TechFor™ at the DLD Conference 2026 in Munich

On 15 January 2026, we will host our next TechFor™ event in partnership with Digital Life Design (DLD) at the DLD conference in Munich. As one of Europe’s leading innovation conferences, the event brings together over 2,000 visionaries, leaders, and creative minds to shape the future of technology and society. 

Public at a DLD conference
Public at a DLD conference
Public at a DLD conference

Tech for innovation: Europe – a global leader in future tech?

At the second edition of our TechFor™ panel discussion on the DLD stage an esteemed set of speakers from policy, science and industry will reflect on Europe’s role in global technological advancements. Innovation is thriving globally at a breathtaking pace, transforming the way we live and work with breakthroughs in: AI, mobility, embodied intelligence, and clean energy.

The TechFor™ discussion will provide insights on how to foster a thriving European innovation ecosystem, leveraging both regional and global entrepreneurial spirit, driving investments and ultimately making Europe a global leader in future tech.

Interested? Stay tuned to learn more about our esteemed speakers and mark your calendar to join our livestream on 15 January 2026. 

DLD – one of Europe’s leading innovation conferences

The conference takes place each January in Munich, shortly before the World Economic Forum in Davos, and is internationally renowned for attracting the best and the brightest in the world of digital. DLD attracts over 2,000 change-makers, entrepreneurs and visionaries from around the globe. It presents insights from business and politics, science and art with the goal to spark conversations that cross boundaries and bring participants together in a common search for answers to the most challenging questions. 

Visit the website of DLD
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Meet our panelists

Ann Mettler
Ann Mettler
Ann Mettler
Ann Mettler

Former Head of the European Political Strategy Centre, European Commission and VP Europe at Breakthrough Energy & Gates Ventures; Distinguished Fellow at Columbia University

Ann Mettler, a public policy expert with over 25 years of experience, has advised global leaders like Bill Gates and former European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. She is currently establishing a new organization focused on energy resilience and innovation, building on her role co-chairing the Energy Resilience Leadership Group with Siemens Energy CEO Dr. Christian Bruch.

Previously, Ann was Vice President for Europe at Breakthrough Energy (2020–2025) and served as Director-General of the European Political Strategy Centre (2014–2019), the EU Commission’s in-house think tank. She also chaired ESPAS, the EU’s strategic foresight initiative, and is credited with embedding foresight into policymaking.

Ann co-founded the Lisbon Council, held senior roles at the World Economic Forum, and has been ranked among Europe’s top women in startups and Brussels’ most influential leaders. A dual citizen of Germany and Sweden, she holds Master’s degrees in Political Science and European Law & Economics, with additional executive education from Stanford University.

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Carl Benedikt Frey
Carl Benedikt Frey
Carl Benedikt Frey
Carl Benedikt Frey

Professor of AI & Work at Oxford University; Director of the Future of Work Programme at Oxford Martin School

Carl Benedikt Frey is the Dieter Schwarz Associate Professor of AI & Work at the Oxford Internet Institute and directs the Future of Work Programme at the Oxford Martin School, where he is also an Oxford Martin Citi Fellow. He completed his PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition in 2011 and founded Oxford’s Future of Work Programme. Frey is also an Economics Associate of Nuffield College and Senior Fellow at the Institute for New Economic Thinking.

In 2013, Frey co-authored the influential study “The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?”, which has been utilised by global organisations including the G20, OECD, and the World Bank. He has also advised international organisations, governments, and Fortune 500 companies on future-of-work topics.

Frey authored The Technology Trap: Capital, Labor, and Power in the Age of Automation (2019), a Financial Times Best Book of the Year, and How Progress Ends: Technology, Innovation, and the Fate of Nations (2025), shortlisted for the FT & Schroders Business Book of the Year Award. His work on AI and technology has been featured in outlets such as The Economist, Financial Times, and CNN.

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Andreas Urschitz
Andreas Urschitz
Andreas Urschitz
Andreas Urschitz

Member of the Management Board and CMO Infineon Technologies

Andreas Urschitz has been with the company for 30 years and has always driven technological solutions to shape the decarbonization and digitalization of the world. Infineon's energy efficiency technologies enable energy savings along the electrical conversion chain, from green energy generation to lossless transmission and less consumption. He has always had the firm conviction that technical development should not be an end in itself, but should make life better, protect the future of humanity and even make the world safer and more livable. Andreas grew up on a farm and learned early on how important it is to make sustainable choices.

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John Thornhill
John Thornhill
John Thornhill
John Thornhill

Innovation editor and tech columnist at Financial Times. Founder of Sifted, a media site covering European startups

John is one of the FT's most senior journalists writing a weekly, award-winning column on the impact of technology and hosting the Tech Tonic podcast. He is also the founder of Sifted, an FT-backed media site covering Europe's startup world. Since launching in 2019, Sifted has attracted more than 15m unique visitors and become the must-read site for European entrepreneurs and investors.

After joining the FT as a City reporter, John worked abroad in Moscow in the 1990s, interviewing Vladimir Putin. He has also been the FT's Asia editor, Paris bureau chief, news editor and deputy editor. In 2016 he took on a new role as innovation editor to deepen the FT's tech coverage and pursue more editorial innovation. John is also a board member of the Ada Lovelace Institute and a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts.

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Watch our highlights from DLD 2025

Watch the recording of TechFor™ at the DLD Conference: Future positive – or not? Tech for sustainable mobility
Watch Infineon’s CDSO, Elke Reichart, on stage at DLD 2025

Infineon ranks among the 15% most sustainable companies in the world and meets global societal challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency and resource management with innovative products. At the same time, our climate target is to become carbon-neutral by 2030.

More information about sustainability at Infineon
TechFor™ Munich at DLD26
Mark your calendars for 15 January 2026
munich, germany
January 15, 2026 - January 15, 2026
18:00 ( CET )
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