IMPRESSIONS

FROM SXSW

AUSTIN IS A CITY OF CONTRADICTIONS. WILDLY LIBERAL YET THE CAMPAIGN HOME OF GEORGE W BUSH. POLISHED YET GRUBBY UNDER THE FINGERNAILS, COMPACT BUT SPRAWLING. A PLACE WHERE COWBOYS DRINK WITH HIPSTERS & TACO’S ARE FILLED WITH KIMCHI. WHAT BETTER A PLACE TO HOST THE WORLDS MOST RESPECTED DIGITAL ORGY.

THE CITY GRACIOUSLY OPENS ITS DOORS TO NEARLY A THIRD ITS POPULATION, WHO DESCEND ON DOWNTOWN WITH LANYARDS AND IPADS AND SCURRY FROM HOTEL TO CONVENTION CENTRE IN SEARCH OF THAT NEXT WHISPER OF INSPIRATION. THIS IS CONGRESS AVENUE, THE EPICENTRE OF COMMUTOR CHAOS DURING THE FESTIVAL - TAKE A PEIDICAB TO GET TO YOUR DESTINATION QUICKER.

UNOFFICIALLY AUSTIN IS THE WORLD’S LIVE MUSIC CAPITAL AND THIS IS NOT LOST ON THE SXSW MASSES THIRSTY FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND A VENUE TO NETWORK IN AFTER A LONG DAY LOOKING AT ROBOTS AND TALKING ABOUT THE ETHICS OF MARKETING VIOLENT COMPUTER GAMES TO MINORS. THE MARGHERITAS COME RECOMMENDED.

THANK GOD FOR UBER & LYFT. AUSTIN IS A SPRAWLING CITY AND MOST OF THE AFFORDABLE ACCOMODATION IS A 20 MINUTE RIDE AWAY. WIND THE WINDOW DOWN ON YOUR WAY BACK TO THE HOTEL AND YOU COULD BE IN ANY ROADTRIP MOVIE. THE CITY LOVES WILLIE NELSON AS DO THE RADIO STATIONS. JUST ASK THE DRIVER TO TURN THE RADIO UP.

RAPIDLY UNDERGOING A PROCESS OF GENTRIFICATION THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS UNDERPASS WAS ONCE OFF-LIMITS TO TEENAGE GIRLS, FORBIDDEN BY THEIR FATHERS TO CROSS OVER TO EAST 6TH ST FOR FEAR OF THEM RETURNING PREGNANT. NOW SPOTIFY HOST THEIR PARTIES HERE AND YOU CAN GET A BIODYNAMIC GLASS OF WINE IN A BAR WITH POLISHED CEMENT FLOORS. AH PROGRESS.

THE INSPIRATION FOR THOSE COUNTLESS THEME BARS IN FITZROY & SURRY HILLS COMES FROM HERE SURELY. TEXAS GRILLS, CANTINAS, DAWG DEALERS & BOURBON BARS ALL PART OF THE PARADE. KEYNOTE SPEECHES ENDED AT 5PM, HAPPY HOUR STARTED NOT LONG AFTER.

NOT EVERYTHING COOL ABOUT AUSTIN WAS EXCLUSIVELY DIGITAL. FOOD TRUCKS ARE A MUST VISIT DURING ANYONES STAY IN THIS CITY. THEY HANG IN PACKS AND YOU CAN PAY USING A CREDIT CARD SWIPED ON AN IPAD AT MOST OF THEM. SIGN WITH YOUR FINGER. HOW EFFICIENT. CONVENIENT & DELICIOUS.

SOCO IS SOUTH OF LADYBIRD LAKE AND IS WHERE THE QUIRKY SIDE OF AUSTIN STARTS TO PRESENT ITSELF. COME HERE FOR GOOD COFFEE, COWBOY BOOTS AND WEDDING DRESSES.

IT WOULDN’T BE A MAJOR FESTIVAL WITHOUT THE ODD PEACEFUL PROTEST. A LOT OF THEM WERE RATHER NICHE & SLIGHTLY DISTRACTING.

THE CROWDS ON SIXTH STREET. ONLY A UNI TOWN COULD FILL THESE BARS ON A NIGHTLY BASIS.

YOU REALLY DO NEED TO GET TO THE BETTER TALKS EARLY IN ORDER TO GET A SEAT. MUCH LIKE ONES EXPECTATIONS OF DISNEYLAND, BE PREPARED TO QUEUE FOR THE GOOD STUFF.

CAN ANYONE SPY A MOVIE STAR IN THIS PHOTO?

