Explore AI, creativity, and worlds to come at Sónar+D technology festival

The full lineup for Sónar+D, the technology side-event that runs in parallel with the Sónar by Day music festival, has been revealed, with another intriguing programme exploring the limits of technology and creativity. 

Sónar+D is a parallel event that features talks, conferences, installations, exhibitions, and performances, all centered around technology, and examining the boundaries of what is possible today while asking what could be possible tomorrow. 

Its programme this year is structured around three pillars, with a large crossover existing between them all in content: AI + Creativity, Imagining The Future of Creative Industries, and Worlds To Come. 

AI + Creativity is largely built towards artists and music, featuring different teams and exhibitors who develop AI tools for music creation, always from a decidedly humanist perspective. The Sónar website puts it best: "This isn’t about ChatGPT or Midjourney." Led by specialists in human-computer interaction, this bloc offers a practical approach to innovative tools, unconventional approaches, and alternative applications of AI in the fields of music, audiovisual content, interaction, and performing arts.

Among the highlights of this category at Sónar+D are Maria Arnal’s live musical performance incorporating artificial intelligence, the +RAIN film festival taking part within the Sónar+D framework, a masterclass in the fusion between AI and traditional non-Western music by Thai scientist and artist ญาบอยฮานอย yaboihanoi, and other talks and discussions led by Professor Rebecca Fiebrink and researchers from Stability AI.

Imagining The Future of Creative Industries is designed especially for professionals in the creative industries sector, offering a space for learning, inspiration and reflection on the changes that will define their future. The block will address the needs and challenges of those who work in programming, curating, cultural management, as well as in communication, advertising, experience design, trend research and other related fields. 

This section will include a forum titled ‘How to future the creative industries’, talks on the transformation and future of cultural curatorship, futurology workshops, a unique crossover of digital art and cultural patrimony with a recreation of the apse of Sant Climent de Taüll, and MusicTech Europe. 

Meanwhile, Worlds To Come will project a vision of the future. Whereas ten years ago, artificial intelligence was being spoken of as a new frontier in technology, it is now omnipresent in our world. What will the technologies of ten years’ time look like? This year's program covers everything from quantum computing and non-binary futurism to terraforming and interstellar travel.

Some of the most exciting exhibitions, installations, and work on show in this section will be Albert.DATA’s EEG scanner as the researcher and artists neurohacks himself in real time for artistic performance that will translate his own brainwaves into live audiovisual content, an original performance conference from Libby Heaney, the first artist in the world to use quantum computing in art, under the name 'Eat my Multiverse', and an audiovisual conference of space exploration by artist and engineer Xin Liu. 

Sónar+D will be held between June 12-14 in Fira Montjuïc congress hall in Barcelona as part of the Sónar music festival. Tickets are available on the festival website.

Full lineup for Sónar+D 2025 as of March 11, 2025: 

AI + Creativity 

+RAIN Film Festival (INT) | AI Performance Playground (INT) | AudioStellar presents ‘Territorios sonoros emergentes’ (AR) | Introducing AI & Music (INT) | Joanne Armitage ‘Automating Bodies: Power, Music and AI’ (UK) | Jordi Pons 'Artistic trends in Music AI' (ES) | Maria Arnal presents 'Ama' (ES) | Marije Baalman (NL) | R-010 & Venerandi presents 'Phenomena' (ES) | Rebecca Fiebrink ‘Design your dream music AI tool’ (UK) | Ville Haimala presents 'Hyporeal' (FI/DE) | yaboihanoi 'Lemongrass & Bass: A Thai Recipe for AI Music' (TH)

Imagining The Future of Creative Industries

‘Aquelarre Futurista’ with Berta Segura & Francesca Tur (ES) | Chris Watson & Izabella Dłużyk present 'Białowieża' (UK/(PL) | ‘Hacking the world' with Berta Segura & Francesca Tur (ES) | Heith, James K and Günseli Yalcinkaya present 'The Talk' live AV (EU) | How to future the creative industries (INT) | ‘Lux Mundi’ (ES) | ‘MAT(H) de Julieta Wibel with Mike Fernández, Samantha Hudson and YESSi PERSE (ES) | Music Tech Europe Academy: Startups Pitch Session (EU/ES) | Music Tech Dialogues: Creative Economy Data + DEMODAY (EU/ES) | Saint Abdullah, Eomac and Rebecca Salvadori present 'A Forbidden Distance' (INT) | Salome Asega ‘Architect or Gardener’ (US)

Worlds To Come

Albert.DATA 'SYNAPTICON' (ES) | Animistic Beliefs and Jeisson Drenth present 'Thức Tỉnh' AV (NL) | Dania + Mau Morgó present 'replica — relic' (IQ-AU/ES) | Danielle Braithwaite-Shirley ‘WE CAN’T PRETEND ANYMORE’ (UK) | Forensis and Bill Kouligas present 'The Drum and The Bird' (INT) | Libby Heaney ‘Eat my Multiverse’ (UK) presented by SEIDOR | Alice Sparkly Kat and Manuka Honey ‘Listen, the stars are talking’ (US/UK) | Safety Trance presents 'DESTRUCCIÓN' (VE) | Tega Brain ‘Questions of Automation’ (AU) | Vica Pacheco presents 'ITA' AV (MX) | Xin Liu 'Cosmic Metabolism' (CN) | YESSi PERSE & laSADCUM present 'CYBERMEDIEVAL' (ES)