MAKO Design + Invent at SXSW Interactive 2016

The 2016 South By Southwest Interactive (SXSW) Interactive Festival took place this year in March in the beautiful city of Austin, TX. South by South West (SXSW) was one of the most exciting events of the year aimed at start-ups and entrepreneurs from all around the globe.

Our company President, Kevin Mako, was on-site to join the fun in this exciting event and met with over 100 industry leaders. SXSW Interactive is renowned internationally for its delivery showcasing a wide range of the latest world-class product innovations every year. The festival is truly an incubator of cutting-edge technologies and digital products. This year we got to see the best new emerging technologies in topics ranging from virtual reality, artificial intelligence, wearable tech, apps, and IoT to health and biotech, music and audio, responsive design and more.

MAKO Design + Invent‘s client TRAGO was one of the top 5 Best Hardware Startups in Austin that took part in this year’s Hardware Pitch contest. We can’t wait to help them take their innovative hydration tracker to the next level as they continue to disrupt the sports and health industry.

Virtual reality was a big deal at this year’s festival; we saw many brands showcasing VR goggles to enthusiastic early adopters. The event hosted a great number of panels, seminars, and exhibitors centred on the impact of virtual reality in people’s lives. SXSW also hosted its annual Interactive Awards including several different categories and introducing the world to creative and disruptive innovations.

One of the highlights of the event was President Barack Obama’s keynote on digital privacy and security. It was the first time for a US president to speak at the event. And of course, this year’s event would not have been the same without social media star Grumpy Cat’s guest appearance.

Austin has been a great hub for innovation companies and a leading city full of opportunities as well as MAKO’s second home. SXSW Interactive 2016 is certainly the event to attend for every tech enthusiast, expert and innovator to network, get the latest info about the industry and discover emerging trends and technologies. We are looking forward to next year’s edition.  Have you been to SXSW Interactive this year? Tell us your experience and feedback.

About: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop-shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories. Also, our founder Kevin Mako hosts The Product Startup Podcast, the industry's leading hardware podcast. Check it out for tips, interviews, and best practices for hardware startups, inventors, and product developers. Click HERE to learn more about MAKO Design + Invent!