German politicians Robert Habeck and Christian Lindner to speak at OMR Festival

May 7 & 8 is once again OMR Festival time in Hamburg—that's in less than two months! What awaits Festival-goers is a carefully curated mix of experts and influential players from the digital economy, pop-culture mainstays and politicians tasked with regulated and promoting the space. Today, we are thrilled to announce a premier as two active ministers from the current governing coalition of Germany.

We've been busy with speaker drops over the past few months—be sure to check out what and who you missed. Just a taste of some the major names we've dropped: the world’s biggest influencer and entrepreneur Kim Kardashian, OMR stalwart/marketing prof. Scott Galloway, tech journalist Kara Swisher and star podcaster and author Tim Ferriss, plus legendary music producer Rick Rubin. Be sure to check in regularly to see who’s speaking where and when. And don't forget to get your ticket.

May 7: Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action

He is the first member of the German Green party Bündnis 90/Die Grünen to hold the office of Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Action. He’s also the first-ever member of the Greens to speak on the OMR Conference Stage: Robert Habeck. The 54-year-old is one of the political shooting stars in recent years. In fact, it took him just under ten years to go from District Chair of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen in Schleswig-Flensburg to Deputy State Premier of the Federal State of Schleswig-Holstein. Among his responsibilities as minister are energy transition matters and digitalization.

In 2018, Robert Habeck advanced to Chair of the Green Party at the federal level, before continuing his rise after the general election and being named Vice-Chancellor and Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. It’s a key post and a massive challenge. On the one hand, the economy needs to be positioned to embrace the challenges of a climate-neutral future, while simultaneously assuaging fears and concerns of companies suffering under the consequences of inflation and economic uncertainty due to the war in Ukraine. It’s Habeck’s mandate to spearhead this change. If his memoirs about this time were to be published at some point, the father of four would probably not need a ghostwriter, Habeck made a living as a writer before entering politics. 

May 8: Federal Minister of Finance

Day 2 will also see an influential politician take the OMR Conference Stage, as the man overseeing Germany's public finances, Christian Lindner, will speak. After the Bundestag elections, FDP party leader Lindner rose to become the chief treasurer of governing coalition in Germany. The Federal Minister of Finance is tasked with maintaining control over public finances, even in turbulent times (the war in Ukraine, inflation and the transformation of the economy), while seeing to it that sufficient funds are available to shape the transformation in Germany.

In his career, Lindner has already proven that he has the chops to succeed when the pressure is on. When the FDP failed to reach the 5% threshold to be admitted to German Parliament in the 2013 general election, Lindner played a key role in preparing the party for its re-entry. As the lead candidate, he initially led the party to a brilliant election result in North Rhine-Westphalia, which ultimately played a decisive role in enabling CDU lead candidate Armin Laschet to forge a coalition with Lindner’s FDP in NRW. While a repeat at the federal level failed, partly due to the CDU/CSU's weak result, Lindner led his party into an alliance with the SPD and the Greens, the current ruling coalition. At OMR24, Lindner will talk about how he sees the future of Germany.

Some housekeeping to close: the Festival tends to sell out completely shortly before the event begins—as do the hotel rooms and Airbnb rooms. If you really want to be at OMR24 on May 7 & 8, get your ticket today and start looking for accommodation.