TUD | Dresden University of Technology has emerged as a driving force in Indo-German collaboration in healthcare innovation by hosting a workshop focusing on “Artificial Intelligence, Extended Reality, and Robotics in Healthcare: Emerging Pathways from Diagnosis to Therapy.” Held under the aegis of the Indo-German Science & Technology Center (IGSTC), the three-day event (July 16–18, 2025) brought together over 50 prominent clinicians, scientists, innovators, and industry leaders from both countries to accelerate the development and deployment of deep-tech and next-generation healthcare technologies.

TU Dresden: Accelerating global health innovation

A major highlight of the workshop was the signing of a Letter of Intent (LoI) between Prof. Ursula Staudinger, Rector of TU Dresden, and Dr. M. Srinivas, Director of AIIMS New Delhi. This marks the beginning of a strategic alliance between one of Germany’s top technical universities and India’s premier medical institution—ranked among the world’s top 100 hospitals.

Prof. Staudinger, Rector of TU Dresden: “With TU Dresden at the helm, this emerging partnership unites German excellence in medically oriented engineering with India’s vast clinical expertise to create a powerful model of interdisciplinary research at the intersection of engineering, medicine, and technological foresight.”

Dr. Srinivas, Director of AIIMS: “By fusing frontline clinical insight with German strengths in AI and robotics, we can co-create real-world healthcare solutions.”

Prof. Ronald Tetzlaff, Chief Officer for Internationalization and Technology Transfer (CTIO), TU Dresden: “TU Dresden sees this alliance not only as an academic initiative but also as a technological driver—enabling deep-tech innovation to reach patients directly. Our role as a university is to bridge engineering with medicine to address human needs, and this partnership is a blueprint for that.”

Mobilizing National Leaders and Innovation Hubs

Spearheaded by Prof. Stefanie Speidel, Director of Translational Surgical Oncology at TU Dresden, the workshop united experts from key Indian cities—New Delhi, Mumbai, Gurugram, Raipur, Kalyani, and Bhubaneswar—and major German innovation centers—Berlin, Hanover, Heidelberg, Leipzig, Munich, Aachen, and Magdeburg.

Prof. Speidel, a leading figure at both the Centre for Tactile Internet with Human-in-the-Loop (CeTI) and the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Dresden, is at the forefront of research combining AI, robotics, and surgical oncology. Her work translates high-performance computing, surgical data science, and networked robotic systems directly into clinical practice.

Key participants included premier Indian institutions such as AIIMS, Lady Hardinge Medical College, VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital, ESIC Faridabad, and Medica Superspecialty Hospital. German institutions included RWTH Aachen, TU Munich, OVGU Magdeburg, MHH Hannover, and University Hospital Heidelberg.

Industry leaders—GE Healthcare, NVIDIA, Brainlab, and ZEISS Innovation Hub—added critical applied perspectives, enhancing the translation of academic research into scalable clinical technologies.

The combined strengths of CeTI in tactile human-machine interaction and NCT Dresden in clinical translation laid out a compelling, scalable, and ethically grounded roadmap for future digital healthcare ecosystems.

© André Wirsig

Strategic Synergy with transCampus at IITM

This growing Indo-German partnership combining engineering and medicine is closely aligned with TUD | transCampus IITM, TU Dresden’s flagship cross-border platform with the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM).

By integrating medicine, data science, robotics and engineering, this platform accelerates joint research, startup incubation, and clinical collaboration. The addition of AIIMS as a key partner adds a critical clinical dimension—solidifying TU Dresden’s global leadership in deep-tech healthcare innovation.

Contribution to Science Diplomacy

The workshop marked a significant contribution to Indo-German science diplomacy. Supported by the Embassy of India in Germany and coordinated by IGSTC, the event featured an address by H.E. Ajit Gupte, Ambassador of India to Germany who was personally represented by Dr. Ramanuj Banerjee, Science Counsellor, Embassy of India, Berlin.

H.E. Ajit Gupte, Ambassador of India to Germany: “Germany, with its strong expertise in data science and robotics, and India, with its vast clinical expertise and thriving digital health ecosystem — together, we can build solutions that are not only technologically robust but also socially relevant and globally scalable.” 

The initiative is poised to catalyze bilateral R&D programs, co-innovation labs, and clinical pilots in AI, robotics, and digital medicine, contributing to a shared Indo-German vision for advancing global health through innovation.

About the Partners

AIIMS New Delhi
India’s foremost medical institution, AIIMS New Delhi is internationally recognized for excellence in clinical care, research, and medical education. It plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of healthcare across South Asia and beyond.

IGSTC
The Indo-German Science & Technology Centre (IGSTC) is a bilateral initiative between India’s Department of Science and Technology (DST) and Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). It enables applied R&D and innovation-led collaboration in key technology sectors.

Contact:
Dr. Avinash Chekuru
Advisor, Impact Partnerships (Global South)
International Office, TU Dresden

Phone +49 351 463 36121