IFA Berlin, the world’s leading trade fair for consumer electronics and home appliances has started, with two media days setting the stage ahead of Friday, September 6, when the event will open its doors to trade visitors and consumers from all around the world. This is a special year for IFA, as the trade fair celebrates its 100th anniversary. Once again, the world’s top tech companies have come to Berlin to show their latest and greatest innovations and technologies; the five-day fair is fully booked, with more than 1,800 exhibitors packing the halls at the Messe Berlin fairgrounds.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will speak at the Opening Gala on Thursday evening and experience some of the innovations on show when he walk the halls of IFA on Friday morning. IFA for its part is celebrating “100Moments” of cultural and technological highlights. The famous Sommergarten is also making a return to glory, with rock legend Bryan Adams kicking off concerts and events that include the comeback of chart-topping dance music band Faithless.
Starting out 100 years ago as an exhibition for radio equipment, IFA now stands for Innovation For All – and that’s also the focus of the more than 150 thought leaders, innovators and technology pioneers who will give keynotes and speak on panel events from September 6 – 10. Innovation is shaping our world like never before, and this year’s big themes at IFA are artificial intelligence, sustainability, connectivity, fitness & digital health, as well as content creation. On Sunday, Alef Aeronautics will also demonstrate the world’s first real flying car.
Visitors will be able to discover what the world’s big tech brands and manufacturers will bring to market between now and the crucial shopping period ahead of Black Friday, Singles Day, Christmas and Chinese New Year. At IFA Next, meanwhile, they can watch the Pitch Battles between innovative start-ups, and explore their ideas and cutting-edge products; this year, there will be a special focus on South Korea, which is the IFA NEXT Innovation Partner Country for 2024.
IFA Global Markets - Europe’s largest b2b sourcing show for OEMs and ODMs – also makes its return to STATION Berlin this year.
IFA 2024 is taking place at a time when the global economy is still in recovery mode, but continues to face a broad range of challenges. During 2023, consumer tech – in other words consumer electronics and home appliances products - generated a global sales volume of around USD $1.2 trillion. This represents a stable result compared to the previous year. The industry also recorded broadly stable revenues during the first half of 2024.
Celebrating the past and looking ahead to the future, this year’s IFA has a new branding, with bold, strong colours while retaining favourites like its “Funk Otto” logo.
Among this year’s main exhibitors are top tech companies like AEG/Electrolux, Bosch, Haier, Hama, Hisense/Gorenje, Honor, Jura, Kärcher, LG Electronics, Liebherr, Metz, Miele, Panasonic, Samsung, SharkNinja, Sharp, Siemens, Sony, TCL, Thomson und Vestel, alongside leading retail organisations such as EK Retail, ElectronicPartner, Euronics, expert and Telering