Name: re:publica Berlin 2026
Start: 2026-05-18T00:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-05-20T00:00:00+00:00
Location: STATION Berlin

re:publica

About re:publica

For three days every May, re:publica transforms STATION Berlin in Kreuzberg into the largest European meeting point for the digital society. A thousand speakers on over twenty stages, talks, panels, workshops, meetups, maker spaces, and an expo area, with the TINCON Berlin for youth up to 25 running concurrently. The 19th edition takes place from May 18th to 20th, 2026, under the iconic motto 'Never Gonna Give You Up' – a call not to give up hope for a better, more democratic internet. Confirmed speakers include Karen Hao, Hito Steyerl, Quinn Slobodian, Cory Doctorow, Taylor Lorenz.

Dates 18 May — 20 May 2026

Venue Berlin (11000)

Prices —

Status Confirmed

Edition 2026

re:publica — edition 2026

Tickets →

The 19th re:publica runs from May 18th to 20th, 2026, under the motto 'Never Gonna Give You Up' at STATION Berlin. More than 1,000 speakers on over 20 stages. Confirmed voices: Karen Hao, Hito Steyerl, Quinn Slobodian, Cory Doctorow, Taylor Lorenz, Fabian Grischkat, Gilda Sahebi, and many more. Two specials: ON SCREEN (Day 2) on film, series, games, and XR; concurrently TINCON Berlin for 13–25 year olds (free of charge).

The 19th edition focuses on defending an open, democratic internet. 'Never Gonna Give You Up' is both a tongue-in-cheek homage to internet folklore and a programmatic statement: Despite platform consolidation, the AI hype, and political pressure, hope for a better digital society should not be abandoned. Over 1,000 speakers, spread across three festival days and over 20 stages, represent the spectrum of this debate.

Programmatic focuses for 2026: Artificial intelligence and its risks (with Karen Hao, whose bestseller on OpenAI is internationally discussed), platform economy and democracy (Quinn Slobodian), artistic reflection of digital images (Hito Steyerl), platform activism and newsfluencer culture (Fabian Grischkat, Taylor Lorenz), democratic resilience (Matthias Quent, Gilda Sahebi). Cory Doctorow represents the digital civil rights line.

Highlights re:publica 2026

19th edition, motto 'Never Gonna Give You Up'
Over 1,000 speakers on more than 20 stages
Keynote speakers include: Karen Hao, Hito Steyerl, Quinn Slobodian, Cory Doctorow, Taylor Lorenz
ON SCREEN program special: Film, Series, Games, XR
TINCON Berlin concurrently, free for 13–25 year olds

Programme re:publica 2026

Monday, May 18, 2026 – Day 1

Opening keynote and main political speech
Keynote speakers: Karen Hao, Cory Doctorow (among others)
Tracks: Network policy, AI, democracy, activism, tech criticism
Workshops and meetups in parallel

Tuesday, May 19, 2026 – Day 2 (ON SCREEN focus)

Program special ON SCREEN: Film, series, games, and XR – in cooperation with Seriesly Berlin and the MediaTech Hub
Talks: Hito Steyerl, Annekathrin Kohout, Quinn Slobodian
Maker spaces, expo area, NGO stands

Wednesday, May 20, 2026 – Day 3

Keynotes: Taylor Lorenz, Gilda Sahebi, Matthias Quent, Fabian Grischkat
Closing panel on the festival motto
Closing keynote and festival party

Parallel Festival: TINCON Berlin

Conference for digital youth culture, 13–25 years old
Guests: Maria Popova, Franziska Giffey, among others
Completely free of charge

Full program and session search on re-publica.com/en/schedule. Live streams of selected sessions available online for free.

Prices re:publica 2026

Day tickets and festival passes via re-publica.com. Early bird and solidarity tickets available. Student and press accreditations separate. TINCON Berlin completely free.

Practical information

Practical information — re:publica

Getting there

STATION Berlin, Luckenwalder Straße 4-6, 10963 Berlin (Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district, Kreuzberg locality). U-Bahn U1/U2/U3 Gleisdreieck directly in front, S-Bahn S+U Yorckstraße approx. 5 min.

Tickets

Day tickets and festival passes via re-publica.com. Early bird and solidarity tickets available. TINCON Berlin for 13–25 year olds is completely free. Live streams of individual programs often available online for free.

Organizers

republica GmbH. Concept: Markus Beckedahl, Tanja Haeusler, Andreas Gebhard, Johnny Haeusler.

From a blogger conference in 2007 – today a major societal event

re:publica started in 2007 as a small blogger conference and has since become one of the most important European platforms for discussing the digital society, network policy, democracy, and technology. Today, the festival attracts tens of thousands of participants from politics, academia, activism, the tech industry, and media to Berlin every year.

Never Gonna Give You Up

The 2026 motto plays with the most famous Rickrolling song in internet history while carrying a serious political message: Despite platform consolidation, disinformation, the AI hype, and authoritarian tendencies, the values of an open, democratic internet must be defended. The curatorial line spans from political theory (Quinn Slobodian) and tech criticism (Karen Hao, Cory Doctorow) to artistic-analytical voices (Hito Steyerl) and investigative tech journalism (Taylor Lorenz).

Format

Over 1,000 speakers on more than 20 stages: that's the scale of re:publica 2026. In addition, there are workshops, meetups, maker spaces, and an expo area where initiatives, companies, and NGOs present themselves. Two special program strands complement the main program: ON SCREEN on the second festival day brings film, series, games, and XR to the stage (in cooperation with Seriesly Berlin and the MediaTech Hub). TINCON Berlin – the concurrent conference for young digital culture – is completely free for participants aged 13 to 25.

STATION Berlin

For years, the main venue has been STATION Berlin – a former post office station in the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district (Kreuzberg locality), now one of the city's most important event venues. The former reception hall with its historic iron structures and several event rooms is ideal for a festival that requires both large stage events and intimate workshop spaces.