XOXO was an experimental festival for independent internet artists and creators; its full video archive is now publicly accessible.
Key Takeaways
XOXO ran multiple years and featured talks from independent builders, game developers, and creators operating outside mainstream tech.
The archive includes videos spanning at least 2012 to 2024, covering figures like itch.io founder Leaf Corcoran and Pinboard founder Maciej Ceglowski.
The festival focused on the intersection of art, independence, and the internet – distinct from typical startup or developer conferences.
No future editions are implied; the archive format suggests the festival has concluded.
Hacker News Comment Review
Commenters treat the archive as a curated vault: multiple people are actively queuing specific talks by year and speaker, suggesting the videos hold up as standalone content.
Strong consensus that XOXO was a singular event – comments describe it as life-changing or the best conference ever, with no equivalent replacement named.
At least one commenter (joshu) had a speaking slot at the final XOXO but could not attend, suggesting the last edition drew practitioners with genuine standing in the independent creator world.
Notable Comments
@simonw: Specifically recommends the Cabel Sasser 2024 talk as a must-watch.
@nathcd: Working through the archive systematically; flags Leaf Corcoran (itch.io) 2016 and Maciej Ceglowski (Pinboard) 2013 as strong picks.
