February 25th, 2016

A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

4 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

WELCOMEWELCOME

Dr. Mathias Döpfner, CEO of the Axel Springer SE

Dear Priscilla, Dear Mark,

welcome to Axel Springer, entrepreneurship. encouragement for a young welcome to . It’s a We are presenting the first Axel generation of entrepreneurs. pleasure to have you here. Springer Award to you, Last time we met, we because with , you discovered a shared Dear Mark, have created the greatest web passion for karaoke. I still of connection in our times. remember you telling me, with congratulations on receiving Facebook has transformed and a self-ironic smile, that karaoke the first Axel Springer Award. enriched our culture, while also is never about skill, only about posing new challenges. How is daring. You may have asked yourself: this power to be used Why another award? Aren’t responsibly? I know you are The skill that has gone into there enough already? Our intensively engaging with this creating Facebook is evident, company’s founder, Axel issue. indeed it has probably created Springer, was an new categories of skill in your entrepreneur, a At an age, in which others are field. As to daring - it is hard to technology enthusiast, thought only beginning their imagine an entrepreneurial leader and someone who professional lives, you have vision paying off more sought to further the advance already become one of the comprehensively. May you of freedom wherever possible. most successful and continue to develop your ideas Today, we are experiencing a enigmatic entrepreneurs of our for working with the creative new era, where entrepreneurs times. Facebook is establishing industries and may your like you are changing markets itself as a distribution platform optimism in technology’s and our lives at an ever and as a fair partner to potential be vindicated. greater pace, aided by the publishers. I hope that you will explosively powerful take the award as an potential of technology. In this encouragement to continue on My very best, vein we wanted to establish this path. I’ confident that the an award encouraging digital award itself will serve as an Mathias

6 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

August 2014: Zuckerberg participates in the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise money and awareness for the deadly disease ALS.

1989: as a five-year-old. All smiles with his tie.

May 2004: Mark Zuckerberg (l.) and , two of the founders of Facebook, at Harvard University (Cambridge, ).

Beast, the mop-like dog of the Zuckerbergs, dressed up for February 2016: Valentine‘s. Zuckerberg in Berlin. His physical challenge for 2016 is to run 365 miles.

When a U.S. magazine asked me to years. And lots of people were con- Second, Mr. Zuckerberg had the con- ny company called with no write a story about Facebook CEO vinced that Facebook — and Mr. Zu- viction to believe in this vision even revenue and only a dozen employees. Mark Zuckerberg on the eve of the ckerberg — were headed for a histo- when smart people told him he was an At the time, skeptical observers took company‘s IPO in 2012, the editors ric fall. idiot, Silicon Valley and Wall Street are this as evidence that Zuckerberg had wanted me to answer two questions: But after interviewing many of Mr. full of brilliant people who are highly no business making financial decisions First, did the 27 year-old Mr. Zucker- Zuckerberg‘s colleagues and inves- persuasive, and many of them had al- with shareholder money. But only a few berg, with his apparent lack of concern tors and analyzing Facebook‘s busi- ready dismissed Facebook as a fad. Mr. years later, Instagram would be regar- for profit and fondness for t-shirts and ness and vision, I reached a startling Zuckerberg was undeterred. ded as one of the smartest — and che- hoodies, really have the experience and conclusion. Third, Mr. Zuckerberg had the passi- apest — acquisitions in Silicon Valley skill necessary to lead a global public Not only was Mr. Zuckerberg mature on and charm necessary to recruit the history. company? Or, as some people argued, and skilled enough to lead Facebook. top engineers and executives necessa- Fifth, and most importantly, Mr. Zucker- was Mr. Zuckerberg just a smart kid He was ideally suited for the job. ry to make his vision a reality. You can‘t berg had the patience, commitment, who had gotten lucky and was now out Mr. Zuckerberg, I concluded, had build companies by yourself, no matter and fortitude necessary to resist pres- of his depth? an unusual combination of talents. how talented you are. Mr. Zuckerberg sure from short-term Wall Street tra- And: And these qualities, combined with had already built a fantastic team at Fa- ders and invest for the long haul. That‘s Was Facebook, the super-hyped soci- Facebook‘s massive market opportu- cebook. And he had recruited them how great companies get created — by al network Mr. Zuckerberg had started nity, might one day produce one of the from some of the best companies in the postponing „profit maximization“ and in his college dorm room, really worth most important companies in the world. world. making big, bold investments that crea- the gargantuan price that IPO investors What were these talents? Fourth, Mr. Zuckerberg had the confi- te amazing products and services. Mr. were about to pay for it? Or was Face- First, Mr. Zuckerberg had an amazing dence to make bold decisions that see- Zuckerberg had already demonstrated book the poster child of a dangerous long-term vision. His goal was nothing med crazy to everyone else. Just befo- his willingness to put Facebook‘s pro- and crazy new tech bubble? less than to connect everyone in the re the IPO, for example, Mr. Zuckerberg duct over its profit. Those questions had been debated for world. decided to drop $1 billion to buy a ti- In short, I concluded, Mark Zuckerberg 7

