In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED talks, video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The annual TED Conference invites the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. Their talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, NgoziOkonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The annual TED Conference takes place each spring in Long Beach, California, along with the TED Active simulcast in Palm Springs; the annual TED Global conference is held each summer in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Involving a wide array of highly successful visionaries, TEDx IIT Kanpur event intends to foster and nurture the seeds of innovation, vision and creativity within the budding entrepreneurs. The theme of first edition of TEDx was “Power of Innovation” followed by “Birds turn Golden Again” and this year it was “Connecting the Dots”. Talks were followed by networking sessions where in interested audience interacted with speakers and gained insight about the inertia, frictions and enthusiasm of the ideas.
On November 3, 2012 TEDx was held at IIT Kanpur, wherein innovators and speakers were invited to share their thoughts and insignificant instances of life which proved to be the The factor of their life and also to share the things they feel would be the most important in the future. They were –
– Mr Raju Narayana Swamy : (IAS officer) Commissioner, Civil Supplies Department, Government of Kerala.
– Mr Vinay Venkatraman : Co-founder of CIID (Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design)
– Dr Benny Prasad : (Instrumental guitarist from India) He is well known for designing the Bentar which is the World’s First Bongo Guitar.
– Mr Dilip Chhabria : (Indian Automobile designer) He is the founder of “DC Design”.
– Mr Vicky Roy : Delhi-based famous photographer.
– Mr Akash Gautam : Famous Power Speaker and Career Counsellor. He is one of India’s favourite “Motivator and Enter-Trainer”.
– Mr Rajan Bhatia : (Chartered accountant) 20 years of experience in enabling financial growth and leadership excellence in the corporate world. President of Global CFO group.
– Mr Rajat Sharma : Chairman and Editor-in Chief of India TV, a Hindi news channel in India.
– Ms Vasundhara Das : Indian singer and actress. She has acted in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam films. She is the co-founder of world music band Arya.
– Mr Vinny Lohan : Founded Onebeep, an innovative method of providing internet type connectivity over AM/FM radios in the developing world. He wrote an algorithm that predicts the growth of Malaria.
– Mr Mohak Mathur : Film enthusiast who dabbles between Investment Banking & Short Film Festivals. Professionally trained as an investment banker and a startup specialist for over five years, Mohak has his mind wandering at most times in the mystic worlds of philosophy, arts and creativity.
– Mr Rustam Sengupta : Social entrepreneur and base of the pyramid (BoP) expert. Rustam is the founder and CEO of Boond (www.boond.net | www.boondfoundation.org), a social enterprise that creates rural entrepreneurs and distribution channels for development products.