Live event tech pioneer Eventbase have launched the world’s first secure digital credential for conferences and events at the South By Southwest® (SXSW®)

Live event tech pioneer Eventbase have launched the world’s first secure digital credential for conferences and events at the South By Southwest^® (SXSW^®) Conference and Festivals, taking place in Austin, Texas.

MagicBadge is great, we’re really excited about the potential for badgeholders to have an enhanced, frictionless experience with sponsor engagement and other opportunities.””
— Michael Brown, VP of Technology Solutions at SXSW

This year the official SXSW GO mobile app, powered by Eventbase, features a ground-breaking new secure mobile badge called MagicBadge™. Developed by Eventbase and patent-pending, MagicBadge™ can reduce friction for attendees by offering an effortless tap-and-go experience. Providing an enhanced level of security, MagicBadge™ can also unlock personalized digital experiences with every tap, on an attendee’s phone and across the venue, too.

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Collaboration with George P. Johnson (GPJ)
To demonstrate how MagicBadge™ will drive powerful new activations at events, Eventbase collaborated with the world’s largest experiential marketing agency, George P. Johnson (GPJ). Together they created an interactive experience called “Find Your Flock” for attendees at the SXSW Event Tech Meetup.

Attendees were given a MagicBadge™ NFC Wallet Pass, which they tapped on a reader to begin the experience. Instantly, a personalized welcome message was displayed on a TV and they received a notification on their phone prompting them to answer a few questions. Their answers were used to assign them to one of five “Flocks” for a fun networking experience.

Arriving at the table for their Flock, attendees were prompted to tap a bird’s “nest” to check in. Hidden inside each nest was an additional scanner, which triggered a personalized drinks menu to appear on their device featuring different drinks based on their “role”. MagicBadge removed friction from the experience, so attendees could stay at their table and network. No need to wait in line or even specify their name or location. Drinks were delivered directly to their table in an average of 24 seconds along with unique swag. It was magical.

“We had fun creating this new kind of experience and hiding some easter eggs throughout, and attendees loved it” says Ken Madden, SVP and Head of Technology & Innovation at GPJ. “The technology has incredible potential to transform event experiences by streamlining the check-in experience and providing a real-time mechanism for triggering personalized digital experiences with every MagicBadge tap.”

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Contact Exchange
All badgeholders at SXSW 2025 were able to use MagicBadge to exchange contact information with other attendees. Attendees could create their own Contact Card in the SXSW GO mobile app and choose what information they wanted to share. Then they could simply scan another attendee’s MagicBadge in the event app to instantly exchange contact info. No more business cards!

Future Applications
Soon attendees will be able to use MagicBadge to tap their phone or even their watch across the event campus to check-in and interact with exhibitors, sponsors and other attendees. MagicBadge provides for a frictionless encounter at activations, which often require completing lengthy forms and authenticating via email. Furthermore, MagicBadge ensures that both the event organizer and activation partner have visibility into the usage data.

MagicBadge will be able to elevate the event experience in many ways. When tapping into a session, attendees can be prompted to select the language they want to listen in. Or tapping at an activation might invite them to join an interactive video game on their phone and play against fellow attendees.

“MagicBadge is great,” said Michael Brown, VP of Technology Solutions at SXSW. “We’re really excited about the potential for badgeholders to have an enhanced, frictionless experience with sponsor engagement and other opportunities. I think people are already used to the tap experience, so it’s a natural extension of the credential.”