A conference centered on technology and entrepreneurship in Louisiana that was to be modeled after Austin’s popular festival South by Southwest, or SXSW, has been cancelled.
NX, as the event was to be called, was the brainchild of Baton Rouge businessman John Schneider and was scheduled for Sept. 16-18 at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. An organizer with NX, Kelly Binnings, confirms the event has been cancelled but referred calls for comment to Schneider, who is traveling. Schneider responded to a text message, saying plans and dates have been “revised.” However, he did not respond to questions about why NX was called off and if or when he might try to reschedule it.
Schneider launched the event just three months ago, with no named sponsors or guest speakers. Still, his ambitious lineup called for six major national keynote speakers and 24 breakout sessions with local experts on entrepreneurship and technology. No speakers were ever announced, nor is there any evidence NX was able to secure any sponsors.
The NX website, meanwhile, doesn’t appear to have been updated in at least a month, and a gubernatorial forum scheduled for Sept. 16 had only one confirmed participant, Democratic Rep. John Bel Edwards. The Edwards campaign says it was notified earlier this summer the forum was cancelled.
When Schneider unveiled the event in June, he said his purpose in creating NX was to “focus national and international attention on Louisiana’s advancements in entrepreneurship and technology.”
—Stephanie Riegel