TRANSPORTATION WAS VARIED AND MORE OFTEN THEN NOT, SPONSORED. HITCH A RIDE ON THE INTERSTELLAR TRANSMISSIONS AT YOUR OWN RISK.

SO, LETS PLAY A GAME OF

HOT OR NOT AT SXSW 2015

1. WEARABLES?

2. DRONES?

3. UGC?

4. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?

ANSWERS 1. NOT

Perhaps due to fatigue or disinterest, wearable tech was no darling this year at SXSW with most scratching their heads at the $10K iWatch and identifying that really these lovely analog replacements are nothing without a mobile phone. So why bother some would argue.

2. HOT Drones were popular this year, but only the good ones of course. This drone helps with aid relief in natural disaster zones, that drone assists with crowd control. SXSW was a drone free zone outside of the exhibition centers mind you. Oh and yeah the personal drones were kinda cool too!

3. NOT Most were saying that we have reached peak narcissism and that user generated content is becoming rather yawn without the parameters of craftsmen to make it mean something. Curation is still an emerging trend, just make sure it is qualified and there are experts somewhere to be seen to ensure credibility.

4. HOT All those movies we enjoyed in the 80’s & 90’s are starting to become a reality in the area of AI. Of particular debate and discussion was the role AI will have in translating big data in meaningful ways. The ethics of how we treat this emerging robot class was also an interesting debate.

SO, WHAT WAS TRENDING THIS YEAR AND HOW DO WE ENSURE CONTINUED RELEVANCE IN THIS RAPIDLY CHANGING INDUSTRY?

AMY WEBB’S RULES TO REMAINING ON TREND WERE SIMPLE:

1.  WHERE/HOW ARE PEOPLE WASTING THEIR TIME

2.  WHERE/HOW ARE PEOPLE HAVING DIFFICULTY WITH TECHNOLOGY

3.  WHERE/HOW ARE PEOPLE LOOKING FOR INFORMATION

4.  WHERE/HOW ARE PEOPLE STUCK 5.  HOW DO PEOPLE WANT TO BE

PERCEIVED

HERE ARE MY HIGHLIGHTS FROM

SXSW 2015

ATTENTIONATION MESSAGING PLATFORMS

HAPTICS AMBIENT

INTERFACES

CONSIDER A FUTURE WHERE DECISIONS ARE MADE WITH A SWIPE AND WIN OR LOSE IS DETERMINED IN A MATTER OF SECONDS. WELL THAT FUTURE IS HERE AND ATTRACTING THE ATTENTION OF OUR AUDIENCES NEED SO MUCH MORE THEN A PUSH NOTIFICATION TODAY. APPLICATIONS AND UTILITIES WILL SUCCEED THAT UNDERSTAND THE SUBLETIES OF GAINING ATTENTION. WITHOUT BEING ANNOYING THAT IS.

CHAT COMMUNITIES AND MESSAGING PLATFORMS LIKE LINE & WHATS APP AND WE CHAT ARE ON THE MARCH AND ARE NOW WORTH MORE THEN TELEVISION NETWORKS IN SOME CASES. AND THIS GROWTH WILL BE EXPONENTIAL IN THE SHORT TERM AT LEAST AS WE START TO PLAY, PLAN & PAY IN THESE ENVIRONMENTS MORE. CONSIDER THE MESSAGING APP THE NEW HOMEPAGE. WHAT CAN WE DO WITH THAT?

HAPTICS IS AN OLD WORD THAT NOW HAS A NEW MEANING. IT IS THE COMMUNICATION OF TOUCH AND TECHNOLOGY IS MAKING THIS SENSE AS IMPORTANT AS SIGHT AND SOUND IN DIGITAL EXPERIENCES THESE DAYS. HOW CAN WE BEAT THE PORN INDUSTRY TO THAT NEXT COOL USE OF HAPTIC TECH?

THERE ARE INTERESTING THINGS HAPPENING WITH AMBIENT INTERFACES AS DEVELOPERS WORK TOWARDS ACHIEVING THAT GOAL OF CREATING TECHNOLOGIES THAT DISAPPEAR INTO A USERS SURROUNDINGS. TECH SO SIMPLE YOU FORGET YOU ARE USING IT. HOW DELIGHTFUL.

