Take off your headphones and dive into the live experience – the IFA Podcast Days bring Germany’s podcast stars to the stage

From “Fast & Curious” to “PietSmiet” and “Mord auf Ex”: from 4 to 7 September, the IFA is bringing successful podcast series, and their hosts live onto the stage. On Sunday, the IFA Sommergarten will be transformed into a huge open-air podcast festival.

With the IFA Podcast Days 2026, the world’s largest event for consumer electronics, home appliances and future tech is bringing some of the best-known voices from the German podcast scene to Berlin live. Business and start-ups meet true crime, pop culture meets science, and health meets artificial intelligence.

From 4 to 7 September 2026, live shows such as Fast & Curious, Plastik im Ohr, Healthwise, PietSmiet, KI-Updatet, Mord auf Ex and Bit-Rausch will be spread across several stages at the exhibition centre. The highlight will be Podcast Sunday on 6 September in the IFA Sommergarten.

With the IFA Podcast Days, IFA is expanding the trade fair experience to include formats that otherwise accompany millions of people via headphones, streaming platforms and their smartphones. On the IFA stages, these become shared live moments: hosts meet their audience, conversations come to life in real time, and topics from the worlds of technology, business, culture, science and society are given a platform.

“Podcasts have long been more than just an audio format. Podcasts build communities. With the IFA Podcast Days, we’re bringing the listening experience onto the stage, creating live moments and, as a platform, bridging the gap between culture and technology. Podcasts work particularly well when you feel as though you’re sitting at the table with them. We want to create that feeling with this live-on-stage format,” says Leif Lindner, CEO of IFA Management GmbH.

“Fast & Curious”: Business, the start-up scene and politics

The Business Podcast “Fast & Curious”, featuring Lea-Sophie Cramer and Verena Pausder, kicks off the Podcast Days. The two founders will be discussing entrepreneurship, the latest developments in the start-up scene, investments, economic trends – and life in general. Cramer and Pausder are among the best-known female voices in the German start-up scene and will be welcoming Franziska Brantner, co-federal chair of BÜNDNIS 90/DIE GRÜNEN, to the IFA. A separate ticket is required. Tickets available at: IFA Berlin 2026 Tickets | 4. - 8. September 2026

Date: Friday 4 September, 1.15 pm, Innovation Stage

Pop culture meets dubbing: “Plastik im Ohr”

Also on Friday, “Plastik im Ohr” will be performing on the Dream Stage. Olli from Berlin and Torsten from Bremen share a passion for collecting figurines and for everything fun in pop culture. At the IFA, they’ll be chatting to voice actress Giuliana Jakobeit, known as the German voice of Amy Adams in “Man of Steel”, Keira Knightley in “Pirates of the Caribbean” and Ran Mori in “Detective Conan”. Together, they’ll offer insights into the day-to-day life of a voice actress and discuss the development of artificial intelligence and its impact on the dubbing industry. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Friday, 4 September 2026, 3 pm, Dream Stage

Newly confirmed: “The Evolution of the Imagination: Radio Drama Production from Tape to AI” live on the Innovation Stage

For decades, The Three Investigators have been unravelling mysterious cases, solving unusual puzzles and uncovering mysterious clues. At the IFA, we’ll now be looking behind the scenes. Under the title “The Evolution of the Mind’s Eye: Radio Drama Production from Tape to AI”, Rolling Stone and the podcast Plastik im Ohr will be talking to Heikedine Körting (Studio EUROPA) and Andreas Fröhlich (Bob Andrews from “The Three Investigators”) about the production of radio dramas, using “The Three Investigators” as an example. The guests will offer insights into their craft, share anecdotes with the audience and venture a glimpse into the possible future of radio drama production. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Saturday, 5 September, 12 noon, Innovation Stage

