Sunset over downtown Los Angeles with palm trees in the foreground.

Accelerating the future of cultural infrastructure across the United States of America

Applications closed - Get advanced notice for next year

What is Sound Development
Why join
Who is it for
Program & Speakers
Travel and Accommodation
FAQs

Sound Development is an accelerator for cultural infrastructure investment

This flagship event brings together visionaries from music, entertainment, real estate, and government to explore how cultural infrastructure can transform cities and economies across the USA and beyond.

Through keynotes, workshops, networking sessions, and guided tours, Sound Development will catalyse new collaborations and inspire investments that leave a lasting legacy.

A man with glasses, wearing a colorful embroidered jacket, is standing at a transparent podium with a headset microphone, speaking in front of a large screen displaying a collage of photographs.

Why join Sound Development

Sound Development has helped secure new venues, negotiate operator agreements, and catalyse partnerships between developers, cities and investors.

This event is more than policy, it’s about action. Each edition brings together the people and cities ready to deliver cultural infrastructure, not just discuss it.

Designed for leaders who want to create destinations that deliver both cultural and commercial value, the event acts as a melting pot and accelerator, sparking the ideas that bring projects, collaborations and investments to life.

A woman with long wavy hair wearing a yellow shawl and floral necklace holding a microphone at an event.

Sound Development brings together more than 100 senior professionals who shape and deliver cultural infrastructure across the public and private sectors.

Designed as a high-impact forum, it connects the people and cities driving real projects, investment and change.

Who is attending Sound Development LA?

Who attends Sound Development?

We engage developers across commercial, mixed-use, and hospitality sectors and Investors including private equity, institutional investors, foundations and venture capital firms. We put those responsible for the delivery in the room.

Cities & public sector leaders shaping regeneration, tourism, and cultural strategies. We prioritise those looking to invest in new cultural infrastructure in cities. Identify new cities and public funding opportunities.

We engage with those shaping what the future of cultural infrastructure looks like, including architects, masterplanners, and urban designers. Engage with the influencers of the cultural built environment.

Culture & entertainment sector leaders building new infrastructure or activating existing assets. We identify key stakeholders in each city to ensure local-buy in and foster new collaborations.

Operators & owners of venues, cultural spaces, and entertainment destinations are identified as key stakeholders for each edition. We want to connect experienced operators with new cities, developers and investors.

We invite the trade organisations & industry groups representing real estate, entertainment, music and creative industries. Leverage their network and gain their support for your project.

Program, speakers and site tours

Sound Development 2026

Click here to download the program

Site Tours

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

Enjoy a private tour of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The visit will spotlight the ARUP-designed theatres and the Dolby Family Terrace, offering insight into how world-class engineering, acoustics, and architectural design contribute to exceptional cultural destinations

DATALAND

Step inside DATALAND for an exclusive early preview of a new cultural destination where data, art, and artificial intelligence intersect. Founded by Refik Anadol, DATALAND transforms scientific, cultural, and environmental datasets into immersive, architectural-scale experiences.

This guided tour offers a rare behind-the-scenes look ahead of the museum’s public opening in late spring.

Experience: SoundLab

Experience sound like never before with an exclusive tour of ARUP’s SoundLab. Participants will step inside an immersive, high-precision acoustic environment used to design concert halls, studios, performance venues, and mixed-use developments around the world. This session reveals how advanced acoustic modeling shapes everything from audience experience to building performance, offering developers, planners, and music professionals a unique window into how sound informs smarter real estate decisions and more vibrant cultural spaces.

Spotify at Mateo

Join RIOS for an inside look at Spotify’s At Mateo campus, a creative hub shaping the future of audio in Los Angeles. Explore cutting-edge recording and podcast studios, collaborative workspaces, and the design thinking behind this culture-driven environment. Discover how integrated design supports creators and powers L.A.’s growing sound ecosystem.

Pacific Electric

Tucked inside the historic Naud Warehouse, where Mission Junction meets Chinatown, Pacific Electric is a 750-capacity music venue designed to bring people together—just like the legendary Los Angeles Red Cars that inspired its name. Industrial character meets modern hospitality, delivering an atmosphere that’s raw, built for connection, and champions diverse programming. The venue boasts a state-of-the-art audio system ensuring flawless acoustics, dynamic lighting to transform every event into a visual spectacle, and a carefully crafted food and beverage program.