South by Southwest has announced the initial keynotes and second round of featured speakers for its 39th annual conference, scheduled for March 7-15 in Austin, Texas.
Conference keynote speaker Arvind Krishna, chairman and CEO of IBM, will lead From science fiction to society: the next era of artificial intelligence and quantum computing He goes beyond the “sci-fi hype” surrounding these titular themes and instead focuses on their real-world advantages.
“Exploring the benefits of new technological advancements while addressing their potential challenges is a core part of the SXSW experience we curate each year,” Hugh Forrest, co-president and chief programming officer, said in a statement.
“We are excited to announce Arvind Krishna as our first keynote speaker for the 2025 season. His session on the convergence of artificial intelligence and quantum computing will discuss what this massive technological shift will bring to humanity.
Krishna’s addition to SXSW coincides with the announcement of guest speakers, including Rohit Bhargava, founder and chief trend curator of The Non-Obvious Company, who will lead Learn 7 non-obvious secrets people use to predict the future Conference; Alex Haraus, founder and CEO of EMPIRE Ghazi; Director and Social Media Strategist; Katharine Hayhoe, Ph.D., author, chief scientist of The Nature Conservancy, Horn Distinguished Professor at Texas Tech University and Distinguished Professor of Public Policy and Public Law.
The speaker list also includes CEO of Bumble Lidiane Jones; activist and astronaut Amanda Nguyen, WNBA champion, WNBA Finals MVP, 2-time WNBA MVP, 2-time gold medalist, WNBA Rookie of the Year and broadcaster Candace Parker; author and Donald Passman, music lawyer at Gang, Tire, Ramer, Brown & Passman; author, speaker, teacher, consultant, podcast host and futurist Rishad Tobaccowala.
Many of these speakers will also participate in thematic sessions announced today, including Pour the Tea: A Guide to Office Gossip Strategies with contributing editors Harvard Business Review Amy Gallo; Cleaning up our atmosphere: Carbon removal prepares to go mainstream Join Climeworks Chief Operating Officer Douglas Chan and the aforementioned Dr. Hayhoe.
The newly announced speakers complement SXSW’s previously announced first round of speakers in September, including Dr. Peter Attia, Johanna Faries, Douglas Rushkoff, and others.
SXSW will be held March 7-15 in Austin, Texas, and full details on newly announced speakers and sessions are available through its website.
