Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. Thank you, Mayor, A big round of apast for our Mayor. I feel like it's very hard Mayor to impress you. So London's had the Olympics, the Coronation, even Taylor Swift. How does you know south By South Wet's rank on the Mayor All Excitement scale this week?
I think south By Southwest London is just below Harry Styles in twelve nights at Wembley Stadium.
I mean it's sort of that's sort of bit. It's great. I'm really I'm really.
Pleasing proud that south Bay Southwest is back. I mean, the sort of people we've got in this room is amazing. This week's gonna be amazing, and it kicks off an amazing June. We've got London Tech Week next week and the Climate Action Week taking place later on this month.
And it's a great springboard because what South Bay Southwest does so well, as I said, it's the multi disciplines, it's the multi generation, it's the multi beliefs, multi backgrounds coming together, and this is an incubator for great ideas and I'm just so excited.
And so proud.
You touched on this in your opening speech. If London only existed on social media, it'd be very difficult to get people to actually move here. So why is the internet so bad on cities and how do you fight disinformation?
Well, I think.
Attack in London has become a national school and an international sport.
Why do I say that.
Most people's experience of London it's very different to the version you see on social media, and there's a reason for that. We've done some research and looked into what's going on here. Basically, you're a combination of people using the algorithms on social media that monetize negativity and hatred, but also combination of state actors, whether it's China, Russia or MAGA influences being unhappy that a city that is progressive, liberal,
diverse is incredibly successful. I mean, we are the antidote, antithesis of nativist populist movements.
So don't be surprised if you've got people on.
Social media spreading misinformation, disinformation and lies about London and not any metrics. Not we're not perfect, but we are the greatest city in the world in terms of culture, tourism, music. Uh, thank thank you, Mom. You know a number of metrics we're doing, you know, remarkably well. So you know, I'm not surprised that there are people, you know, spreading misinformation.
And I'm hoping those who are visiting London this week from across the country, across Europe, across the world will sample there, will rule London and then go back and talk about this to friends, colleagues, neighbors, and even do a sale on social media.
So is that the biggest myth about London that drives you absolutely mad?
Well, there are a number of things, but one of the things that I think that frustrates me is this idea that it's not possible to be diverse and successful, that in some way diversity is a weakness sort of strength that makes us poor, lot richer, you know, weak are not stronger. I know, I know the opposite is the truth. But actually, if it's somebody who's a nativist,
you're somebody whose populism grows from nativism. If it's somebody believes in mono ethnism or believes in you know, nationalism, then nuners a problem for you because.
We're the opposite of all that. You know.
South By Southwest London coming back for a second time. It shows you know, were those that experienced this last year feel about London. I'm really proud and please you're back and I hope you make the most of this week.
So may every generation or most generations get a technology that could change everything. I mean, when creatives here, AI, many here threats, what do you hear?
But when it comes to AI, which is which is the which is the technology that I think it will be the biggest game changer in my lifetime. I think there's a number of ways, number ways looking at this. Look if you look about it, look at the three biggest disruptors and the last two or a year, There's been the Industrial revolution, there's been globalization, and there's now
been AI. And why AI is fascinating for a number of reasons is the speed in which AI is going to transform our societies compared to globalization and industrial revolution.
But also I think, unlike the previous two.
This will impact white collar jobs, this will impact global cities. And I'm not an AI evangelist, I'm not an AI alarmist.
I'm an AI realist. And so what.
I've done is work with experts across the different sectors and asked, you know, Martha Lane Fox, so need a task force into what is the future of work, what is the future of work in London and also at the same time set up for everyone.
In the city free training in AI.
I think there's going to be those jobs where it dougments and I think it's important that we understand this thing is coming. The genie's out of the bottle. It can be transformative, mainly for good. There are some challenges. I'm a believer in guardra else I've seen the downside of social media without proper guardrails. I don't think we should repeat that when it comes to AI. But the potentially is huge in terms of benefits to public services.
Benef it's the private sector. But there are challenges that we shouldn't put ahead in the sunds. I think we acknowledge that and address them.
Mayor and national politics has felt increasingly unstable, and that's probably the understatement of today. Are mayors becoming the most trusted politicians because people can actually see what's what gets done in their cities.
Well, we've one of the things you talking about AI. Whilst national governments have sort of sort of been sort of sleepwalking into this mayster across the globe. We've set up a World Mayor's AI Forum. Seven cities across five continents were represent one hundredllion people are working together. Look at the opportunities and challenges of a I've talked about the task force in London.
I think I think I.
See mayors as doers, and I see say in respect for way. Some of our best friends are prime ministers and national politicians and national government, says Delayers, ditherers. Whether it's climate change, whether it's AI, whether it's social media, and whole host of issues. And you're seeing across the globe Mays doing stuff. Meres getting stuff done because we're close to the people. We're dexterous, we're flexible, we pop the ideology by a large degree.
We're pragmatic.
And I think you're seen across the globe Mays leading the way in reducing carbon emissions, leading the way and making just transition, leading the way and using AI, but also addressing the challenges, leading the way in creating green jobs, but also a place where people want to move to. We're seeing across the globe, not just in the UK, people wanted to move to cities. Urbanization is a phenomenon
we've not seen for some time. And I think it's one of the reasons is because you've got mayors across the globe, whether it's Paris, New York, at Los Angeles, Laca, Freetown, Deli leading the way.
You've spent years telling London story to the world. Does Labor need to be stronger about telling Britain story to the world.
