IFA 2023 Opening Press Conference on Aug. 30th, 2023
Touted as the “best trade show in the world for consumer electronics and home appliances,” IFA 2023 will open its doors at the Messe Berlin on Aug 30 for the press and on Sep 1 for the public. Ubergizmo is an official media partner of IFA, and our readers can follow the latest news about the top innovations we will experienced on the show floor.
IFA, or Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin, is one of the oldest industrial exhibitions in Germany, which started in 1924 and was once opened by Albert Einstein. Since then, the event has become synonymous with innovation and is a required stop for the whole industry just prior to the holiday launches.
IFA 2023 by the numbers: The show will be fully packed
“IFA for 2023 is completely sold out.” said Olivier Merlin, Managing Director, IFA, “It’s now 130,000 square meters, and every square centimeter of the Messe Berlin will be used“. Oliver Merlin has confirmed the participation of 2059 exhibitors from 44 countries. Additionally, he is projecting 180,000 visitors from 144 countries, a notably larger turnout than CES 2023, which attracted 115,000 attendees in Las Vegas.
“The show will be fully packed,” said Merlin. That means we will see a lot of exciting innovations from the most significant industry players on the planet, such as Samsung, LG, Honor, Hisense, Sony, Siemens, Bosch, Vestel, Miele and many more. Honor and Hisense will deliver this year’s keynotes, and we expect Honor to unveil its latest foldable phone technology on Sep 1 at 10 a.m. local time, during the “Unfold Tomorrow” keynote.
What is new at IFA 2023?
A new company has been set up in Germany to run IFA Berlin. Clarion and the GSU joint venture own it, and Oliver Merlin has been brought in to run the 2023 edition. During an interview with us, he explained what new content and areas his team has created for this edition, in addition to the show itself.
The goal is to make IFA relevant, not for the next ten years, but for the next 100 years, taking the event to new levels.
Brand New Sustainability Village
The sustainability village (in Hall 2.2) is one of the most successful new additions to the show and has attracted the attention of many major exhibitors. It is a place where technologies and strategies to tackle challenges such as e-waste and other aspects of sustainability will be discussed and revealed.
“Sustainability is probably the biggest theme of this year alongside AI (Artificial Intelligence), and it’s a big new physical area on the showfloor,” said Merlin.
There’s also a Mend & Repair workshop that many sustainability enthusiasts would enjoy since repairing household electronics is the best way to avoid producing e-waste.
The House of Robots
Our readers are often fascinated by the world of Robots, so this one caught our attention. Inside the IFA Robotics Hub, the “house of robots” is meant to provide an interactive experience with an extensive range of advanced robots, which people can rarely get in the real world.
Cool RoboDog-style robots will be present, and they consistently impress with new skills and overall awareness capabilities. Let’s see how much AI is integrated this time around. Some of the most recent industrial robotics technologies will also make an appearance. That’s one of the places where most of the robotics innovation appear.
Finally, this is a rare opportunity to see Mirokai, a service-oriented robot, in action. It is designed to help in healthcare environments in which it can pick up and transport objects or interact with visitors.
IFA Next is bigger and better.
IFA Next, the startup-dedicated exhibition inside IFA, has been revamped and expanded. The 2023 edition will count over 400 startups, up from 127 in 2022, and will include the Stage Area with Pitch Battles and a spacious investors lounge where the 200+ registered investors can connect with over 100 startups and their founders.
IFA Leader Summit
The IFA main stage (Hall 21b) is where the IFA opening keynote will take place. However, there is much more on Sep 1 and Sep 2 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. with various panels featuring experts and tech influencers discussing topics such as content streaming, technology disruption, transforming the world for good, and more!
What’s to expect at IFA?
That’s the burning question every year. As you can imagine, the show is so immense and diverse that it’s difficult to accurately predict exactly what to expect, especially when many companies work hard to keep it secret until the last minute.
However, looking at pre-show hints and listening to the well-informed insiders, there’s a good chance that the following will happen during the show:
- The Global launch of the Honor Magic V2
- Space X will showcase its satellite technology Starlink
- We know that Samsung Food will premiere at IFA, but we might also get new Samsung Gaming monitors. Samsung launched The Galaxy Z Fold5, Z Flip5, and Galaxy Watch 6 in South Korea last month, and we expect to see the devices again at the booth.
- LG unveils its net-zero house technology at IFA, but we might also get new LG OLED televisions and panels.
- Entry-level phones from HMD/Nokia
- New products from the prolific Acer and Lenovo as they never miss IFA
- A new Sony smartphone with a high-end camera
- New Huawei products
“IFA is like a guide to the future,” stated Olivier Merlin, and that’s true in many ways. We’re on our way to the show, so keep an eye out for our technology stories from Berlin. We look forward to covering as many products and technologies as possible. Stay tuned!
Oliver Merlin, Managing Director, IFA 2023, presenting the upcoming exhibits.
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