Keynotes Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Featured Speaker Ada Limón & More Join SXSW 2024
It's (almost) the most wonderful time of the year! Announcing the latest Keynote Session featuring Academy Award-winning writers and directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert and the third round of Featured Speakers for the 38th edition of the SXSW Conference.
"What makes SXSW such an incredible event is the possibility that an unknown film you watch, a little-known artist you see perform, or an under the radar company you hear about will become the next worldwide phenomenon,” said Hugh Forrest, Co-President and Chief Programming Officer. “After having the honor of hosting the world premiere of their Oscar Award-winning film Everything Everywhere All At Once at SXSW 2022 and witnessing their meteoric rise, we are thrilled to welcome Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert back to the SXSW stage, where they’ll share their reflections on the film and their thoughts on the future.”
The 2024 SXSW Conference will open up on Friday, March 8 with Ada Limón and Lori Glaze exploring the beauty of art and space, as well as sharing a special piece of Limón's work set to launch into space in late 2024.
Featured Speakers announced today include Scott Galloway, Kun Gao, Benji Geary, Lina Khan, John Maeda, Olivier Rousteing, Laurie Santos, Kendra Scott, Molly Sims, Kara Swisher, and more.
Take a deeper look at the newly-announced Keynotes, Featured Speakers, and Featured Sessions for 2024 and explore all 24 tracks of Conference programming.
Keynotes
- Academy Award-winning writers and directors for Everything Everywhere All At Once Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
- Futurist, TV news commentator, Board Director and Senior Fellow at the Drucker School of Management, Claremont Graduate University, and Host of The Moment with Ryan Patel Ryan Patel, who will be joining previously announced SXSW 2024 Keynote Speaker, Chair and CEO of AMD Lisa Su
Featured Speakers
- Climate justice organizer, human rights lawyer, and co-founder and Vision and Initiatives Partner for Taproot Earth Colette Pichon Battle
- Founder and Executive Director of Project InnerSpace Jamie Beard
- Co-CEO of Waymo Tekedra Mawakana
- Creative Director of Balmain Olivier Rousteing
- Professor of Psychology at Yale University and Host of the podcast The Happiness Lab Laurie Santos
Featured Sessions
AI and the Independent Artist
From AI-powered composition and artwork creation to voiceprints and curated playlists, AI is changing the way artists create and market their music and engage with their fans. With these new tools comes a new set of challenges and responsibilities for the music industry. Artists can harness the power of AI, but it is the responsibility of companies across the industry to ensure that human artistry is supported, not replaced. In this session, join CEO of TuneCore Andreea Gleeson and CEO of CreateSafe Daouda Leonard as they present principles for companies to consider as artists engage with AI opportunities, as well as results & lessons learned from early AI pilot programs.
Bringing a Major Franchise Into XR: The Gundam Example
Mobile Suit Gundam is a franchise that has been around for over 40 years now. With over 50 series released, 35 films, and 250 video games, it ranks among the most profitable franchises in history. Therefore, it was obvious for Atlas V to approach Bandai Namco with the intention of adapting this franchise into an XR experience. But such an adaptation also implies a number of challenges. In this session, Publisher at Astrea Zoé Lemaire, Head Producer at Bandai Namco Naohiro Ogata, Director at Bandai Namco Kenichi Suzuki, and Emmy Award-nominated XR Producer at Meta Ryan Genji Thomas will jointly share their experiences in adapting such a franchise into an XR experience.
A Conversation with FTC Commissioner Lina Khan
In this session, join White House and Washington Reporter for POLITICO Daniel Lippman and Chair of the Federal Trade Commission Lina Khan as they discuss how Washington thinks about AI, regulating Big Tech, and more.
Design in Tech Report 2024: Design Against AI
Designers bear the awkward and important responsibility of raising ethical AI concerns in their product-making circles alongside policymakers. Questioning how to advance the art, practice, and nature of creativity in this new era provides spectacular opportunities to fail, learn, grow. In this session, author and Vice President of Design and Artificial Intelligence at Microsoft John Maeda will discuss how “Design against AI” means both critically thinking about AI's implications for humanity and critically making work to stay ahead of AI's capabilities.
Explore Space & Poetry With NASA & Poet Laureate Ada Limón
As we look around this world, we can find an infinite number of things to explore. Every corner we turn can be filled with curiosity and wonder. And the more we look, the more we can find possibilities that will inspire, spark ideas, and expand our understanding of worlds beyond Earth. With a long history of sending inspirational messages out to the depths of space, it's only fitting that NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft launching in October 2024 will continue this tradition by including an engraved poem by author and 24th Poet Laureate of the United States Ada Limón. In the official Opening Session for SXSW 2024, join Limón and Director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division in the agency’s Science Mission Directorate Dr. Lori Glaze as they share Limón’s poem as well as dive into the many ways science and art unite.