But when I when I when I speak to colleagues, including the colleagues here from across the globe, they see one of the huge strengths of the UK. We've got We've got certain two, we've got stability because you know, the Labor Party won a massive majority of the last general election. That is not the case and other countries across the globe. That's one of the reasons people want to invest here and want to want to come here
and so forth. And I think, you know, we Labor needs to just be cognizant of the downsize of instability the impact that can create. That's not to say that the results on made the seventh gen local elections in the in the UK elections in Scotland and Welles weren't catastrophic for Labor. They were and we've got to acknowledge that and respond to that. But I think we're going to be quite careful about how we respond to that. I think we've got a fragmentation of politics in the UK.
We've got five parties now via for votes, where previously only two parties really vote for those votes. I think competition is a good thing if you're good at your game. Competitions should make you raise your game, whether it's football, whether it's politics, whether it's a business, and you shouldn't be fair of competition. I think how we respond to competition is the exam question, and I fear the National Party may not respond in a way we've responded in London.
In London, I've tried to be a mare for all london As. I've asked people who vote Green to lend me their votes. I've asked pep who vote Libdemps to lend me their votes. I've asked people who are Conservatives lend me their votes, and people who labor to leave their homes and vote for me. And I think that coalition is incredibly important. People who are thinking about voting in reform to lend me their vote. And I think the idea that somebody is a lifelong Democrat or a
lifelong labor voter. Those days are gone, and that's why we've got to earn people's vote every election. You can't take it for granted. That means we should raise our games. That's saying I relish.
You mentioned football, and sure we have Arsenal fans in the room. I'm sure we have many Arsenal fans. It's been quite a couple of weeks for London.
Listen, so London now has six Premier League clubs. I sport a club outside London, I sport Liverpool.
We've had.
We've had a difficult season, but it's been a great, great week for London. We had Crystal Palace winning the European Trophy, Arsenal win the Premier League, didn't quite win the Champions League. But sport is really important lor London now is the sporting capital of the world. We don't just have a great you know, English teams doing well.
We've got American sport coming there with you know, American football, baseball, basketball and so forth, boxing and so forth, and so it's really important, not just for the elite sports people, for all three people to get involved in sports and stuff, but it's been a great, you know, great few years of sports for London.
So ten years on from Brexit, are we finally kind of moving on from argument to practicality. What do you see that meeting for the creative world?
Well, I think Look, I think Brexit was the biggest acts of economic self harm any country's ever done. It's also been devastating for US socially and culturally as well. London itself has done remarkable We are not understanding in Brexit, but I'm really optimistic about the future. You know, I tease the mention of London maxin. You know, we are humming in terms of, you know, making the most of
the bad hand we were getting with Brexit. You know, the AI capital of Europe, number two, number three in the world when it comes to tech, when it comes to finance, when it comes to professional service, when it.
Comes to culture, music, sports. We are humming. But Brexit has caused a big challenge.
I mean, you know, our GDP's done a BYuT like ten percent impacted business, impact of trade, impacted investment, and I'd be quite trained by this. I think we should rejoin the European Union.
So Europe feels much closer than it did five years ago.
Well, one of the things I think this government's done really well is to resettle relations with the European Union. It's just a fact that you know, Kase Armer is much for any terms with President macarn with the Chancellor of Germany, with those in the European Union, and.
That's really important.
There are nearest trading partners, our biggest trading partners, and we should have close for alignment. And I think, you know, the Prime minist and resetting relations was incredibly important. I think the youth and Bitty scheme is going to be incredibly important. I've done us to go further to rejoin the Customers Union, to rejoin the Single Market, and then to rejoin the European Union.
Mayor, it's so nice actually to see a very young, creative crowd. If you're eighteen in London today, where do you think the biggest opportunities are that maybe weren't here ten years ago.
I think other Londoners are the greatest opportunity, genuinely. I mean I said in my speech and Patrick said this, it's the different backgrounds, the diversity in terms of what people's interests are, what their backgrounds are, what their beliefs are. That multi faceting human being you don't see anywhere else. And that's the most exciting thing about being an eighteen year old in London that still.
Exists a different face.
I've just returned from the Hudge pilgrimage and was speaking to Laura backstage, who's just come back from Lords. I mean, you know, a Catholic and a Muslim talking backstage. A good example in London. You could be Jewish, you could be Christian, you could be a Hindu, Buddhist. We talked about you know, Butler House, somebody who's not a member of an organized faith. You could be rich, could be poor.
You can be a sports person. You cannot be sports puging, sport, Arsenal or even Spurs, whatever team you support, You're welcome in London, even Man United.
Fans, even Man United. Okay, Mayor, it's twenty thirty six. South By Southwest London is celebrating its twelfth edition. Can everyone picture that? What's the headline you'd frame and put on your wall.
We managed to make the most of ai. We managed to still have a Mayor's human being and a blue represented as a human being on stage here as we open south by Southwest and they're both called Francied and Saday is success to me, but genuinely, but genuinely think I think this air revolution is really exciting, but it's really scary as well. And I think the energy here and the expertise here is what's needed to make sure we navigate ourselves successfully over the next ten years. Because
I think some cities will get it wrong. I think some regulators will get it wrong, and I'm confident in London will get it right. I think mayors across the global working together to make sure we get it right here in London. The task was said by you know, Marthline Fox is working really hard to make sure we get it right. And it's really important to get it right. Why because we could see in ten years what it took one hundred years for the Industrial Revolution to see,
what it took fifty years for globalization to see. But I want it to be a positive, not a negative. And that's why it's really important in ten years time for Southwest, Southwest Southeast London still exist, but also for us to see the fruits of this, you know, transformative technology rather than the perils.
It's really important I'll offering that too. We're staying human. Mayor, thank you so much for your dudgment. I thank you so much.
A great week. Thank