Diverse Topics and Superstar People, Our Top 3 Must Attend Talks At #SXSW2017

It's that time of the year again, where the majority of fashion techies head to Austin Texas to attend South By Southwest.

Founded way back in 1987, South by Southwest had dedicated itself to helping creative people achieve their goals. Best known as SXSW, is one those places where you will be not only exposed to diverse topics, but also a variety of ordinary and superstar people.
This year the collaborative community of SXSW 2017 will be coming together from 10th March 2017 until 19th March 2017. With so much going on, here are our top 3 must attend talks whilst at SXSW:

(1) The Future of Work: How to Innovate with Inclusion

In today’s workplace, managers and employees need to be as skilled as ever in building diverse, inclusive teams. In this talk, Pinterest’s head of diversity CANDICE MORGAN talks about her journey to Silicon Valley and the lessons she’s learned while building a diversity and inclusion program from the ground up. She’ll share insights on recruiting underrepresented talent in a competitive market, creating a sense of belonging to teams and influencing decision-making.

Mar 13, 2017 | 12:30pm – 1:30pm | Austin Convention Center Ballroom EFG 500 E Cesar Chavez

(2) Future Fashion: Designing in a Digital World

Head of Fashion Innovation Agency MATTHEW DRINKWATER discusses how Technology is breaking down the doors of the fashion industry and seeping into every element of, what was, a very traditional business model. From wearable tech to artificial intelligence and mixed reality – designers and brands are exploring innovative ways to make, show and sell their collections. Discover how technology is redesigning the fashion industry and what it means for you.

Mar 13, 2017 | 3:30pm – 4:30pm | Salon 1-2

(3) AI: How Tech’s Next Revolution Will Change Lives

Intel‘s, DIANE BRYANT and BRANDEN WENZLOFF, Clinc‘s JASON MARS, FarmLogs‘ LUCA CANDELA and AMY VAN DONSEL, Program Mgr at Pikazo take it to the stage to discuss how Artificial Intelligence (AI) will deliver the next wave of societal transformation on parallel with the industrial, technical and internet revolutions that preceded it.

As our AI-fueled future evolves, we have a tremendous opportunity to address opportunities from scare resource utilization and scientific exploration to inclusion and human rights expansion. Intel Executive VP Diane Bryant will share Intel’s vision for unleashing AI as well as a perspective on how to accelerate the delivery of #AIforgood. Recognized as one of the top 50 women in business by Fortune, this is a unique opportunity to hear from an industry leader on how we will create a new generation of computing experiences.

Mar 14, 2017 | 9:30am – 10:30am | Center Room  18ABCD 500 E Cesar Chav

SXSW 2017

The other great thing about this year’s SXSW is the explosion of influencers attending. Make sure to take a moment to chat to:

Anina Net

(Left to Right), Anina Net, FashNerd.com founder Muchaneta Kapfunde and Electric Runway founder Amanda Cosco

Anina is an international fashion tech entrepreneur based in San Francisco and Beijing. We have profiled her on FashNerd.com before. As a woman in tech and a public speaker, she specializes in topics like entrepreneurship and fashion technology. She has held court at Fashion Tech Berlin, China National Garment Association and China Fashion Week. She is the executive producer of the 360Fashion and Tech Events in China.

Sabine Seymour

SUPA is a low-fi, hi-tech lifestyle AI connecting textile based SUPA sensors in clothing with the Internet of Things. SUPA is biometrics + sports + fashion + math Sabine has curated the MAK Fashion Lab at the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna, co-directed the research project BODYMetaphor at The New School, and was on the steering committee for ZeroPower Smart Fashion. She also authored “Fashionable Technology, The Intersection of Design, Fashion, Science, and Technology.”

Lady Kinvara Balfour

Kinvara is a director, producer, writer and speaker. Her work spans the worlds of fashion and technology. She has also spoken at conferences around the world about fashion, tech and the zeitgeist. Kinvara has advised and directed the launch of several major tech startups in the UK and has become known for her Fashion in Conversation with Apple Inc., an exclusive series of interviews with creative icons, Metail, BFC Fashion Forum, Beyman, Canon, Jimmy Choo and Coutts.

Tom Emrich

Photo Credit: TODD COYNE/TORONTO STAR

Community builder, Tom Emrich, who we met at the Wearable Technology Show in London last week, is the founder of We Are Wearables. It is the largest wearable tech community of its kind. Emrich is recognized as a global influencer for both wearable tech, virtual reality and regularly appears in the media as a wearable tech expert including The New York Times, CNN, BBC, CBC, Readers Digest and FASHION magazine. His passion for this space is driven by his belief that wearable tech plays a critical role in our human evolution.

Lakisha Greenwade

LaKisha Greenwade is a wearable tech innovator, marketing strategist, business professor and founder of the Glam Retreat, a wearable tech expo created in 2015 where she coaches women, youth, and those underrepresented in tech to learn new skills and build products.

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Founding Editor in Chief at FashNerd.com | editor@fashnerd.com | Website

Founding editor-in-chief of FashNerd.com, Muchaneta is currently one of the leading influencers writing about the merger of fashion with technology and wearable technology. She has also given talks at Premiere Vision, Munich Fabric Start and Pure London, to name a few. Besides working as a fashion innovation consultant for various fashion companies like LVMH Atelier, Muchaneta has also contributed to Vogue Business, is a senior contributor at The Interline and an associate lecturer at London College of Fashion, UAL.