SXSW Announces 2026 Details, Programming, and Venues

With its traditional home at the Austin Convention Center currently a pile of rubble, South by Southwest has just given the first real look at what the conference and festival will look like for its 2026 dates (March 12-18)

Explaining the new look of the festival, Greg Rosenbaum (who took over as SVP of programming earlier this year) wrote, “As we celebrate SXSW’s 40th year, we’re focused on making the experience more rewarding than ever for attendees. The programming we’re unveiling shows the incredible range of conversations that define SXSW – from how AI is reshaping creativity and business, to the future of media and marketing, to bold ideas on human connection.”

Regulars will see some big changes, many (but not all of which) spin out of the fact that the Austin Convention Center – traditionally the heart of SXSW – is being demolished and replaced, a process that will take years.

GOODBYE INTERACTIVE, HELLO INNOVATION: The tech side of the conference gets a rebranding.

NEW BADGE ACCESS: There will still be the traditional Film & TV, Innovation, Music, and Platinum badges, but badge holders will be able to reserve seats for sessions, showcases, and screenings. Platinum will get first dibs and three reservations per day, while Film, Innovation, and Music will get two.

CROSSOVER DAY: With all three parts of the conference running concurrently for the full seven days of the 2026 event, SXSW is also touting an “expanded crossover day” encouraging intermingling of Innovation, SXSW EDU, Film & TV, and Music silos. 

CLUBHOUSES: The Convention Center was the traditional meeting place for attendees, but now there will be three separate “Clubhouses” intended to serve as rendezvous destinations for the three strands of the fest. Film & TV gets 800 Congress (very convenient for big movies over at the Paramount), while Innovation will take over Brazos Hall. Meanwhile Music heads over to the Downright hotel at 11th and I-35, seemingly confirming the ongoing rumor that the tuneful side of the festival will be relocating from its recent base out in East Austin back along the Red River corridor. Platinum badges will get access to all three Clubhouses.

NEW FOOTPRINT: With no Convention Center, panels and events will be relocating into every available meeting room and conference space. In addition to the Clubhouses, the conference will use space at most of the Downtown hotels between Congress and I-35, and 11th and Cesar Chavez, including the Fairmont, Hilton Austin, all three Marriotts (Courtyard, Downtown and JW), the Line, the Omni, and the Thompson.

Credit: SXSW

SXSW has also announced the first wave of 50 panels, with the to-be-expected emphasis on the continuing onslaught of AI on the arts, business, and our basic humanity. That lineup also includes some SX regulars, with social media expert Jon Youshaei, gaming researcher Joost van Dreunen, and futurist Amy Webb all coming back to deliver their state-of-the-nation observations. The list includes:

• 5 Non-Obvious Secrets of Human Connection (For Love & Profit) with Rohit Bhargava (Non-Obvious Company Founder & Chief Trend Curator).

• 5 Traits of Successful AI Projects: From Pilot to Real ROI with Sandy Carter (Chief Business Development Officer & COO, Unstoppable Domains).

• Actionable Ikigai: Career Planning in the Age of AI with Join Mike Bechtel (Futurist, University of Notre Dame.

• A Conversation with The All-American Rejects with the All-American Rejects.

• Amy Webb Launches 2026 Emerging Tech Trend Report with Amy Webb (CEO, Future Today Strategy Group).

• Breaking Through Barriers to Innovation: Lessons from Space and Earth with Dava Newman (Apollo Professor of Astronautics, MIT).

• A Conversation with Jack Conte with Jack Conte (CEO and co-founder, Patreon).

• How CMOs are Rewriting the Rules of Connection with Lauren Stafford Webb (Chief Marketing Officer, SoFi), Brian Irving (Chief Marketing Officer, Lyft), Allison Stransky (Chief Marketing Officer, Samsung Electronics America), moderated by Axios reporter Eleanor Hawkins.

• How to Design a Company That AI Can’t Outpace with Ian Beacraft (CEO, Signal and Cipher).

• The Latticework of Mental Models For a Great Life with Mohnish Pabrai (Founder and Managing Partner, Pabrai Investment Funds).

• Make Your Own Wave  with Russ (Artist/Author/Co-Founder, DIEMON) and Andreea Gleeson (Chief Executive Officer, TuneCore).

• Reclaiming Our Humanity in the Age of AI with Timnit Gebru (Founder & Executive Director, DAIR), John Palfrey (President, MacArthur Foundation), and journalist Karen Hao.

• Social Media Masterclass 2026 with Jon Youshaei (Founder, Youshaei Studios)

• SuperJoost’s State of Play 2026 with Joost van Dreunen (Video Games Professor, NYU & Co-Founder, ALDORA).

• The Innovation Engine You’ve Never Heard of: Your Neighbor with André Zdanow (President, FirstBuild).

 • The Science of Scaling: Using Data to Decide When – and How Fast – to Scale Revenue with Mark Roberge (Co-Founder, Stage 2 Capital).

• Trusted, Valued, Essential: Why PBS is Here to Stay, With or Without Federal Funding with Paula Kerger (President & CEO, PBS).

• Why Saying Yes to the Unthinkable Works with Raja Rajamannar (Chief Marketing Officer, Mastercard).

SXSW and SXSW EDU 2026 badges are available now via sxsw.com. 

Keep up with all our SXSW news, reviews, announcements and interviews (plus our unbelievably extensive archive) at austinchronicle.com/sxsw.

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