From Alex James to AI: SXSW London strikes a cultural chord

I missed the King at SXSW London, but at least I got to see indie royalty Alex James of Blur talking about cheese, getting on a bit and the William Tell Overture.

The first SXSW London last week certainly made its mark on Shoreditch, which was awash with bright pink lanyards – especially as conference day turned into music gig night. From the Truman Brewery to the Barbican, it covered a massive area. While standout venues like Shoreditch Electric were featured, the conference could have benefited from more opportunities for visitors to connect.

With a major focus on tech, AI, music, and a touch of property, design and placemaking, SXSW London did a solid job of breaking down industry silos. Is anyone in architecture thinking about how AI architectural design is learning? Which architects’ designs is gen AI influenced by – or copying? The music industry is already grappling with these questions, with German rights organisation GEMA suing Suno AI over alleged copyright infringement. How long until architecture and design confront similar issues of authorship?

At @ING we talk a lot about soft power and how investing in culture makes a city more liveable – and by extension, more investible. Regular readers of our Built Perspectives newsletter will know that our Visible Cities report takes this further by analysing conversations around cultural happenings and what they mean for a place’s prospects.

A look at SXSW’s online presence shows just how impactful the London edition has been. Over the past year, there were around 500,000 conversations about SXSW London – accounting for approximately 0.5% of London’s total visibility. For context, that’s not far off the 1.5% visibility spike Manchester saw with the opening of Co-op Live, and while it doesn’t quite reach the 2.8% visibility generated by Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in London, it’s a strong showing for a debut event.

SXSW London also made waves globally, accounting for 10% of all SXSW mentions over the past year. Notably, 80% of conversations about SXSW London happened on video-first platforms like TikTok and Instagram, echoing the viral dynamics seen with the Eras Tour. This is a stark contrast to London’s overall visibility, where only 20% of mentions come from these platforms.

The buzz was driven by high-profile celebrity appearances, the Creator Talk and the London Opening Night Premiere, with other notable names like Idris Elba and Demis Hassabis (CEO of Google DeepMind) each contributing over 2% of the conversation.

Personal attendance from the King, Sadiq Khan and Angela Rayner clearly shows that politics and power understand the importance of celebrating culture in London. Returning in 2026, the question is: can SXSW London succeed in creating a meaningful platform for business and culture to connect in the capital?