The Geely-owned electric car brand Polestar has announced that it is the exclusive automotive partner for the inaugural edition of SXSW London, taking place between 2nd and 7th June.
Stretching over 25 venues in Shoreditch, the SXSW event will showcase some of the world’s best innovators in tech, screen, music and creativity.
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Polestar will be exhibiting at the event, including filming the Polestar Performance Stage through the roof-mounted rearview camera on Polestar 4 and beaming it to the large screen behind the artists.
Positioned in Ely’s Yard, Polestar 4 will also be on display for visitors to explore the SUV coupé, which has removed the rear windscreen in favour of a digital rearview mirror, providing drivers with ‘unparalleled breadth of vision and clarity to the rear’.
The Polestar Performance Stage features ten music concerts, with emerging artists handpicked by SXSW and Polestar teams.
Polestar also sponsors the Planet and Energy speaker track and will be hosting a keynote address by Sid Odedra, Polestar’s new Head of UI/UX on the topic of how a more human approach can bring back tech as ‘a force for good’.
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By GlobalDataOdedra joined Polestar in 2025 from Audi and has a PhD in robotics and experience across automotive, tech, fashion and entertainment. Polestar’s Sustainability Advocacy lead Ellen Broomé will also join the “Cancelling Sustainability” panel, discussing climate scepticism.
In addition, between now and the start of the event, Polestar will hide a limited number of scale model Polestar cars across the city of London. Each one grants the finder a Platinum ticket to the festival, offering full access to the programme. Clues to the locations will be shared on Polestar’s Instagram account @polestarcars in the days leading up to the event.
“We are delighted and proud to welcome Polestar as exclusive automotive partner, whose ambitions align perfectly with our mission to showcase future focused trends and to drive sustainability progress and innovation across industries. We’re also excited that Polestar will become the sponsor of the SXSW Planet & Energy conference track. This partnership is a great example of when two like-minded brands come together to curate and build something original and authentic. Hopefully this is the beginning of a longer collaboration,” says Sam O’Shaughnessy, Global Head of Partnerships at SXSW London.
“SXSW is one of the most culturally relevant platforms globally and we’re proud to be one of the founding partners for the first SXSW event in Europe, our home market. We’re especially excited over the Polestar Performance Stage which will feature a line-up of really cool artists,” says Michael Manske, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Polestar.
