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Our Mission

TED is a nonprofit dedicated to discovering and spreading ideas that spark conversation, deepen understanding and drive meaningful change. Our organization is devoted to curiosity, reason, wonder and the pursuit of knowledge — without an agenda. We welcome people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world and connection with others, and we invite everyone to engage with ideas and activate them in your community.

OUR HISTORY 

Driving a Sustainable Future

TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, but today it spans a multitude of worldwide communities and initiatives exploring everything from science and business to education, arts and global issues. In addition to the hundreds of TED Talks curated from our annual conferences and published on TED.com, we produce original podcasts, short video series, animated TED-Ed lessons and TV programs that are translated into more than 100 languages and distributed via partnerships around the world. Each year, more than 3,000 independently run TEDx events bring people together to share ideas and bridge divides in communities on every continent. Through the Audacious Project, TED has helped catalyze more than $3 billion in funding for projects that seek to make the world more beautiful, sustainable and just. In 2020, TED launched Countdown, an initiative to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis and mobilize a movement for a net-zero future. View a full list of TED’s many programs and initiatives.

Who owns TED?

As of July 1, 2019, TED is owned by TED Foundation, a tax exempt not for profit corporation (a 501(c)3 organization under US tax code). TED moved TED Conferences LLC from the Sapling Foundation, which was established in 1996 by publishing entrepreneur Chris Anderson, over to TED Foundation to align with our brand and make it easier for our donors to connect TED donations to TED Conferences, LLC.

The goal of the TED Foundation is to foster the spread of great ideas. It aims to provide a platform for thinkers, visionaries and teachers, so that people
around the globe can gain a better understanding of the biggest issues faced by the world, and feed a desire to help create a better future. Core to this goal is a belief that there is no greater force for changing the world than a powerful idea.

How TED Works

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