Famed as the world’s leading festival of creativity, SXSW has made its European debut this month with an edition landing in London for the first time. However, controversy quickly reared its head...
Former UK prime ministers Tony Blair and David Cameron were among the unannounced speakers at the inaugural edition of SXSW London, which runs until 7 June and spans film, gaming, panel discussion and music – including musical acts Erykah Badu, Nile Rodgers and Idris Elba.
Screenshots were leaked of the un-shared programme that included Cameron talking on a panel called Healthcare Revolution, and Blair on one called Government and AI, which also featured Technology Secretary and Labour Friends of Israel member Peter Kyle.
Tony Blair spoke at the conference’s opening day, saying that Britain needs to fully embrace artificial intelligence in public services and that we “could have AI tutors” along with “AI nurses, AI doctors”.
Despite lingering concerns over data privacy and job displacement, Blair stated that the UK risks being left behind in what he described as the greatest transformation since the 19th-century Industrial Revolution.
His comments were echoed by Peter Kyle, who argued that the UK risked becoming “obsolete” if it failed to act boldly.
Blair did stress that AI was neither inherently good or bad, but a powerful tool requiring responsible use.
Both Blair and Kyle spoke after a UK government trial found that generative AI could save civil servants an average of 26 minutes a day.
The panel appearance, which was not announced to the public or artists, prompted many artists to cancel their planned performances at the festival.
Sam Akpro, Rat Party, Saliah and LVRA were amongst the artists who pulled out, with the latter accusing the festival of “artwashing”, saying that “whilst the music team were pulling together a diverse, ‘cool’ lineup, the conference team were booking speakers from multiple organisations deeply complicit in the current genocide of Palestinian people.”
“I implore artists to engage, rather than ignore, those things that affect us and strive to protect the most marginalised voices in the world,” LVRA added. “I urge us as a community to think bigger, and better, than the scraps offered to us today.”
Scottish artist Magnus Westwell said they're also joining the boycott "due to the corporation's unethical, misleading and secretive conference programming of war criminals, art-washing and practices that exploit marginalised artists."
See some of the other reactions below.
To address the criticisms, a spokesperson for SXSW London sent the following: "As one of the world's largest festivals across tech, music and the creative industries, SXSW London respects everyone's views and positions and aims to create an open, diverse space for debate and discussion.”
The statement continued: “Across the breadth of the festival, with over 800 speakers, we have a broad range of global leaders spanning the technology and cultural industries, their inclusion doesn't represent an endorsement of any particular position or viewpoint."
This is not the first time that artists have boycotted SXSW.
More than 100 artists and speakers pulled out of last year’s edition of the brand's flagship Austin event in Texas after it partnered with the US Army and defense contractor RTX Corporation.
The huge wave of 2024 SXSW boycotts due to the festival's ties to defense groups that supply Israeli weapons in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war included artists like Kneecap, Rachel Chinouriri, Lambrini Girls and Scowl.
Following the backlash, both partnerships were discontinued for 2025 - proving artist Saliah right: boycotts work.
