As cred’s resident Texan, my home state is known for many great things—cowboys, the Alamo, and one of the best conferences in the world (in my humble, Austin unicorn opinion): South By, aka South by Southwest (SXSW)! An annual festival happening every spring in Austin, SXSW is part conference and part film and music festival, with the goal of bringing together leaders and thought provokers across all industries to share their knowledge.

Along with listening to talks from the likes of Stacey Abrams, Brené Brown, Kimberly Bryant, David Byrne, and Tim Ferriss, I was able to see cred speakers like Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder & CEO of Mighteor, Edith Yeung, Partner at 500 Startups, David Schwartz, CTO at Ripple, and Omar Tawakol, CEO & Founder at Voicea, take the stage and share their thoughts on the future of health, tech, politics, entertainment, and much more.

Here were some of my top three favorite talks:

Featured Session: Blockchain Beyond the Hype: The Ripple Effect

In front of more than 600 attendees, Ripple CTO David Schwartz spoke candidly about cryptography and the future of blockchain. Joined by Business Insider Editor-at-Large Sara Silverstein, David discussed his interest in bitcoin, the difference between XRP and Ripple, SEC regulation laws, and why XRP is not a security.

Keynote: A Cultural Crystal Ball

In front of a packed house, Bozoma Saint John, CMO at William Morris Endeavor, and Ashley Graham, model and host of the Pretty Big Deal podcast, discussed how to spot trends that will be the next big thing. The session dove into how being authentic has helped them navigate trends and how they have each developed or impacted the culture in their industries.

Filled with golden nuggets of wisdom throughout their talk, Bozoma’s message of “staying quiet and really paying attention to the world around you,” for new ideas and inspiration is something that I’ll be practicing.

Keynote: Shirley Manson & Lauren Mayberry with Puja Patel

Lead by alternative music powerhouses, Shirley Manson, Garbage frontwoman, and CHVRCHES vocalist Lauren Mayberry, this panel, moderated by Pitchfork Editor-in-Chief Puja Patel, discussed their experiences as women in the music industry, how growing up in Scotland helped shape them into the people they are today, how they stay creative, and how social media impacts them in both positive and negative ways.

Curious about where else cred has been so far? Check out our other event spotlights here!