Born Global: Austin

With its laid-back vibe being reminiscent of many Australian cities, its growing arts, food and technology scene and easy access to many diverse US cities, the population of Aussie’s in Austin is growing rapidly.

You may have heard of South by Southwest – an annual conglomerate of film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences that take place in mid-March in Austin. It began in 1987, and has continued to grow in both scope and size every year. With this growth also comes the number of Australian individuals, artists and entrepreneurs that are attending to be exposed to new ideas and opportunities.

This year, The Australian Government presence at South by Southwest was led by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) and was an all-encompassing Australian experience with technology showcases, music performances, keynote speakers and interactive displays by some of Australia’s leading industries. You can read two of the companies experience in Austin below.

Meet our members in Austin

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Smarter streaming & intelligent content: Linius

Of the eight companies Austrade invited over to experience the SxSW festival in Austin, Chris Richardson, the CEO of Video Virtualisation Engine Linius, was one of them.

Innovative Educators: Quitch is making learning fun

Making learning fun – a concept that many educators worldwide have tried many times over. Dr Grainne Oats is precisely one of those educators and is succeeding in spades.

The Crows: AFL in Austin

There are many difficulties associated with moving to a different country – things that we’re sure many Australian expatriates have experienced. Of these, finding a new social network, or even better – a group of mates – can be tough.

Rhonda Evans: Director of Australian & NZ Studies, University of Texas at Austin

“I think it’s important for Americans to learn about Australia for several reasons.”

Know before you go

Check out Smartraveller advice for the United States – subscribe to updates and register your travel plans here.

Make the move

Interested in making the move to Austin? Check out our information on the requirements to obtain a working visa for the United States here.

Things to do

Feeling hungry? Check out the award-winning, Laundrette for some seriously good southern food or Dai Due for a lighter, locally sourced meal.

Feeling thirsty? Stop off at Geraldine’s for a great view of the downtown skyline, live music and cocktails with a contemporary twist.

Top experiences and sites? Visit The Contemporary Austin’s latest exhibition and take a trip down memory lane rifling through Uncommon Objects to find some take-home treasures!

Unique to this city? Get the real Austin experience by taking some two-stepping lessons or listening to the regular country music sets at Broken Spoke.

There for a limited amount of time? Check out the New York Times 36 hours in Austin, Texas.

Did you know?

Austin is one of the sunniest cities in America. Out of 365 days, Austin gets an average of 300 days of sunshine
The Texas State Capitol building is the second largest capitol building
Austin is well known for its breakfast tacos – worth a try!
Austin has the largest urban bat colony in North America – during summer 1.5 million bats migrate to Austin