3rd Saxon AI Congress in Chemnitz

In mid-April, CIMTT was represented at the 3rd Saxon AI Congress in Chemnitz. Colleagues Carolin Böhme and Katharina Hunger were thrilled to see so many research institutions and companies combining artificial intelligence with a WOW moment. At the opening, Minister of State and Head of the State Chancellery Oliver Schenk said "AI is a game changer, it's a disruption", and that was palpable.

The first day was filled with fresh input from the discussion rounds and exciting best-practice examples:

© Katharina Hunger, CIMTT

• On the interim balance of the AI strategy in Saxony: 70-80% of SMEs in Saxony have not yet properly arrived in the use of assistance systems and artificial intelligence. The task in the coming months will be to actively address these companies, integrate them into networks and promote them. We absolutely agree with this. Our PAL, ProKI and SKIA projects are very well suited to this.

• "The world of work will evolve" - says Dr. Katrin Leonhardt and we are looking forward to it. AI demands different management behavior and new AI skills from employees. New job profiles are emerging. Absolutely interesting for our perspective on the human-centered development of AI. We want to get involved - motivate and raise awareness among employees, students and pupils.
• One idea we are taking with us: Implementing innovation sprints in a short space of time. The Smart Systems Hub is leading the way. Solving a problem with different partners within three months. Fast - innovative - together. As a research institution, we also need to get there. Application phases often take months, research projects years, by which time technologies have become obsolete in our dynamic world and problems have already been solved elsewhere. We need change!

On the second day of the AI Congress, the focus was on discussing possible areas of application, specific use cases and support for SMEs.

• A central concern was the development of approaches for evaluating possible application scenarios in a business context. Various workshops with different focal points were held for this purpose.

© Armin Reith

• CIMTT was involved as a partner in the workshop "Promotion of data-driven technologies for SMEs". Together with the Saxony Economic Development Corporation, the Sächsische Aufbaubank, the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Mittelstand Digitalzentrum Chemnitz and the Saxon Textile Research Institute, specific funding modalities were presented and possibilities for funding AI technologies were discussed.
• A particular highlight was the presentation of the PAL-PerspektiveArbeit Lausitz project by CIMTT. The focus here was on human-centricity and the importance of human-centered design in the technology development process. The involvement of employees in the development of digital assistance systems and the consideration of organizational and process-related factors were particularly emphasized.

© Armin Reith

• The lively exchange with around 40 participants led to many interesting questions, especially on specific implementation practices. As a result, new contacts were made and important impetus was provided for the further development of AI applications.

We would like to thank you very much for the exchange with old acquaintances and for making new contacts. Thanks also to the organization team of the Saxon State Chancellery. We look forward to continuing to keep an eye on the human perspective, to participate in discussions and to be part of the AI-WOW-Network in Saxony.