A round up of the key themes and insights from the Maxus team at this year's SXSW festival.

1. @SXSW 2015
Key Themes & Insights

3. Now in its 22nd year, SXSW is one of the world’s most
important music, technology and film festivals.
!In under two-weeks, the Texan capital welcomed
51,000 people to over 800 conferences, seminars and
workshops, covering everything from emerging music
acts to alien invasions and all that’s in between.
!With such a diverse programme, and so much
information to be cultivated, we sent a crack team of
Maxus employees to report back on the top trends
and key findings from the festival, identifying what
we can expect to be hot topics in technology and
media in the year ahead.

4. “Tech is adapting to fit our lives in
more human, intelligent ways”
Technology
is
developing
at
an
alarming
rate,
but
beyond
basic
consumerism,
it
is
also
being
used
as
an
overwhelming
force
for
good.
!
“Tracking
murder
cases
amongst
Native
Americans;
mapping
deforestation
in
Brazil;
keeping
disparate
communities
of
Hispanics
connected;
highlighting
the
plight
of
endangered
species;
making
intelligent
prosthetic
limbs.
Big,
important,
lasting
stuff.”
Tom
Dunn
Stand out session
Extreme
Bionics:
The
end
of
disability
Hugh
Herr,
co-­‐director
of
the
Center
for
Extreme
Bionics
at
MIT
Media
Lab,
spoke
of
developments
in
electromechanics
that
by
his
predictions,
could
lead
to
the
end
of
disability
within
the
next
100
years.
Maxus Blog Post:
‘That
puts
it
all
into
perspective’

5. “No amount of technology is going
to make a bad story good”
Developers
have
brought
to
life
technologies
that
once
seemed
inconceivable,
but
it’s
now
time
for
them
to
hand
it
over
to
the
creatives
to
decide
what
to
do
with
it.
!
Designers,
artists,
musicians
and
producers
were
all
equal
participants
in
the
conversation
around
tech
advancements
and
how
they
are
adapting
them
to
make
improvements
in
their
field.
!
Where
we
previously
saw
a
focus
on
the
functionality
and
tech
of
wearables,
we
are
now
seeing
marriages
between
tech
and
fashion
brands,
making
wearables
desirables.
See
THEUNSEEN
!
“The
beautifully
crafted
garments
and
accessories
from
THEUNSEEN,
a
group
out
of
London
that
blends
biological
and
chemical
matter
into
materials;
combining
science
with
art,
design
and
performance.”
Stand out session
Maxus Blog Post:
‘Treat
your
consumers
as
protagonists
in
their
own
story’

6. “Virtual Reality is very ready”
It
featured
in
Samsung
and
Google’s
major
activations
and
whole
floors
of
the
convention
centre
were
dedicated
to
it.
From
1980’s
sci-­‐fi
films
to
our
living
rooms,
virtual
reality
is
gearing
up
to
enter
the
mainstream.
!
With
accessible
consumer
&
professional
cameras/software,
and
Youtube
360
adding
ease
and
scale,
VR
is
now
available
to
the
masses
and
pioneering
brands
like
Red
Bull
and
Volvo
have
paved
the
road
for
others
to
follow
close
behind.
!
Stand out session
Explore
the
future
of
Virtual
Reality
with
Oculus
“VR
helps
us
to
create
presence
in
a
world
of
high-­‐tech
sensory
overload.
Tools
like
Oculus
confine
us
to
the
here
and
now
–
and
allow
us
to
experience
it
fully
in
hyper-­‐reality.”
Maxus Blog Post:
‘On
being
present’

7. “Big brands vs Start-ups”
Traditionally,
SXSW
has
focused
on
offering
a
platform
for
start-­‐ups
and
pioneers
to
showcase
their
ideas,
but
with
an
audience
of
over
50,000
engaged
media,
technology
and
entertainment
professionals,
big
brands
have
decided
they
want
a
piece
of
the
action.
!
Our
team
noted
that
this
years
festival
felt
a
shift
from
entrepreneurial
to
corporate,
with
the
McDonald’s
food
truck
sitting
among
the
authentic
street
food
vendors
a
controversial
arrival
and
poignant
example
of
the
increasing
concentration
of
brands
at
the
festival.
!
!
!
!
‘Playing
Major
when
you’re
Minor’
Maxus Blog Post:
Stand out session
The
In-­‐Stadium
Fan
Experience
in
MLS
!
“As
a
relatively
small
player
in
the
US
sport
scene,
soccer
and
MLS
have
thrown
down
the
gauntlet
in
sport
with
a
David
marketing
mentality
in
an
industry
of
Goliaths.”

8. “Bringing together, not breaking out”
Unlike
other
technology
festivals,
SXSW
is
not
about
the
stand-­‐out
product
launch
or
individual
breakouts
in
technology,
it’s
a
meeting
of
creativity
and
ideas.
!
Networking
events
and
workshops
are
often
more
valuable
than
keynote
speeches,
it’s
the
conversations
that
happen
around
each
topic
that
can
inspire
new
ideas,
offer
feedback
on
current
developments
and
reinstall
passion
for
technology
and
how
it
affects
our
everyday
lives.
!
!
! Maxus Blog Post:
‘SXSW
is
about
breaking
in,
not
breaking
out’
Stand out session
There
isn’t
one…
“SXSW
is
not
about
what's
breaking
out
-­‐
it
is
about
ways
of
thinking,
movements
and
point
of
views
that
are
gaining
traction,
and
breaking
in.
And
for
this
reason
it
is
exciting,
inspiring
and
highly
tangible.”
Angela
Jones

9. Want to hear more from the Maxus SXSW team?
View our film