“Healthwise” focuses on the gut health

Why is intestinal mucus, of all things, one of our body’s most important protective layers? “Healthwise” will also be exploring this question on Saturday. In a session entitled ‘Get to know your gut mucus – our body’s underrated protective layer’, Nils Behrens will be talking to gastroenterologist Prof. Dr Martin Storr about the mucus layer, the microbiome and the intestinal wall. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Saturday 5 September, 3 pm, Innovation Stage

Science you can experience: “Sag mal, du als Physiker”

Johannes Kückens, Michael Büker and Jens Schröder take the audience on an entertaining journey into the world of energy. In the Audible podcast “Sag mal, du als Physiker”, humorous explanations are combined with high-energy experiments and plenty of ‘aha’ moments. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Sunday, 6 September, at 2 pm, Dream Stage

„KI-Update“: How artificial intelligence is shaping our everyday lives

Just how intelligent is AI really? And what does generative artificial intelligence mean for work, leisure and society? These questions are the focus of the “KI Update” podcast by heise and The Decoder. The programme regularly reviews the most important developments in the field of artificial intelligence and explores various aspects of the AI revolution. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Sunday 6 September, 3 pm, Dream Stage

A deep dive into chips and processors with “Bit-Rausch“

Hardware will also be a topic at the IFA podcast. “Bit-Rausch”, c’t’s processor podcast, has been covering all things hardware since 2021. c’t editor Christof Windeck talks to guests about processors, chips and semiconductor technology. Admission requires a valid IFA ticket.

Termin: Sonntag, 6. September 2026, 16 Uhr, Creator Stage

"PietSmiet“ somewhere between gaming, everyday life and chaos

Peter, Dennis, Chris, Sep and Jay have been part of the German creator scene for 15 years with “PietSmiet”. On the PietCast, the five of them have long since moved beyond simply talking about video games. Family life, building a house, dogs and personal stories are just as much a part of the weekly podcast chat as current topics from the gaming industry. Added to this are insights, tips and that typical “PietSmiet” dose of nonsense and chaos. Admission with a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Sunday, 6 September 2026, 5 pm, Creator Stage

„Liefers & Broicher“ kicks off the IFA Summer Garden Sunday
Also new to the programme are Jan Josef Liefers and Alex Broicher with their new podcast “Liefers & Broicher”. Here, they discuss the issues that matter to people, the big questions of life, society, politics and current affairs. The focus is on listening, reflecting and engaging in conversation without preconceived opinions – with depth and humour.

Date: Sunday 6 September, 3.30 pm, IFA Sommergarten

Friendship, wine and crime: “Wine Wednesday” and “Mord auf Ex” at the IFA Summer Garden

Following that, the Summer Garden will host two more successful podcast series: “Wine Wednesday’ and “Mord auf Ex”. On “Wine Wednesday”, Jani and Alina chat over a glass of wine and with great candour about relationships, growing up and wild weekends. Afterwards, Leonie and Linn take the audience on a journey into the world of real-life criminal cases: gripping, thoroughly researched and offering unfiltered behind-the-scenes insights.

Date: Sunday 6 September, 5 pm, IFA Sommergarten

For visitors to the Sommergarten, a single ticket on Sunday is all that is needed to experience all three podcasts live. Doors open at 3 pm on Sunday, and the programme ends at around 9 pm. With a ticket for the Sommergarten, visitors are granted free entry to the IFA on the same day. Tickets are available via eventim.de and here: IFA Berlin 2026 Tickets | 4. - 8. September 2026

The #heiseshow brings the latest tech news to the IFA

The event will conclude on Monday, 7 September, with the #heiseshow on the Dream Stage. heise online’s weekly dose of tech news puts the latest developments into context. Alongside the discussions, the programme features entertaining segments such as the ‘Nerd Birthday of the Week’ and the ‘Quiz of the Week’. The #heiseshow is presented by Anna Bicker, Malte Kirchner and Dr Volker Zota. Admission requires a valid IFA ticket.

Date: Monday 7 September, 5 pm, Dream Stage

All the information about the IFA Podcast Days: Podcast Days | IFA Innovation For All