February 2016: Just a few December 2010: days ago, Mark Zucker- Mark Zuckerberg berg held a speech during was named Time the Mobile World Congress magazine‘s in Barcelona, talking about „Person of the future of virtual reality the Year“. and its future as „the most social plattform“.

April 2011: U.S. President Barack Obama with Mark Zucker- berg during a live web cast at the Facebook Head- quarters in Menlo Park, California.

May 19, 2012: Mark Zuckerberg marries Priscilla Chan – a day after the IPO of Facebook. They had met nine years earlier at a party hosted by Mark‘s fraternity in 2003.

December 2015: Proud parents. Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan with their baby daughter Maxima („Max“).

had the same „right stuff“ that had hel- More than 1/7th of the people on the Facebook‘s Rift virtual reality From the early days of Facebook, Mark ped similarly youthful entrepreneurs like planet — 1+ billion — now use Face- system.) Zuckerberg has believed that great Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos build world- book every day. Hundreds of millions In addition to proving himself capable companies can do more than create va- changing companies and reward long- more use other services that Face- of leading one of the world‘s great com- lue for shareholders. Great companies, term shareholders with great returns. book has bought or invented, including panies, the now 31-year old Mr. Zucker- Mr. Zuckerberg has demonstrated, can Well, the magazine printed my story. Instagram. berg has also already inspired an entire also create value for employees, custo- And, at first, it looked like the skeptics Facebook has done no less than crea- generation with his humanity and gene- mers, and society. might be right. te an entirely new way for humans to rosity. Far from being a „reclusive billio- In so doing, these great companies, In the months after Facebook‘s IPO, its communicate and share information. It naire“, Mr. Zuckerberg and his wife Pris- when led by great people, truly can stock plummeted. Investors who igno- has created a vast and powerful media cilla Chan have shared intimate personal change the world. red Mr. Zuckerberg‘s promise that Fa- distribution network. It has also alrea- details with the world (via Facebook, na- Henry Blodget, CEO and Editor-In Chief of Business Insider cebook would invest in long-term pro- dy acquired — and nurtured — some turally). A picture of Mark changing his jects at the expense of near-term profit other colossal media and communica- daughter‘s diaper, for example, quickly learned the hard way that he was se- tions services, hedging its own future in received millions of shares and „likes“. rious. And many dumped the stock in the process. More recently, Mark and Priscilla pro- disgust. (In my house, for example, my child- mised to dedicate 99 % of their Face- But Zuckerberg stuck to his guns. And ren tell me that „Facebook is for old book shares, an approx. $50 billion for- over the next four years, investors who people.“ But they‘re fanatical users tune, to a new mission — the Chan stuck with him have been repaid many of WhatsApp and Instagram, both of Zuckerberg Initiative — which will in- times over. which Facebook now owns. In a few ye- vest in advancing human potential. In so A mere 12 years after Mr. Zuckerberg ars, instead of watching movies and doing, while still only in their early 30s, launched Facebook, the service has al- playing video games, we may get so- they have set a new standard for philan- ready connected much of the world. me of our entertainment through thropy and impact. 8 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

GREETINGGREETING

Bill Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

I’m excited that the first Axel Springer You share our conviction that people who can have that same kind of relationship as award is being given to my friend Mark have been blessed with so much have a we make this journey together. Zuckerberg. Mark, you and Priscilla are responsibility to give back to society. And leading the way for a new generation of you see that technology and innovation You’re doing some amazing work. For philanthropists. This generation is apply- are vital to bridging the economic and so- your generosity, your vision, and your ing its entrepreneurial spirit, talents and cial divide. commitment, both Melinda and I salu- energy to achieving goals once thought te you. You’ve done a great thing establi- impossible: inventing new medicines, re- I really enjoy working with you, Mark. Get- shing the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Con- ducing poverty and hunger, and making ting to talk to you and seeing your new gratulations on this award. sure every child has an education. way of looking at things in philanthropy really stimulates me. I’ve had one other The vision that you and Priscilla have laid relationship in philanthropy that has re- out is ambitious and admirable. I know ally engaged me and that’s with Warren from the success you’ve had as an entre- Buffett. And it’s kind of amazing: Warren preneur and innovator that you’re willing is about 25 years older than me, I’m a litt- to take risks that others can’t or won’t. le more than 25 years older than you. I get Applying that courage to advancing hu- a lot of wisdom and thoughtfulness from man potential and promoting equality will Warren, hopefully he gets some energy transform the lives of millions. and new ideas from me. And so I hope we

