SXSW London is a six-day festival held in Shoreditch bringing together music, film, technology, and creative industries across conference programming, live performances, film screenings, and interactive exhibitions, with an expected attendance of 25,000 across multiple venues.
SXSW London is the United Kingdom edition of the annual SXSW festival, organised by Austin-based SXSW, LLC. The six-day event operates as a convergence of music, film, and technology programming, with daily conference themes addressing AI, HealthTech, Venture and Startup innovation, and Screen. It sits alongside SXSW Sydney and the original Austin event as part of the organiser's international portfolio.
SXSW London brings together creative professionals, technologists, entrepreneurs, and cultural figures across a deliberately broad programme that spans conference keynotes, panel discussions, music showcases, film screenings, and interactive exhibitions. The Shoreditch setting places it within one of Europe's most concentrated clusters of digital and creative industry activity. Unlike single-sector B2B conferences, the festival operates across multiple verticals simultaneously, with programming anchored by daily thematic pillars ranging from frontier AI to sustainable cities and design. The Venture Spotlight Competition and Startup Academy components give the festival a structured entry point for early-stage founders and investors alongside its cultural programming.
The 2026 programme is organised around the following thematic pillars:
The speaker lineup spans technology executives, political figures, screen and music industry creatives, health and culture voices, and sports personalities, according to organiser-published information.
Confirmed sponsors for the 2026 edition include Converse, Polestar, Ray-Ban, and Supercell.
Official media partners include Time Out, Billboard, Deadline, Rolling Stone, Artforum, and American Pavilion.
| Expected attendance | 25,000 | Organiser figure |
| Duration | 6 days | Confirmed |
| Programme themes | 9 | Confirmed |
| Special formats | 8 | Confirmed |
| Early-bird deadline | 18 May 2026 | Confirmed |
| Awards deadline | 9 March 2026 | Confirmed |
SXSW London is a multi-strand festival lasting six days that operates across conference, music, and screen formats simultaneously. It is not a trade show or a single-sector summit. Attendees move between keynote speeches, live music showcases, film screenings, startup competitions, and interactive exhibitions depending on their pass type and programme interests.
SXSW London is organised by the same entity, SXSW, LLC, which has run the Austin festival since 1987. The London edition follows the same structural model as the Austin event, with daily thematic programming, music and screen strands, and the Venture Spotlight format. It sits alongside SXSW Sydney and SXSW EDU as part of the organiser's wider international calendar.
Yes. The Startup Academy and Venture Spotlight Competition are dedicated formats within the programme for early-stage founders. These sit alongside the broader Venture and Startup Innovation thematic strand, which covers funding, product development, and growth. Investors are listed among the target audience segments. Access to these formats depends on pass type selected at registration.
The 2026 edition is based in Shoreditch, London. The precise venue address is not publicly disclosed as of verification. Shoreditch, in the London Borough of Hackney, is historically associated with the United Kingdom's digital, creative, and media industries, and has served as a cluster location for technology startups, design studios, and music venues. Festival programming is distributed across multiple sites within this area, consistent with the multi-venue model used at other SXSW editions.
SXSW, LLC is a privately held conference and festival producer founded in Austin, Texas in 1987. The company employs between 201 and 500 people and operates events focused on the convergence of technology, film, music, education, and culture. Its primary annual event remains SXSW Austin, which has run since the organisation's founding.
Beyond Austin, SXSW, LLC has expanded internationally with SXSW Sydney and SXSW London, and also operates SXSW EDU, a dedicated education-focused edition, and has an association with North by Northeast. The London edition marks a significant step in the organiser's European presence. Further information about the parent organisation is available at sxsw.com.
SXSW London enters the European festival calendar as a broad-spectrum creative and technology event, distinguishing itself from single-sector summits by running music, film, and conference programming concurrently across Shoreditch, with 25,000 expected attendees and a speaker lineup that spans AI policy, screen production, and startup finance.
Registration is open via the official passes page. The following pass types are available for the 2026 edition:
| Pass Type | Standard Price | Early Bird Price (before 18 May 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum Pass | EUR 1,560 | GBP 1,404 |
| Festival Pass | EUR 1,200 | GBP 1,080 |
| Screen Industry Pass | EUR 600 | GBP 540 |
| Music Industry Pass | EUR 600 | GBP 540 |
| Group Pass | EUR 330 | Not separately disclosed |
| Music Wristband | EUR 25 | Not separately disclosed |
The Platinum Pass provides full access to all conference tracks, music, and screen events. The Festival Pass covers general music and screen programming plus select conference content. Screen Industry and Music Industry passes provide strand-specific access. Group passes are available at preferential rates for teams, clients, universities, and organisations. The Music Wristband provides individual music event access. Complimentary access criteria are not publicly disclosed as of verification.
SXSW London supports structured networking through a dedicated mobile app, SXSW London, available for attendees to manage scheduling and connections. Advance scheduling functionality is available, allowing attendees to plan session attendance and meetings before the festival opens. B2B matchmaking is offered within the platform. Replay access is not available. An organiser newsletter exists and is distributed on an ad-hoc basis; subscription details are available via the official website.
The call for submissions to SXSW London 2026 is currently open. Submissions are accepted across three categories: conference talks, music performances, and film and screen submissions. The submission portal is accessible via the official website. The submission deadline is not publicly disclosed as of verification. Prospective submitters should monitor the official website for deadline updates.
SXSW London organises two award programmes as part of its 2026 festival:
The application deadline for both awards is 9 March 2026. A dedicated awards URL is not publicly disclosed as of verification. Further details are expected to be published on the official website ahead of the deadline.
Early-bird pricing across all applicable pass tiers closes on 18 May 2026. After that date, standard EUR pricing applies. The early-bird rates are denominated in GBP as listed above.
Yes. A Group Pass is available at EUR 330, specifically designed for teams, clients, universities, and organisations seeking preferential rates for multiple attendees. Further terms and access scope for group passes are not publicly disclosed as of verification beyond what is stated in the pass description.
Yes. The Music Wristband at EUR 25 provides individual music event access without requiring a full conference or festival pass. The Music Industry Pass at EUR 600 covers the music industry strand in greater depth. Attendees with purely music-focused interests are not required to purchase higher-tier passes granting conference or screen access.
| Official website | https://www.sxswlondon.com/ |
| Register | https://www.sxswlondon.com/passes |
| not disclosed | |
| Programme | https://www.sxswlondon.com/ |
| Call for submissions | https://www.sxswlondon.com/ |
| Organiser website | https://sxsw.com |
| Organiser LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/company/sxsw |