SXSW EDU
EDUCATION
SXSW EDU Returns to Austin Exploring the Future of Learning and Creativity
Monica J. Sutton speaking at Reimagining Early Learning: Connection in a Digital Age, SXSW EDU 2026. Photo: Pablo Herrera / TMN®
SXSW EDU returns to Austin this year as part of the broader SXSW ecosystem, bringing together educators, innovators, researchers, and creative professionals to explore how learning is evolving in a rapidly changing world.
AUSTIN | By Aja Haywood
SXSW EDU is part of the broader South by Southwest ecosystem taking place in Austin each March.
While the main SXSW festival is widely known for film premieres, music showcases, and technology discussions, SXSW EDU focuses specifically on education. The conference creates a space where teachers, students, researchers, and industry leaders gather to exchange ideas about the future of learning, creativity, and knowledge sharing.
This year marks my second time covering SXSW EDU with TMN. Returning to the conference offers an opportunity to continue exploring conversations I began documenting last year. In my previous coverage, I wrote about questions surrounding responsible technology in AI Ethics and reflected on my reporting experience in TMN Reports, examining how education, media, and emerging technologies increasingly intersect.
Over four days in Austin, SXSW EDU brings together a large community of educators and creative thinkers. The conference features more than 300 sessions and workshops, 15+ films and performances, two major competitions, over 50 interactive exhibitions, and more than 120 mentorship and networking opportunities designed to spark new ideas and collaborations in education.
The program is organized around a wide range of thematic tracks that explore different aspects of the learning ecosystem. Sessions often focus on topics such as Teaching and Learning, Equity and Belonging, Future of Technology, Leadership and Policy, and Creative Approaches to Education, reflecting the evolving challenges and possibilities shaping classrooms and learning environments today.
TMN® at SXSW EDU 2026. Pablo Herrero with creators Aja and Lilybeth as the team begins its coverage of this year’s conference in Austin.
Speakers and Conversations
Hundreds of speakers participate in SXSW EDU each year, offering perspectives from across education, media, research, and technology. Among the featured voices in this year’s program is Jennifer B. Wallace, bestselling author and founder of The Mattering Institute, who will lead one of the keynote conversations examining how young people develop purpose and belonging in educational environments.
Throughout the conference, panels and discussions bring together educators, technologists, artists, and policymakers who approach similar challenges from very different perspectives. This diversity of voices is one of the defining features of SXSW EDU, creating conversations that often move beyond traditional ideas about education.
Education, Technology, and Creative Media
For creators and storytellers, these conversations can be particularly relevant. As technology reshapes how people communicate and produce media, the ways young people learn and develop creative skills are also changing.
Artificial intelligence is one of the subjects drawing growing attention across the conference. Many sessions explore how AI may influence education, both as a learning tool and as a force transforming how knowledge is produced, shared, and understood.
Through the sessions, interviews, and conversations taking place during SXSW EDU, I hope to explore questions such as how new technologies are influencing creative learning and how educators are adapting their approaches in response to rapid technological change.
Looking Ahead
Covering SXSW EDU with TMN offers a chance not only to observe these conversations, but also to document how education, creativity, and technology continue to intersect in new and unexpected ways.
As the conference unfolds, I look forward to sharing insights from the discussions and highlighting the voices of educators and innovators who are helping shape the future of learning.
