The City of Munich and the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs are supporting five young, innovative companies that hope to find inspiration and further develop in Austin at SXSW 2019. We discuss which startups were selected in 2019 and why Austin is a better place for certain things than New York or the Bay Area.
The Competence team for cultural and creative industries The City of Munich, in cooperation with the Free State of Bavaria, is bringing five startups to SXSW, the world's largest cultural and creative industries festival. Successful applications for 2019 include Viond, Varia Media, Uber Eck, the Science and Fiction Festival, and Plantura Garden.
“Be inspired, make contacts and broaden your horizons”
In addition to motion graphics, the 'Uber Eck' animation studio focuses on new technologies in the field of AR/VR. Niklaus Hofer, one of the founders, explains what attracts him and his co-founders to SXSW:
"As a creative studio, we always try to stay up-to-date and fresh, and as tech-savvy creatives, we like to follow the latest trends. Whether it's the latest VR technology, flying LED drones, or a new rendering engine."
For Munich residents, the latest trends are just one of many reasons that draw them to SXSW. Hofer explains:
“We want to be inspired by this unique festival, make contacts, and broaden our horizons.”
The Munich media startup Varia also has good reasons for its participation in SXSW 2019. Just like Plantura, the digital garden magazine, The Munich-based entrepreneurs aim to establish contacts with US media houses, among others. In addition to its digital magazine, Plantura has also launched various organic fertilizers and has been working intensively on internationalization for some time. The startup has already Media Lab Explore New York.
Austin or New York?
Speaking of New York: Startups are usually more likely to consider New York or Silicon Valley than Austin when planning their expansion strategies. But what can startups only get at SXSW 2019? We wanted to know from Jürgen Enninger, who is traveling to Austin for the fifth time this year. For the head of the Competence team for cultural and creative industries Creative value creation is characterized by networking, and networking, in turn, is characterized by coincidence. He explains it this way:
"The principle is called serendipity. Now a startup or creative company can prepare systematically and structured for appointments or plunge into the hustle and bustle of a conference in order to make as many outstanding contacts from the industry as possible in the shortest possible time."
Serendipity at SXSW 2019
For Enninger, this is precisely where the added value of the festival lies. Originating from a music happening, this groove, in his opinion, still carries the congress. While there is a program, German House offers a lotBut most visitors are driven by topics, people and exciting speakers (Munich Startup also had this experience!), meets people in queues, and gets carried away with many new international ideas over a coffee, says Enninger. He adds:
"This is how serendipity, innovation, and thus value creation work at startups. You can still have the structured meetings in Silicon Valley or New York. After you've sorted your business cards, Slacks, WhatsApp groups, or Trellos."
So the conclusion: First, go to SXSW, because that will provide the starting point for many further discussions — be it in New York, Silicon Valley, or simply in your hometown of Munich.
