A city as a trade fair, focus future. Two days of experiencing new things, of exchanging ideas on the most urgent issues of digitization and sustainability. Of learning from others. Of getting a taste of technologies and virtual worlds and finding out what they mean for society and the economy. And, above all, for your own journey. That's Digital X in Cologne. A festival of digitization for entrepreneurs - and everyone else, too.
Visit the DIGITAL X! Private visitors receive free admission to selected highlights. Or join us online via digital access on our event platform. Free tickets are available in the store. You can also follow the DIGITAL X stream in German Deaf and Sign Language.
The "X" in "Digital X" stands for multiple. The multiple of possibilities that digitization brings. A buzzword that everyone associates with something different. And just as different are the everyday worlds of people and the industries in which they work. Common ground for self-employed, SMEs as well as large companies: computing power, new applications, software and new business processes, as well as strong telecommunications networks, provide them with countless new opportunities.
"People are more likely to accept the new technologies"
The pandemic, when hundreds of thousands stayed at home from one day to the next, showed this to consumers and businesses alike: "With Covid-19, the acceptance of new technologies has increased as rapidly as it normally would have in five years. That's what a study by IBM shows," trend researcher Peter Wippermann points out in an interview with telekom.com. Video conferencing and other services helped people get together online and spread rapidly. The metaverse is in the starting blocks. Virtual reality, that is immersing oneself in true-to-life virtual worlds via glasses, is expected to arrive in households as well as businesses within a few years, according to Wippermann. "People are more likely to accept the new technologies."
World exhibition of digitization
One thing is certain: Everything is developing rapidly. Wants to be grasped, learned and applied. Demands new forms of knowledge exchange. Digital X wants to make this happen and bring new impulses directly to the users: as a "world exhibition of digitization" located in the city. Behind the annual event is Deutsche Telekom as the initiator, together with more than 200 international partner companies - including Microsoft, Samsung, Zoom, Cisco, Jabra and the BMVW, the association of small and medium-sized enterprises. Their common goal is to simplify and enrich society and public life through new technologies.
To this end, Digital X brings together SMEs, corporations, startups, politicians, and leading experts and visionaries. And it does so along megatrends such as the future of work, mobility, health, metaverse and sustainability. Examples of Digital X topics:
- Digital route planning or online meetings for everyday business.
- Predictive maintenance of machines thanks to intelligent fault forecasts.
- The virtual appointment assistant, for example for doctors' practices or hairdressers, which answers calls and arranges the next visit.
- The possibility for customers to first try out offers virtually - as the example of a theater in Bonn shows.
- The metaverse, including the option for Digital X guests to have their own avatar created.
- Also: a look at the digital classroom with tablets and an online learning platform.
- And just as well social topics like hate speech on the Internet.
You can find the entire program here.
Learning from pioneers
Those who come to Digital X learn from others how to use the innovations. Each year, an award shines the spotlight on particularly enriching digital solutions. The event is also intended for consumers, such as the citizens of Cologne and, of course, beyond. Special services are aimed directly at them, such as workshops and advice on devices and telecom services directly on site.
With its thematic structure, Digital X covers several districts of Cologne. It provides space for networking and presentations. There are no booths like at conventional trade shows. Instead, local restaurants and pubs host the information on offer, thus serving sustainability. Equally environmentally friendly: electric vehicles and no disposable tableware. Digital X sees itself as a growing "community" of all the people it attracts. These network at the event and beyond. For example, in the "Digital X" LinkedIn group.
Would you like to learn more and talk to experts about digitization? Then come to Cologne on September 13 and 14, 2022, for the Digital X - World Digitalization Exhibition. With stages, marketplaces, brand houses and top-class speakers, Cologne's city center will once again become the world exhibition of digitalization in 2022. It will bring the megatrends of the future to life - including mobility, sustainability and health. For more details, visit www.telekom.com/digital-x-special.