How to Differentiate Yourself as an Entrepreneur
About 55% of adults have started a business at some point in their lives, and small businesses account for 99.9% of all the businesses in the US. Being an entrepreneur is difficult enough, so how can you differentiate yourself from the scores of other well-intentioned next great ideas? In this session, join designer, philanthropist, and founder, Executive Chairwoman, and Chief Creative Officer of Kendra Scott, LLC Kendra Scott as she reveals how to succeed as an entrepreneur by learning from past failures, finding what makes you unique, and never ceasing to think like an entrepreneur.
Kaleidoscopic Worldbuilding in a Fractured World
Traditional entertainment models are being challenged by a rapidly fracturing culture. But by using a kaleidoscopic worldbuilding lens, entertainment companies like Meow Wolf, Ubisoft, and Riot Games are envisioning the storytelling potential in this fragmenting reality. In this session, join Vice President of IP Creative at Riot Games Laura DeYoung, Mascot and Senior Art Director at Meow Wolf Benji Geary, Chief Creative Strategy Officer at Meow Wolf Anne Mullen, and Narrative Director at Ubisoft Jeffrey Yohalem as they discuss how worldbuilders are creating new opportunities for engagement across both physical & digital platforms through increased participant agency, pervasiveness, connectivity, and community.
Lessons Learned: The Next Frontier in Entertainment, Gaming and Tech
Join co-founder of Crunchyroll and co-founder of GGWP Kun Gao, co-founder of Rotten Tomatoes and co-founder and Managing Partner at PKO Investments Patrick Lee, and co-founder of Kabam Holly Liu for a conversation on lessons learned in moving from their industry (movies, streaming) and into gaming. In this session, they will share how having a different perspective has impacted their choices and what they see coming in the future, while also touching on using community to manage these shifts between industries.
Molly Sims on Cultivating a Lifestyle Media Empire
Join entrepreneur, actress, model, producer, philanthropist, New York Times bestselling author, Host of the podcast Lipstick on the Rim, and founder of YSE Beauty Molly Sims as she takes us on a captivating journey through building a lifestyle media empire. With a successful 20-year career that spans across the runways, screens, and business ventures, Molly is an unstoppable force, with women at the center. Sims will take us behind-the-scenes with a candid conversation highlighting her latest ventures - YSE Beauty, her podcast Lipstick on the Rim (Dear Media), and her production company, Something Happy Productions.
Pivot Live with Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway
In this session, join journalist, CNN contributor, and author of the forthcoming memoir, Burn Book: A Tech Love Story, Kara Swisher, and serial entrepreneur, New York Times bestselling author, Professor of Marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, Scott Galloway, for a live recording of their podcast, Pivot. They’ll share sharp, unfiltered insights into the biggest stories in tech, business, and politics. They'll make bold predictions, pick winners and losers, and bicker and banter like no one else. After all, with great power comes great scrutiny. The Pivot Featured Session is part of the Vox Media Podcast Stage at SXSW. Running from March 8-10, the Vox Media Podcast Stage will bring Vox Media’s chart-topping shows to life with live tapings, including On with Kara Swisher; Where Should We Begin?; Today, Explained; Decoder; The Vergecast; Point Forward; Stay Tuned with Preet; and more.
Team Human Live
Autonomous technologies, runaway markets and weaponized media seem to have overturned civil society, paralyzing our ability to think constructively, connect meaningfully, or act purposefully. It feels as if civilization itself were on the brink, and that we lack the collective willpower and coordination necessary to address issues of vital importance to the very survival of our species. It's time to recognize that being human is a team sport. Each week, author and Professor of Tactical Media at Queens College, City of New York Douglas Rushkoff hosts the Team Human podcast, where he engages in real-time, no-holds-barred discussions with people who are hacking the machine to make it more compatible with human life, and helping redefine what it means to stay human in a digital age. In this session, join Rushkoff as he records a live episode of the Team Human podcast.
Join Us at SXSW 2024
We're just under 100 days away from SXSW 2024, but who's counting? Start adding sessions of interest to your own personalized SXSW Schedule. Subscribe to the Conference Community Newsletter to get the latest updates.
Register today and book your hotel for SXSW 2024! You don't want to miss out on this opportunity to connect, discover, and learn from creatives across different industries. Learn more about our exclusive group rates for teams of 10 or more and other savings opportunities for enrolled students.
Keep up with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
By Luis Seijo
12/5/2023