COMMUTER UTILITY PEDESTRIAN

LUXURY LIFESTYLE LEVELER

TRANSACTIONAL GENTRIFICATION

YES I HAVE ASSERTED ALREADY HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS NEW WAVE OF COMMUTER UTILITIES THAT CONTINUE TO IMPRESS WITH THEIR SIMPLE INTERFACES AND INTUITIVE CUSTOMER SERVICE. HOW CLUNKY DO ANALOG SYSTEMS FEEL NOW. WHAT I HADN’T CONSIDERED THOUGH WAS HOW THESE APPS ARE REPLACING THE AWKWARD TRANSACTION OF MONEY WITH WARM CONVERSATION & GENUINE HUMAN INTERACTION. HOW GENTRIFIED.

FUTURE OF

STORYTELLING NARRATIVE

CONTROL DATA ARTS

VIRTUAL SOLIDARITY

LOOK UP THESE GUYS. THEIR WORK IS PRETTY COOL.

INTERNET OF

EDIBLE THINGS CONSUMPTION

EFFICIENCY TRACKABLE TECH ACCOUNTABILITY

IS THIS THE FUTURE OF CONVENIENCE AND MAYBE EVEN URBAN GROCERY SHOPPING? PERHAPS. SEE: http://blog.uber.com/essentials

WANT TO KNOW WHETHER THAT AVOCADO IS RIPE? WHY DON’T YOU ASK IT: SEE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4GdIV8G0dE

THE FUTURE OF HEALTH TECH IS COLLIDING WITH FOOD TECH ALLOWING SELF DISCOVERY & DIAGNOSIS THROUGH PORTABLE DIGITAL DEVICES THAT CAN MEASURE SUGAR CONTENT OR THE PRESENCE OF GLUTON VIA A DIP OR A SAMPLE. MAKING CULINARY CURIOSITY SAFER. WHAT COULD HEALTH BRANDS DO WITH THIS TYPE OF TECH?

AND LETS NOT FORGET TECH FOR PETS…

TEMPORARY ANONYMOUS MESSY/REAL

ANTI-NETWORKS WHERE MY

PARENTS AREN’T

ANOTHER BUZZ SUBJECT AT THIS YEARS FESTIVAL WAS THE EMERGENCE OF THE UNSOCIAL NETWORKS. THOSE ANONYMOUS AND TEMPORARY SPACES THAT ARE GAINING POPULARITY AND NOTORIETY BOTH ON AND NOW OFF CAMPUS. SEE YIKYAK, SNAPCHAT & UNSEEN FOR REFERENCE

SERVICE MEMORY

AGGREGATED CONDENSED ACTIONABLE

DOMINANCE OF THE PUSH-WEB

THE FUTUER OF ECOMMERCE IS CURATED, POSSIBLY BROWSERLESS AND INTELLIGENT ENOUGH TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS AND THEN LEARN AND REMEMBER WHAT YOU LIKE AND DON’T LIKE, BECAUSE YOU TOLD IT SO, OVER TIME. LOYALTY THROUGH SERVICE MEMORY. SEE: TRUNK CLUB

WABI SABI TRANSIENCE

IMPERFECTION IMPERMANENCE

ILLUMINATING THE PERILS OF YOUR

INNOVATION HAPPINESS

THESE TWO MELBOURNIANS FROM THE LAB GAVE AN INTERESTING TALK ON THE DIGITAL SHIFT. LOOKING TO A FUTURE WHERE INNOVATORS ARE MORE HONEST ABOUT THE IMPERFECTIONS OF THEIR CREATIONS AND WORK WITH THEIR USERS TO IDENTIFY RISKS PRE LAUNCH WHILE ETHICALLY RESPONDING TO THEM POST LAUNCH. THE LAUNCH OF THE GOOGLE CAR COMES WITH MANY ETHICAL DELIMAS THAT WE ARE ONLY NOW STARTING TO PROPERLY DEBATE

WABI SABI IS THE JAPANESE WORLD VIEW OR AESTHETIC CENTERED ON THE ACCEPTANCE OF TRANSIENCE & IMPERFECTION. AS WE MATURE AS DIGITAL CREATORS AND INNOVATORS WE ARE REALISING THAT NOT EVERYTHING WE DEPLOY NEEDS TO BE PERFECT THE FIRST TIME AROUND. IT CAN BE ORGANIC AND CHANGING AND THAT IS WHERE TRUE INNOVATION CAN THRIVE.

SEE: http://www.toyota-global.com/tokyoms2013/fv2/

TRANSHUMANIST TECHNOLOGY AS A

LIBERATOR OF HUMANS FROM THE

LIMITS OF OUR BIOLOGY

CONSCIOUSNESS REPLICAS

SEE: http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2014/09/virtually_human_we_need_human_rights_for_cyberconscious_beings.html

SEE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYshJRYCArE

THANKS