For decades, South by Southwest (SXSW) was the epicenter of creative and technological convergence in the United States. Since its founding in 1987, the Austin-based event has served as a meeting point for music, tech, film, and business, shaping global trends and fostering groundbreaking collaborations. But as it approaches its 40th edition in 2026, SXSW is undergoing structural changes that raise questions about its future and relevance.
The most notable shift is the overhaul of its badge system, restricting cross-disciplinary access. Until 2025, attendees could freely move between music, film, and tech tracks, fostering unexpected connections that often led to major breakthroughs. Starting in 2026, only the Platinum Pass, the festival’s most expensive badge, will grant unrestricted access. This move threatens to curtail the very essence of what made SXSW a dynamic melting pot of ideas.
At the same time, alternative events around the world are stepping up to fill the gap, embracing the cross-industry collaboration that once defined SXSW. Tech Open Air (TOA) in Berlin has become a global hub for startups, scientists, artists, and investors. Launched in 2012 as Europe’s first crowdfunded event, TOA was designed to foster interdisciplinary exchange. Its founder, Niko Woischnik, believes these interactions are essential to innovation. “Interdisciplinary practice has always driven progress,” he says. “Think of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci—they were engineers as much as artists.”
In Brazil, HackTown, which has been held annually since 2016, has emerged as another rising force. Hosted in Santa Rita do Sapucaí, a city near São Paulo known for its strong tech and innovation ecosystem, the event has embraced the original SXSW model, decentralizing its programming across bars, public spaces, and unconventional venues. “The real strength of HackTown is allowing people to access diverse content—arts, business, technology, and human-focused discussions—all at once,” says Carlos Henrique Vilela, one of HackTown’s founders. “But equally important are the casual conversations in between sessions. Ideas flourish in both settings.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. is seeing a decline in such cross-industry spaces. TechFestNW, a Portland-based event that aimed to blend tech, music, and business in an informal setting, was discontinued in 2021 during the pandemic and never returned. Its absence, along with SXSW’s growing segmentation, leaves few options for creatives and innovators looking for an open, boundary-breaking environment.
“There is an increasing shift toward siloed expertise in the U.S.,” says Dr. Emily Stanton, a researcher on innovation ecosystems. “Yet, history shows that the biggest breakthroughs—whether in technology, science, or the arts—happen at the intersection of disciplines.”
The new SXSW model reflects a broader trend of compartmentalization in major events. The previous badge structure allowed an AI researcher to stumble upon a music entrepreneur or a filmmaker to engage with a robotics engineer. By restricting access, SXSW risks becoming more like a series of segmented trade fairs rather than the organic, cross-pollinated marketplace of ideas it once was.
The question now is whether the U.S. is moving in the wrong direction. As events like Tech Open Air and HackTown continue to thrive in fostering unexpected collaboration, America’s most celebrated innovation event is becoming more exclusive and compartmentalized. Creativity, history reminds us, doesn’t thrive in isolation—it flourishes where worlds collide. If the U.S. wants to maintain its status as a leader in innovation, it might need to rethink the spaces where its brightest minds meet.
