South By Southwest was strange this year. No convention center to anchor the event (it’s a giant hole in the ground right now, being rebuilt from scratch, much like [insert your analogy here] will also need to be rebuilt in the age of AI).
This South By was a all about convergence. How AI will impact [xyz] continues to be the dominant theme at the conference and in so much tech coverage (including on this podcast; sorry!).
So, Kwaku and I report on the convergences we saw (and not only at Amy Webb’s annual talk where “convergence” was her key word). This includes everything from:
- the RoboCup, a quest (a la Deep Blue winning at chess) for humanoid robots to be able to defeat a team of great humans at soccer
- pants that you wear (or do they wear you) that are kind of like an e-bike for your legs
- an AI-powered Cyrano de Bergerac that can help you whisper sweet nothings in your lover’s ear
- falling in love with an AI (and their business model)
- and AI that can tell you whether to have another slice of brisket (yes, duh, you’re in Austin!)
So, come on along to Austin for what’s become an annual tradition: Kwaku and my SXSW Rooftop Revue.
And stay tuned for a few more episodes from a wild week!
Chapters:
- (00:25) - SXSW 2026: everything everywhere all at once
- (01:23) - Kwaku stumbles into a World Economic Forum session on convergence
- (05:54) - Reinforcement learning and robot soccer
- (09:07) - Amy Webb's three convergences: emotional outsourcing, unlimited labor, human augmentation
- (09:55) - Pants that are an e-bike for your legs
- (11:27) - The mental tax of running a fleet of AI agents
- (13:28) - Your boss wants you to pay for your own augmentation
- (16:07) - Esther Perel, Spike Jonze, and falling in love with Her business model
- (18:55) - An AI Cyrano de Bergerac to help you win your lover’s heart
- (25:30) - IRL is the antidote!
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Future Around & Find Out- Get the newsletter, support the show, check out past episodes: https://www.futurearound.com
What is Future Around & Find Out?
You know what would be awesome? If we could build the future we want — before we muck it up.
Future Around & Find Out helps builders think clearly about AI and emerging technologies, grapple with the implications, and decide what to build next.
Independent technologist and former NPR journalist Dan Blumberg speaks with founders, makers, and you to celebrate breakthroughs, call BS on the hype, explore how things might go sideways — and how we can steer the future in the right direction.
The Webby Awards have honored the show (formerly known as CRAFTED.) as a top tech podcast three years in a row!
On Tuesdays, we feature interviews with the builders changing how we work, live, and play.
On FAFO Fridays, futurist Kwaku Aning joins Dan for a playful recap of the week in tech, including the amazing, the scary, and the strange.
You’ll also hear about innovations that too often get overshadowed by AI, including in deep tech, biotech, fintech, quantum computing, robotics, blockchain, and more.
Across it all, you’ll hear sharp takes on what comes next and what builders need to know now.
So let’s Future Around & Find Out together!
https://www.FutureAround.com