TED Talks

TED Talks

In the previous topic we looked at the topic of videos on YouTube, and I briefly mentioned the Ted Talks. This month we are looking in much more detail at TED Talks – both video and audio.

TED stands for “Technology, Education, Design” and there are thousands of really interesting talks available free for everyone. They are all quite short – usually with a time limit of 18 minutes or less. There are several ways to access them:

  1. On YouTube - at https://www.youtube.com/TED
  2. On the TED website - at https://www.ted.com/talks
  3. On the TED app, which you can download to tablets, smartphones or Chromebooks. This is free from your usual app provider (Google Play for Android devices or the App Store for Apple devices).

TED Talks on YouTube

Just click or tap on https://www.youtube.com/TED. This takes you to the TED YouTube channel, and then you can select what you want to see. “The TED Talks channel features the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and more.”

Like other YouTube channels (see last month’s topic on YouTube videos), the TED channel is divided into the Home page (with recommendations), Videos, Playlists, Community and Channels. Here are some direct links:

o TEDx Talks - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q

o TED-Ed - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcgKRB26m6M3okTSP7C_UwA

o TED Fellows: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBjBZmguQzn6WCYR7DQykLw

TED Talks website

The way into the TED Talks website is to click or tap on https://www.ted.com/talks. You can then sort videos by newest, oldest, relevance, and most viewed. Or you can sort by topic (most popular or by all topics). Or you can simply use the search bar to search for anything. Then just click on the ones you want to view to watch them.

If you want to get a personalised approach, when using your web browser click or tap on https://www.ted.com/. That immediately shows the main topic areas, which include: Technology, Science, Design, Collaboration, Innovation, Social Change, Health, Nature, the Environment, the Future, Communication, Personal Growth, Humanity, Society, Identity, Community, Ideas of Self-improvement, Insights about issues that matter, Inspiration or Motivation.

Just click on whatever subject area interests you most, and then you will be asked to sign in (free). If you do, you will be sent your first recommendation and then you can say whether you like it or not. Then just keep going, and recommendations get better the more you watch. This is explained at https://www.ted.com/recommends. If you follow this though, you will get personalised emails that offer further suggestions of talks that will interest you.

TED Talks app

The TED Talks app is an excellent and easy way to view these TED Talks. Once you have downloaded the free app onto your device, you can just select what interests you from the opening page. This is divided into Newest, Trending (what people are looking at right now), and Most Viewed (which are the most popular talks). You can download any of these videos so you can watch them anywhere and anytime without the need for a Wi-Fi or data connection.

The next section at the bottom of the screen is Discover. This gives a number of topics e.g. Technology, Psychology, Personal Growth, Health, Art, Social Change, Design, Science, Politics and Education (and if you tap on “See all” you will see a comprehensive alphabetical list of all the subjects). It also gives a number of playlists (groups of talks), e.g. the most popular talks of 2019, Top 10 picks of 2019, A Decade in Review, and Talks for Bird Enthusiasts. To see them all, tap on “See all”. It also gives a list of TED Talks by speakers. And at the top is a search bar so you can search for anything you want.

There is section on podcasts (see below), and finally “My TED” which if you are logged in will automatically show your own list, your likes, any downloads and your history.

Audio TED Talks (podcasts)

In addition to all the video talks there is a large number of audio talks (podcasts) which you can listen to. You can see these by tapping on the podcast button at the bottom of the screen when you are using the TED app. Then you can tap on the category, and see especially:

  • TED Radio Hour: These are produced weekly. All previous editions are accessible, and each of them can be downloaded so you can listen to them anytime and anywhere. They are also broadcast occasionally on BBC Radio 4 Extra.
  • TED Talks Daily: There is a new TED Talk daily. Again, all previous editions are accessible, and each of them can be downloaded so you can listen to them anytime and anywhere.
  • The TED Interview: These are occasional interviews with speakers, again you can listen to previous ones and download them.

You can also listen to these audio podcasts in other ways - via other podcast providers, via the website, via Spotify or via your smart speaker (such as Amazon Alexa or Google Home) if you have one. See https://www.ted.com/about/programs-initiatives/ted-talks/ted-talks-audio.


This is also available as a PDF document (Portable Document Format), which you can download, save and store on your computer or tablet if you wish - just click or tap on the image just below here, or if you cannot see an image, try clicking or tapping on this link:

Connect & Learn Topic - TED Talks - Feb 2020.pdf