Telekom Innovation Laboratories

Telekom Innovation Laboratories (also called T-Labs) are a joint organization of Deutsche Telekom and selected universities, mainly the Technical University of Berlin. T-Labs are working in close cooperation with the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev at Be'er Sheva (Israel) and other universities, such as the Berlin University of the Arts and the Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, as well as with partners from industry and start-ups. At the locations in Berlin, Darmstadt, Budapest and Mountain View, California (U.S.), approximately 360 experts and scientists from T-Labs are concentrating on long-term and medium-term innovation in the field of information and communications technology.

T-Labs were founded in 2004 as the central research and development institute of Deutsche Telekom under the direction of Manfred Jeromin. At the same time, T-Labs are also a so-called affiliated institute of Berlin Institute of Technology (TU Berlin), meaning that T-Labs is a privately organized entity that is closely integrated in the teaching and research activities conducted at TU Berlin. This concept promotes intensive collaboration between research and industry. Experts, entrepreneurs and researchers work together on innovations intended for real-world application scenarios and on disruptive technologies in the area of information and communications technology.

T-Labs follow a consistent Open Innovation approach and are themselves an innovation as an affiliated institute and thus pioneered a new form of research and development. In a report for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), T-Labs have been presented as a benchmark example of modern innovation management.