10 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

LAUDATIOLAUDATIO

Peter Thiel, entrepreneur and CEO of Thiel Capital

I’m happy to be here tonight to join in from human editors, and to replace ces or simulated entertainment. Its al- was in his refusal to sell the company. honoring Mark Zuckerberg. them with purely algorithmic results. gorithms are powerful but they don’t He didn’t even consider it a real ques- The whole enterprise of software de- do anything showy. They just make su- tion, because the alternate future that I think Mathias, and Mark himself, will velopment seemed to advance by re- re that you won’t miss it when an old he wanted to bring about was more re- have a lot to say about artificial intelli- placing every single human special- friend gets engaged or starts a new al to him than the financial payoff. That gence, about virtual reality, and about ty, one by one, with computers to do it job. That’s not trivial to do, and it hap- was unusual then, and it’s still true to- what these new technologies could instead. Facebook, however, has ne- pens seamlessly on Facebook. day. Mark is devoted to his company make possible in the near future. ver been about replacement. It doesn’t because he can see where it’s going provide substitutes for human inter- Third, Mark’s vision for Facebook has and he’s only just getting started. However, since I have known Mark action; it provides new ways for peop- helped people to build a culture of re- for a good chunk of the recent past, le to interact. While the implicit goal of spect and exchange. If you think back For his inventiveness, for his deeply I’d like to take a slightly different ap- computer science had been to build a to the early days of the internet, its fu- human vision of what machines can proach: I’d like to talk about what Mark machine that can do everything a hu- ture was not at all clear. You can ima- do, and for his relentless focus on the has helped to create, and about how man can do, Facebook has made soft- gine an alternate history in which peo- long term – for all of these reasons I the world might be different today if he ware that only makes sense as a tool ple don’t become comfortable using think it is fitting to honor Mark, and I’m hadn’t done so. In that sense I’d like to for humans. Its success in doing so it to meet their friends and family. It happy to join Axel Springer in doing sketch out a kind of alternate history of has helped to gradually orient software could have remained a wild and dan- so. Thank you. the internet. developers away from the mania for gerous place – maybe an exciting replacing people. place to escape for a while, but maybe First of all, Mark put people at the cen- not part of your daily social life. Face- ter of the internet. That might sound Second, Mark has had more than just book has led a long and subtle but sort of banal, but it wasn’t so obvious a clear idea that computers are tools deeply important trend away from back when he started Facebook. If you for people, he has been a toolmaker mob behavior, away from the kind of could go back to the first years of the himself – an inventor. Take the example nastiness that hides behind masks new millennium in Silicon Valley, you of Newsfeed. Today we take Newsfeed and rules in shadow. would hear a lot more about „informa- for granted, using it so often that it can tion“ than about people. „Organizing be hard to think that it ever needed to Fourth and finally, Mark is unusual the world’s information“ was the idea be invented. But Mark made it. And for his long-term vision. He has been of the age. People were excited to get it exemplifies his broader approach: firmly committed to Facebook ever away from messy web directories, with Newsfeed doesn’t replace your friends since I met him; just one concrete idiosyncrasies that could only come and family with imaginary acquaintan- way in which I saw that commitment

12 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIALA SPECIAL PUBLICATION PRINT ON TO THE COMMEMORATE OCCASION OF THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

Uwe Horstmann, Managing Director Project a Ventures, Verena Pausder, Founder and CEO Fox and Sheep with Christian Vollmann

Stefan Aust, Editor-in-Chief WeltN24

Cornelia Yzer, Senator of Economic Affairs

Dr Frank-Dieter Freiling (ZDF)

Caroline Schmutte and Catherine von Klaus Ebert Emily Floeck (Bill & Melinda Fürstenberg- (Owner KE Publicist Gates Foundation) Dussmann Media) Manfred Bissinger 13

Dr Mathias Döpfner, Priscilla Chan, Mark Zuckerberg and Friede Springer

Iris Knobloch, Lutz Marmor Warner Bros. (General France Director NDR)

