 12
• Smart City: The Austin Opportunity for Health
9:30-10:30 a.m., 3TEN Austin City Limits Live, 310 W. Willie Nelson Blvd., Austin
Features: Beto Lopez of the Design Institute for Health at The University of Texas at Austin; state Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin; and Mini Kahlon from the Dell Medical School at UT
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP58480
• Entrepreneuring Women in Austin
3:30-4:30 p.m., Austin chamber offices
Features: Jan Ryan, founder of Women@Austin, and Laura Bosworth, CEO and co-founder of TeVido Biodevices, based in Northwest Austin
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP91932
• Changing Times: Restaurant Survival in Real Time
5-6 p.m., The Driskill, 604 Brazos St., Austin
Features: Mariam Parker, executive director of Austin Food & Wine Alliance, and Tyson Cole, executive chef and owner of Uchi
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP57496
March 13
• How Austin Leads the Business of Social Media
12:30-1:30 p.m., Austin chamber offices
Features: Chief Customer Officer Virginia Miracle and board member Sam Decker from Spredfast, headquartered in downtown Austin
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP92924
• Can Austin Take Top Talent From Silicon Valley?
3:30-4:40 p.m., Austin chamber offices
Features: Representatives from BP3, which is headquartered in Austin, and TenX and Atlassian, both of which have offices in Austin
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP92919
• Beyond Traffic: The Emergence of a Connected City
3:30-4:30 p.m., Austin Convention Center, 531 E. Fourth St., Austin
Features: U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx who will present the five finalists for the Smart City Challenge, to which Austin applied. The competition aims to create a full integrated city through the use of data, technology and creativity. The goal is using those to influence how to move people and goods. The winning city receives $40 million from USDOT.
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP90094
March 14
• Wearables: The Futures Isn’t in Measuring the Past
12:30-1:30 p.m., JW Marriott, 110 E. Second St., Austin
Features: Dustin Freckleton, co-founder and president of BSXathletics, and Mickey Ristroph, CEO of Mutual Mobile, both of which are headquartered in downtown Austin
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP52836
• Thinkery: Hands-On STEAM style fun
2-3 p.m., Capital One House at Antone’s, 305 E. Fifth St., Austin
Features: Staffers from Austin-based The Thinkery—a science, technology, engineering, art and math, or STEAM, center and children’s museum
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP93079
March 15
• A Micro Solution to a Giant Problem: Urban Housing
9:30-10:30 a.m., Hilton Austin Downtown, 500 E. Fourth St., Austin
Features: Jeff Wilson, also known as “Professor Dumpster,” CEO of Austin-based Kasita
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP57815
• From Success to Significance
9:30-10:30 a.m., Hilton Austin Downtown
Features: Joshua Baer, founder and executive director of Austin-based Capital Factory
More information: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2016/events/event_PP57031
