On January 17 “Europe’s hottest conference” opened it’s doors again to welcome over 150 speakers and 1000 attendees to learn from thought leaders about THE NEXT NEXT.
I was honored to share the stage with Jennifer Schenker, The Innovator, Neelie Kroes, Start up Delta, Florin Talpes, Bitdefender and Niki Kolev, Deloitte Digital in this panel to address the growing digital market in Europe.
Transcript from this DLD panel session:
Several of the panelists for this session come from places that don’t immediately spring to mind as digital hotspots but are gaining recognition for tech strengths: Amsterdam, Bucharest and Karlsruhe.
If you havent heard about Karlsruhe yet, let me briefly introduce the capitol of the “Baden” region in SouthWest Germany. Karlsruhe has been home to innovation long before the Digital Age:
Karl von Drais a significant inventor was born in Karlsruhe April 29, 1785. He invented the Draisine, the earliest form of a bicycle without pedals. It was the beginning of mechanized personal transport. He as well invented the earliest typewriter with a keyboard in 1821.
Karl Friedrich Benz born November 25, 1844 in Karlsruhe invented the first automobile.
More famous today as former Daimler Benz the company building Mercedes.
Just to name two of the famous local inventors and early entrepreneurs.
Karlsruhe Start up Scene
Karlsruhe is home to one of the world’s leading Web hosting providers: 1&1.
One of the largest German e-Mail Providers web.de was founded as well in Karlsruhe.
Every year we see interesting spin-offs from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the Research University in the Helmholtz Association – one of the biggest research and education institutions worldwide.
Another important angle to the start up ecosystem is Karlsruhe’s Cyberforum e.V. With more than 1,200 members, it is the largest hightech.business.network. in Europe.
Maybe Karlsruhe was not the first place in your mind, when thinking about start up hubs. Although a recent study has shown that the amount of start ups founded in the sunny University City is far below average in Germany.
Save the best for last:
The ZKM | Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe is a unique cultural institution worldwide, because it is a place that expands the original tasks of the museum. The ZKM was founded in 1989 as a museum with the mission of continuing the classical arts into the digital age. This is why it is sometimes called the »electronic or digital Bauhaus«
See one of my favorite projects : CLEANSING by Eyal Gever: https://zkm.de/en/node/30989
Full Panel description:
Several of the panelists for this session come from places that don’t immediately spring to mind as digital hotspots but are gaining recognition for tech strengths: Amsterdam, Bucharest and Karlsruhe. This panel will address the growing digital market in Europe, and elaborate on why it is important for cities and regions in Europe that want to be known for their tech strengths to market themselves accordingly. Neelie Kroes, who helped set the digital agenda for Europe, will also touch on some of the issues that still need resolving in order to truly support the entrepreneurial spirit in Europe, including getting corporates to work more closely with start-ups.
http://www.dld-conference.com/DLD16
Interesting in further news about Start up Scene Karlsruhe: http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/das-deutsche-valley-dann-eben-karlsruhe-1.3856096
