The first ever SXSW event was held in March of 1986. To put that year into perspective in terms of tech:
Email was referred to as ‘electronic mail’, and it’s primary users were the military and universities.
The most advanced Apple computer had 128 kilobytes of RAM.
40 million music albums were made and sold in CD format.
The Euro didn’t exist.
SXSW started as a group of like minded individuals looking for a way to invite the world to Austin in order to show off their local creative and music talent, which they saw as of world class standard.
They expected 150 event goes on opening day, instead they got 700.
Seven years later, in 1994, saw the introduction of two new categories to the event, interactive and film. However, it was perhaps better remembered as the year Johnny Cash performed not only his hit songs, but also gave a keynote where he started off by saying “I’m proud to be asked to make what they call the keynote address, whatever that is.”
It was this laid back approach, combined with the performance of some of his most iconic songs, that made it so memorable. Although 11 years later, thanks to YouTube, we were able to look back on the highlights of Cash’s keynote, because the internet.
The caliber of not only the speakers, but also the attendees, has stayed just as high ever since. Better yet, the core values remain to bring creative people together in order to develop their careers through learning, meeting and sharing ideas.
The SXSW PanelPicker first launched in 2007, with the purpose of giving the public the opportunity to choose who takes the stage. Voting is live for 2017’s conference, and our very own Russ Fujioka is in the running to take part in the proposed Frenemy Feud.
A clever take on the iconic TV show Family Feud, Frenemy Feud will see the ultimate in ‘frenemies’ among the financial technology companies and banks battle it out in the hopes of winning the hearts of small businesses around the globe.
Accelerated development of tech in the financial services sector has been a game changer for small businesses, Russ said.
“Xero works with more than 80 financial institutions around the world, including Wells Fargo and HSBC, to build a financial web that saves small businesses time when dealing with their finances. By directly integrating with some of the world’s leading banks, we’re able to drive a rapid pace of innovation and help connect small business owners with big business, financial institutions and government so they can see a true picture of their financial standing.”
Xero and many of our add-on partners are working hard to keep improving financial technology solutions using the cloud and an open API ecosystem to help remake traditional industries, like accounting and banking, simple and easy to use for small businesses.
For more info and to vote visit the Frenemy Feud page. Let’s get Russ on stage at the world’s most exciting conference!
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