News and Insights

FINN Clients on the Main Stage at SXSW 2025

February 7, 2025

Brands igniting bold ideas, reshaping industries, and taking on the world’s toughest challenges—these are the visionaries commanding the stage at SXSW 2025. They’re not just talking innovation; they’re building it, sparking cultural shifts, and redefining what’s possible. These are the disruptors, the risk-takers, the changemakers we’re proud to stand alongside as they turn ambition into action.

Scroll down to learn more about client panels at SXSW and SXSW EDU:

March 4, 2025 | 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM CST

Enough Talk! Let’s Play with AI

https://schedule.sxswedu.com/2025/events/PP153172

Speakers: Jin-Soo Huh, The Learning Accelerator; Zachary Kennelly, DSST Public Schools; Albert Kim, Leading Educators (Client)

There’s been much big dreaming (and some worrying) about what AI will mean for the future of education. But amid the chatter, many entrepreneurial educators are already using it to shift possibilities for instruction and engagement in real ways! This rotation workshop—which includes a teacher from the School Teams AI Collaborative—will help attendees learn how to leverage promising practices emerging from action research with real educators. These could include using AI in writing, teaching students to create their own chatbots, and differentiating support plans. Let’s play!

March 4, 2025 | 2:30 – 3:30 PM CST

Future Ready Impact: Redefining How We Measure Success

https://schedule.sxswedu.com/2025/events/PP150107

Speakers: Diego Arambula, The Carnegie Foundation; Mike Duncan, Ed.D., Battelle for Kids (Client); Laura Slover, Institute for Student Achievement, ETS; Catherine Truitt, North Carolina Department Of Public Instruction

Education has often been narrowly defined by test scores, offering only a snapshot of learning and future readiness. This expert panel explores a transformative approach to measuring success, highlighting North Carolina’s statewide Portrait of a Graduate and the Carnegie/ETS Skills for the Future initiative. We will examine how creating a bold new framework for measuring durable skills can align academic learning with workforce and community needs. Join us to envision an education system that recognizes, values, and leverages all skills to prepare every student for future success.

March 5, 2025 | 2:30 – 3:30 PM CST

The Ethical Use of AI In the Education of Black Children

https://schedule.sxswedu.com/2025/events/PP150763

Speakers: Leah Austin, National Black Child Development Institute (Client); Kiesha King, T-Mobile; Calvin Mackie, PhD, STEM NOLA; Winston Roberts, Foundation Academy

An esteemed panel of educators, and nonprofit and tech leaders will uncover AI’s ethical complexities and its impact on the education of Black children. This panel will address historical disparities, biases in technology, and the critical need for ethical AI in education to safeguard them. They will offer unique perspectives into the benefits and challenges of AI in education and other critical areas where Black children are especially impacted. With recommendations for an ethical AI future, the panel aims to share best practices to promote the safe, ethical and legal use of AI in classrooms.

March 6, 2025 | 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM CST

From Service to Success: Empowering Veterans to Enter Tech

https://schedule.sxswedu.com/2025/events/PP153192

Speakers: Jonathan Pride, NPower Inc. (Client); Dwight D. Shepherd, IBM; Elaine Zavala, Texas Veterans Commission

Each year, 200,000 U.S. service members transition to civilian life, often facing stress, mental health, and substance abuse challenges. In 2023, 35,574 veterans were homeless, a significant number under the age of 35. Access to well-paying, fulfilling jobs can help prevent these issues. Veterans possess foundational skills and security clearances required for high-demand fields like cybersecurity, AI, and IT. Creating pathways outside two- and four-year degree programs can fill workforce gaps, and help provide the financial and emotional stability they deserve.