South by Southwest (SXSW) Sydney has revealed the first look at its inaugural 2023 event, unveiling its inner-Sydney precinct location, event formats and announcing the first badges on sale at Early Bird pricing.

SXSW has also announced the conference program’s first Keynote Speaker – American futurist, author and CEO/Founder of Future Today Institute, Amy Webb.

Sydney will be the first city outside of Austin, Texas to gather the world’s most inspired thinkers, creators and innovators in the southern hemisphere.

The harbour city’s tech and culture scene will converge to host this future-focused event that will see the Asia-Pacific’s pre-eminent creative industries come together across content pillars of Tech and Innovation, Gaming, Music, Screen and Culture within a full week program running from October 15-22.

Event Precinct

Supported by the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW, SXSW Sydney will encompass a walkable footprint within the Sydney CBD and surrounding neighbourhoods.

SXSW areas such as Haymarket, Darling Harbour, Ultimo and Chippendale will transform into a vibrant, interconnected hub of event formats including festivals, performances, premieres, exhibitions, meet-ups, speakers, pitches and networking opportunities, with ideas and surprises to uncover on every street corner.

Event Formats

A core part of the event is the SXSW Sydney Conference, taking place in multiple venues including ICC Sydney, UTS and The Powerhouse Museum. It features more than 400 keynotes, presentations, panels, workshops and mentor sessions with thinkers and leaders.

The SXSW Sydney Technology & Innovation Exhibitions will showcase innovative and emerging tech and entertainment companies from across the Asia-Pacific region, while the Startup Village serves as a seminal spot for meet-ups, presentations and workspace areas with showcases from the brightest up-and-coming businesses across all industries and sectors.

The SXSW Sydney 2023 Music Festival will take over multiple live music venues in central Sydney, where official showcasing artists will perform in front of industry reps, media and thousands of fans and fellow musicians from across the globe.

Musicians can still apply to perform at the event.

Expanding well beyond a traditional film festival, the SXSW Sydney Screen Festival will offer a future-focused program of film, episodic content, digital, XR and social content premieres, showcasing screen-culture’s diversity in the Asia-Pacific and beyond. From red carpet premieres to immersive screen experiences, Q&As and panel discussions with creators, expect industry and public access to world-leading screen ideas and perspectives.

Applications are open now to filmmakers and screen creatives.

Newly announced, the SXSW Sydney Gaming Festival will celebrate the future of the industry and embrace the power and potential of games. Over 100 local and international independent games will be playable across Showcase venues and the myriad other festival venues in the SXSW Sydney precinct. Demonstrations, product launches, hands-on play, stage sessions, performances, screenings, unique exhibitions and social events are waiting to be discovered, as the festival provides an opportunity for gaming industry professionals and audiences to connect, collaborate, exhibit and build relationships with each other in an unmissable, incomparable setting.

“SXSW Sydney will be a complete game-changer for Sydney and the Asia Pacific. Locally, it will increase visitation and bolster the creative economy.”

“Within APAC, it will facilitate a special connection between creative industries and businesses in the region – the kind that can lead to collaboration and innovation on a global scale. I can’t wait to see the opportunities flow on from October this year,” Geoff Jones, Chair, SXSW Sydney said.

Ben Franklin, NSW Minister for Tourism and the Arts says on the significant benefits to Sydney’s visitor economy and creative industries.

“Sydney is the economic and leisure gateway to Australia with a global reputation for hosting major international events that capture the world’s attention. One of Sydney’s greatest assets is its numerous world-class event facilities, located within close proximity to the CBD. An event of this scale will activate a large number of venues throughout the city, supporting the entire ecosystem of Sydney’s visitor and night-time economy. South By Southwest Sydney will put a spotlight on the Harbour City as the major events and creative industries capital of the Asia Pacific.”

Colin Daniels, Managing Director, SXSW Sydney today’s announcement is simply the first port in a voyage of discovery.

“Over the next eight months we will reveal more speakers, more music, more screen and more gaming content from Australia, the Asia Pacific and from around the world. I’m excited to partner with some of the leading innovators in the creative, business and technology communities to enable people to see their world, their work and their ingenuity from a series of new and inspiring angles.”

Look who’s talking:

Amy Webb is an American futurist, author and CEO/Founder of the leading foresight and future strategy firm, Future Today Institute. Named ‘one of the five women changing the world’ according to Forbes in 2022, one of the BBC’s 100 Women of 2020, and ranked on the Thinkers50 list of the 50 most influential management thinkers globally, Amy has been celebrated for her pioneering data-driven, technology-led foresight methodology which advises hundreds of leaders and organisations on how to prepare for complex futures.

Webb has been announced as a keynote speaker.

Amy also collaborates closely with Hollywood writers and producers on film, TV programs and commercials about science, technology and the future, while her most recent book The Genesis Machine also expands to the field synthetic biology – which combines biology with artificial intelligence. An unmissable keynote to catch at SXSW Sydney.

A full list of speakers and additional event information can be found on the event website.