Featured Speakers

Featured Speakers are innovators and creatives at the top of their industries sharing ideas, processes, and expertise in the hopes of inspiring a better world.

Featured Speaker: Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg – SXSW 2022 – Photo by Travis P Ball/Getty Images for SXSW

About Featured Speakers

Spanning the many tracks and themes of the SXSW Conference, Featured Speakers offer attendees the knowledge, leadership and inspiration to shape their professional careers and personal lives in our ever-evolving path forward.

Stay tuned for announcements throughout the season. In the meantime, take a took back at previous Featured Speaker sessions from our video archive below.

Join Us for SXSW 2023

Get ready to experience more opportunities for networking, learning, brainstorming, and career-enhancing connections than ever before at SXSW 2023 from March 10-19.

Watch SXSW 2022 Featured Sessions

Explore the Video Archive

AUSTIN, TEXAS - MARCH 14: (L-R) Jonathan Van Ness and Alok Vaid-Menon speak onstage during Featured Session: Jonathan Van Ness & Alok Vaid-Menon during the 2022 SXSW Conference and Festivals at JW Marriott Austin on March 14, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Samantha Burkardt/Getty Images for SXSW)

Jonathan Van Ness and ALOK on Trans Rights

Amy Webb – SXSW 2022 – Photo by Amanda Stronza

2022 Emerging Tech Trend Report with Amy Webb

AUSTIN, TEXAS - MARCH 17: (L-R) Dr. Sweta Chakaborty, Boaz Paldi, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and Mik Thobo-Carlsen speak onstage at 'We Don't Have Time — Act on Climate Now' during the 2022 SXSW Conference and Festivals at Austin Convention Center on March 17, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Diego Donamaria/Getty Images for SXSW)

We Don’t Have Time — Act on Climate Now

AUSTIN, TEXAS - MARCH 16: (L-R) Denise Osterhues, Andrew Zimmern, Stephen Satterfield and Emily Ma speak onstage at 'Future Intersections of Food, Technology & Culture' during the 2022 SXSW Conference and Festivals at Austin Convention Center on March 16, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Amy E. Price/Getty Images for SXSW)

Future Intersections of Food, Technology & Culture

Conference News

Auntie Deb

SXSW 2022

"We will only change our future when we recognize what needs to be changed and when we say the words out loud."

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Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland speaks at 'Auntie Deb's Guide to Equity & Inclusion' – SXSW 2022 – Photo by Hutton Supancic/Getty Images for SXSW

Amy Webb

SXSW Online 2021

"Our goal is not predicting — it is preparing for what comes next."

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

SXSW 2019

"I don’t think that our government is irredeemable. If I did, I wouldn’t have run for office."

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - 2019 - Photo by Adam Kissick

J.J. Abrams

SXSW 2016

"We want to see stories that are unique, that have points of view that might not be expected."

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J.J. Abrams at SXSW 2016 – Photo by Judy Won

Stacey Abrams

SXSW 2019

"We have to stop allowing identity to be weaponized against us."

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Anthony Bourdain

SXSW 2016

"Making TV should be fun. It should be a creative expression...Everybody should be pushing it and having a good day at work."

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See You at SXSW 2023

Join us for innovative sessions, film & tv screenings, music showcases, and more at SXSW 2023 from March 10-19 in Austin, TX. Registration and housing are now open.

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