Michael Hagspihl, Telekom

Garri Kasparov and Rem Koolhaas and his wife Daria Wolfgang Tillmans 14 February 25th, 2016 A SPECIAL PUBLICATION TO COMMEMORATE THE FIRST AXEL SPRINGER AWARD

Thomas Heilmann, Senator of Justice

Frank Briegmann (CEO Universal Music), Christiane zu Salm (About Change Athan Stephanopoulos, Claus Strunz, Collection), Dr Thomas Bellut (Director ZDF) President NowThis Axel Springer SE

Young Hoon Eom, President & CEO Samsung Europe

Martin Schulz (SPD), President Dr Norbert Röttgen, Politician (CDU), of the European Parliament Rudolf Knepper, Managing Consultant Member of the German 15

GUESTLISTGUESTLIST Karin Arnold (Morrison & Foerster der Kudlich (Rocket Internet SE), Prof. LLP), Prof. Dr. Sören Auer (Fraunhofer Dr. Wolf Lepenies (Wissenschaftskol- Institut - Enterprise Information Sys- leg zu Berlin), (FDP), tems), Stefan Aust (WeltN24 GmbH), Alexander Ljung (SoundCloud Limi- Christof Baron (Mindshare GmbH), ted), Kent D. Logsdon (U.S. Embas- Ralf Baumann (StepStone Deutsch- sy Berlin), Gerd Harry Lybke (Galerie land GmbH), Jan Bayer (Axel Sprin- EIGEN + ART), Stephan Madel (Me- ger SE), Jan Beckers (HitFox Group dia Impact GmbH & Co. KG), Robert GmbH), Holger Beeck (McDonald‘s M. Maier (Visual Meta GmbH), Thors- Deutschland Inc.), Dr. Thomas Bellut ten Mandel (pilot Hamburg GmbH & (ZDF), John D. Bernstein (General Co. KG), Lutz Marmor (Norddeutscher Atlantic), Gerd Billen (Bundesmi- Rundfunk), Prof. Dr. Christoph Meinel nisterium der Justiz), Maximi- (Hasso-Plattner-Institut an der Uni- lian Biller (Bonial International versität Potsdam), Dr. Jens Müffel- GmbH), Manfred Bissinger (Hoff- mann (Axel Springer SE), Eva Verena mann & Campe Verlag GmbH), Müller, Mathias Müller von Blumen- Jan Bohl (Ableton AG), Martin Bör- cron (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung ner (Samsung Electronics GmbH), GmbH), Sung Wan Myung (Samsung Christian Boros (BOROS GmbH), Electronics GmbH), Jörn Nikolay (Ge- Frank Briegmann (Universal Music neral Atlantic), Christian Nienhaus GmbH), Bruno Brunnet (Contempora- (Media Impact GmbH & Co. KG), Ja- ry Fine Arts), Ralph Büchi (Axel Sprin- vier Olivan (Facebook), Leland Or- ger SE), Gabriel Caillaux (General At- ser, Justin Osofsky (Facebook), Ve- lantic), Filip Dames (Zalando SE), rena Pausder (Fox & Sheep GmbH), Thomas Demand (Studio Thomas De- Jan-Eric Peters (upday GmbH & Co. mand), Dr. Julian Deutz (Axel Sprin- KG), Louis Pfitzner (Salonmeister ger SE), Kai Diekmann (Axel Springer GmbH Berlin), Johannes Reck (GetY- Hubertus SE), Dr. Mathias Döpfner (Axel Sprin- ourGuide AG), Julian Reichelt (BILD Heil (SPD), ger SE), Jonas Drüppel (Dubsmash), GmbH & Co. KG), Jörg Rheinboldt Klaus Ebert (KE Media), Young Hoon (Axel Springer Plug & Play Accelera- Member of Eom (Samsung Electronics Euro- tor GmbH), Anne Kjaer Riechert (ReDi the German pe), Prof. Jürgen Flimm (Staatsoper School Digital Integration), Alexander Bundestag im Schiller Theater), Emily Floeck Rinke (Celonis), Marco Jo Rodzy- (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundati- nek (NOAH Advisors Limited), Ben- on), William Ford (General Atlantic jamin Rohé (German Tech Entrepre- Service Company), Benedikt Fran- neurship Center), Dr. Norbert Röttgen ke (Helpling GmbH), Dr. Frank-Die- (Deutscher Bundestag), Gisbert Rühl ter Freiling (ZDF), Prof. Dr. Sascha (Klöckner & Co SE), Christian Rum- Friesike (Julius-Maximilians-Univer- mel (Deuts