Josh Dilworth

SXSWi panels, please vote!

For those of you who haven’t already been checking out the SXSW 2010 panelpicker (which includes Film and Music selections for the first time, alongside Interactive), here is an abridged list of some of my favorites, which I’ll add to over time.

Disclosure: Smart.fm, 80legs, Swingly, Siri and Twine are clients.

Some of the trends we’re seeing across this year’s submissions include:

• Big data. And, what people are doing to get it, manage it, scale it, and do really, really cool things with it. In my mind, the bigger the better. Check out this great video with Roger Magoulas of O’Reilly on why big data is important.
• Arrival of the Semantic Web. Linked data is becoming a reality, and lots of pople are interested in what’s next. There are a lot of great semweb panels this year. Check out an even more comprehensive list over on Juan Sequada’s blog.
• AI and assistants. A shout out here to Siri and what they are doing to make our lives less hectic, but overall automation and the meaningful delegation of tasks (and task-orientation generally) comprise a major theme this year across a variety of panels.
• Entrepreneurial topics. Bootstrapping, VC hacks, tips and tricks, lessons learned, community building, etc. — important topics that form the backbone of SXSWi. But whereas last year thjere were about a dozen panels at SXSWi that had to do with surviving and thriving in the downturn, this 2010 crop of submissions has a decidedly more altruistic and cooperative bent.
• Advanced geekery. There seems to be a (IMHO much-needed) return to more technical and meaty topics, IP-level innovation, under-the-hood tinkering, etc. This theme is in concert with what we’re seeing overall as Web 2.0 concepts reach maturity — a subsequent return to fundamentals and infrastructure.
• The future of learning and education. This is the year that learning and education really break loose, and I fully expect that between now and March we’ll see technological innovation start to meaningfully reshape how we think about learning and learning effectively. It’s also worth noting that the recession has sent scores of people back to school — those fresh eyes and new visions are going to be a big part of the story.

Please, vote for what you want to be heard at SXSWi 2010. It’s a unique opportunity and a big part of what continues to make SXSWi special.