Berlin, 12 June 2013 In summer 2014, the most innovative conference organisers in the technology and entertainment industries will be coming to Berlin for their next TEDxSummit. This has just been announced at the annual TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh. From 23–27 June 2014, more than 500 TEDx organisers and creatives from over 100 countries will gather at the TEDxSummit in the German capital. The TEDxSummit is the first summit to take place in Europe and only the second TEDxSummit ever, following up on the 2012 gathering in Doha, Qatar.

"Located in the heart of Europe, Berlin poses a unique geographical advantage and is proud to host the first TEDxSummit in the region," said Cornelia Yzer, Senator for Economics, Technology and Research. "As a start-up melting pot with new ideas and innovation budding daily, Berlin is the perfect location for an event that gathers brain from across the globe."

Burkhard Kieker, CEO of visitBerlin, remarks: "Berlin and TED are a perfect match. visitBerlin is pleased that we could bring the next TEDxSummit to our city. Berlin serves as a central hub of Europe and exemplifies excellence research and leadership in innovation.”

"TEDxSummit is an important opportunity to gather our incredible community of TEDx organizers who bring TED’s mission of ideas worth spreading to their local communities every day," said Lara Stein, Director of TEDx and TED Prize. "We are looking forward to hosting our second summit in a culturally rich place like Berlin and we hope to make this a biennial event in different cities around the world.“

The acronym of the American-based ideas conference TED stands for technology, entertainment and design. The objective of this summit is to work together to promote the concept of the TEDx conferences. The programme will include TEDx talks, workshops and seminars on various topics. As a prelude to the summit, the TED opening night will bring a half-day sample of the TED Conference to Berlin for the first time. Participation in the TEDxSummit is exclusively by invitation, but the videos of the best lectures can be viewed online.

Berlin – an Innovative Location for an Innovative Conference

The TEDxSummit 2014 is receiving financial supported by the City of Berlin: visitBerlin, be Berlin, the Senate Ministry for Economics, Technology and Research, Berlin Partner, the TSB Technology Foundation, the Berlin Chamber of Commerce, the Media Board of Berlin-Brandenburg and the Berlin-Brandenburg Media Authority.

Berlin gets high-profile exposure as the location of the conference. International visitors who come to Berlin for events such as these will also get the chance to experience the capital through offerings such as guided tours.

Berlin is the ideal location for the TEDxSummit: With businesses being founded on an almost daily basis and leading events re:publica and NEXT during Berlin Web Week, the hy!Berlin and TechCrunchDisrupt, Berlin is one of the start-up capitals of Europe. From 2015, the terminal of the former Tegel Airport will become the "Urban Tech Republic".

About TED and TEDGlobal

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design and is a non-profit organization devoted to the Ideas Worth Spreading. The TED Conference in the U.S. brings together experts from the fields of design, communication, science, IT, politics, technology, art and culture for several days of sharing ideas. In just fifteen minutes, they present their innovative approaches, ideas and visions. Some of the best known past speakers include Bill Gates, Bill Clinton and formerly UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. TEDGlobal is TED’s twin conference and takes place each summer in Edinburgh, Scotland. More at www.ted.com

About TEDx and TEDxSummit

TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share the TED-like experience. To date, more than 7,000 TEDx conferences have been held in over 149 countries. 600 TEDx organisers gathered at the first TEDxSummit in Doha, Qatar, in 2012 to jointly develop new ideas to expand the TEDx community. The TEDxSummit 2014 Berlin is the second summit.

visitBerlin

“We know Berlin”. This is the slogan that Berlin Tourismus & Kongress GmbH, operating under the trade name visitBerlin, has been using since 1993 to globally advertise for Berlin as a travel destination. visitBerlin’s Berlin Convention Office markets the German capital as a congress metropolis. As a tour operator, the company offers a wide range of travel packages and also issues the official tourist ticket, the Berlin WelcomeCard. visitBerlin operates four Berlin Tourist Infos. The Berlin Service Center (Tel. 030-25 00 25) provides information on the complete spectrum of tourist services in Berlin. Information on the German capital is available in 13 different languages at visitBerlin.com.