About the Summit

Since 2016, the United States Conference of Mayors, in partnership with South by Southwest and the City of Austin, have organized the Civic I/O Mayors’ Summit at SXSW.

Each March, mayors from around the country gather at the Civic I/O Mayors Summit at SXSW. The summit is a time to bring together city leaders, creatives, entrepreneurs, and provocative thinkers to learn from one another and engage in the premier destination for discovery.

Over the course of the opening weekend of the South by Southwest Festival, the mayors attend sessions with specialized content designed uniquely for them, experience the larger SXSW festival, participate on panels, and enjoy the hospitality of Austin. We use this time to challenge mayors and their staff, to expose them to new ideas and technology, and, of course, to have fun.

Panels at SXSW

A major component of the Civic I/O Mayors Summit, through our partnership with SXSW, mayors also participate in panels where attendees get to hear important perspectives. Topics range from the pressing issues of the day, such as public safety and housing affordability to trending conversations with finalist cities in Amazon’s HQ2 competition to the impacts of disinformation in local politics and city government.

Civic Tech Pitch

Civic I/O mayors are constantly seeking creative solutions to real, pressing civic challenges. We provide those mayors and companies a place to uncover and design solutions together. The goal isn’t disruption but evolution — finding products and services that are a win-win for both cities and startups. We also help companies and mayors continue their collaboration after the competition has ended, working with both to facilitate the relationships necessary to develop tailored, stress-tested solutions for real-world cities.

About the Pitch

Introduce Civic I/O mayors to your company, product, technology, or idea in this unique pitch competition that occurs during our annual summit.

Pitch your idea to a panel of the country’s foremost mayors and industry experts for a chance to win prize money.

Gain exposure to 20+ mayors from across the country while being an integral part of addressing civic challenges.

The winner will also have the opportunity to pitch at an upcoming United States Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting, where over 200 mayors will be present.