Annual meeting of the "AIR" cluster initiative makes high-tech in the regional economy and science visible
Focal points: AI in the context of mobility and health
Regensburg and our region stand for high-tech and knowledge: The development of innovative technologies in the city and its surroundings is booming. Numerous production and industrial companies here are already using technologies from the AI sector. The aim of the AIR Annual Meet-up on the banks of the Danube in the Bavariathek at the end of April was therefore to make solutions from local business and science accessible to a broad audience. The "Marketplace of Innovations" offered the 100 or so participants the opportunity to do just that. The eye-catcher on the Danube plateau in front of the museum - a car equipped with new AI applications from our network member AVL Software and Functions GmbH - also attracted the attention of passers-by in front of the Haus der Bayerischen Geschichte. Dr. Theo Steininger, CEO of Erium GmbH, and Dr. Christian Münzenmayer, Head of the Digital Health Systems department at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, enriched the meet-up with expert input from the fields of "AI & Mobility" and "AI & Health". At the opening, Prof. Dr. Georg Stephan Barfuß, Consultant for Economy, Science and Finance, City of Regensburg, emphasized the valuable contribution and high potential of cross-industry cooperation between Regensburg's players from business and science with the clusters and networks in Regensburg.
Even if the title of the lecture "Bridging the Gap: from astrophysics to car body assembly and beyond" suggests otherwise, Dr. Theo Steininger put people at the heart of his presentation. In addition to factors for the successful introduction of AI and data science projects in traditional areas such as car body assembly or thermal waste recycling, he showed which tools are already available for data scientists so that they can integrate their specific domain knowledge together with experts in the respective areas. This question also shaped the panel discussion. Smart City Manager Franziska Meier believes that companies also have a duty with regard to the availability and quality of data. In the city of Regensburg's current Smart City project R_Next, projects in the field of AI are being considered and a framework for new collaborations in the field of AI exists. Finally, Steininger also ventured an outlook on the role that so-called "transformer models" - including the ChatGPT application - can play in the workflow of corresponding data science projects.
Digital pathology: AI as a solution to the shortage of specialists and high workload
Dr. Christian Münzenmayer illustrated the use of AI in healthcare and research using image analysis apps for digital pathology, where deep learning has already been established for many years. The often prevalent fear that technology is replacing people does not exist here, on the contrary: technology alleviates the problem of increasing workload. New therapies require more analysis - at the same time, the number of pathologists is decreasing.
"A new workflow with AI makes it possible to process complex correlations more quickly." Instead of working with a microscope, examinations on a PC, automated determination of scores and statistics and, of course, online sharing of samples are possible. "The technology used - Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) - supports pathologists, but cannot replace them," emphasizes Münzenmayer. His other example - continuous heart monitoring with textile-integrated sensors - also clearly demonstrated the benefits for people that arise from the interaction of different technologies. Heart disease, which often goes unnoticed even with a 24-hour ECG, can be detected automatically. His conclusion: AI has enormous potential to save lives and enable better care, it promises high savings potential for healthcare systems - and greater efficiency, for example with regard to documentation in care, with specialists or in hospitals.
Business development since the AIR initiative was founded
"There is a high proportion of production and industrial companies in the Regensburg area that are already working with AI technologies or are planning to do so," says Philipp Berr, Head of the Science, Technology and Cluster Department at the City of Regensburg. Precisely because AI offers a broad spectrum of possible applications, interaction between different technologies and sectors is essential. The technology clusters at the location provide the necessary scope for action here; they have been working together in the AIR initiative since 2020. Continuous supporter of this cross-technology collaboration: the City of Regensburg's Economic Development Agency. The AIR initiative pools regional knowledge and the potential of a strong network of experts from industry and university partners who are involved in the research and application of artificial intelligence in order to increase economic strength and future viability with the involvement of the population. "AIR thrives on dialog. In concrete terms, this means intensive exchange and cooperation between partners from industry, science and municipal administration," says Berr.
Project AIR - Artificial Intelligence Regensburg
AIR stands for "Artificial Intelligence Regensburg" and is a joint initiative of companies, the two universities, clusters and the City of Regensburg. With the core partners BioPark, SPS, Cluster Mobiltiy & Logistics, IT Security and IBaKI, the aim is to build Regensburg into a leading location for the development and application of AI in a cross-cluster network.
We were also on site with our "transform.r" project
Accompanying the transformation of the automotive industry and its suppliers in the Regensburg region is our project mission - AI and mobility are therefore a recurring focus of our project work.