The InnovationFestival @karlsruhe.digital is just around the corner
On October 16, the InnovationFestival @karlsruhe.digital will take place – a livestream full of digital innovations from Karlsruhe that you shouldn’t miss.
If the coronavirus crisis has shown one thing, it is that the importance of digitalization cannot be overestimated. Online meetings, working from home, home schooling and even entire congresses are being held virtually. None of this would be possible without digital know-how and a modern IT infrastructure.
In 2020, it is therefore more important than ever to fly the flag of digitalization – and that is exactly what Karlsruhe is doing. With around 4,400 IT companies, the region is regarded as a driver of digitalization even beyond the borders of Baden-Württemberg. To highlight this despite (or perhaps because of) the current situation, the InnovationFestival @karlsruhe.digital was launched – as a replacement for the Bunte Nacht der Digitalisierung, which cannot take place in its tried-and-tested format due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Making digitalization in Karlsruhe visible and tangible for everyone – that is the goal of the Colourful Night of Digitalization and this year’s InnovationFestival. We are delighted about the numerous submissions from a wide range of subject areas, which reflect the broad expertise of the IT region,” emphasizes Martin Hubschneider, initiator of the Colourful Night of Digitalization and the InnovationFestival, as well as one of the chairmen of the karlsruhe.digital initiative.
Top-class keynote speeches and keynotes
Companies and institutions from the fields of science, business, culture and administration based in Karlsruhe and the Karlsruhe TechnologyRegion were able to submit their digital transformation projects for the InnovationFestival in advance. A jury consisting of members of the steering committee of the karlsruhe.digital initiative then selected the best 15 innovations for the stage program from almost 60 applications. In addition to the 10-minute keynote speeches, top-class keynotes by Professor Dr.-Ing. Holger Hanselka, President of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Professor Dr. Marion A. Weissenberger-Eibl, Professor at the KIT and head of the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI and Martin Hubschneider, founder of CAS Software AG and Managing Director of the Hightech.Unternehmer.Netzwerk CyberForum the event.
The keynote speeches will cover topics such as digital travel assistants, autonomous driving, automation and the topic of smart cities. Karlsruhe’s First Mayor and Chairwoman of the karlsruhe.digital initiative, Gabriele Luczak-Schwarz, is particularly looking forward to the presentation of various innovations relating to smart and digital cities:
“The fact that Karlsruhe is one of the most digital cities in Germany was demonstrated by its second place at the Bitkom e. V. Smart City Award 2019. The presentation of the Smart City Demo Lab of Stadtwerke Karlsruhe, the current status of the multifunctional app digital@KA for Karlsruhe citizens and keynote speeches on the open source video conferencing platform Palim Palim of the city of Bühl and the Green City Logistics project of EXXETA AG illustrate at the InnovationFestival how Karlsruhe and the region use technical solutions in a targeted manner to improve the quality of life and coexistence of urban society.”
Free livestream from 2 pm
On October 16 from 2 p.m., citizens and all interested parties are invited to watch the free livestream from the ZKM | Center for Art and Media to see Karlsruhe’s innovations for themselves. The program will be hosted by entrepreneur, presenter and speaker Tijen Onaran.
“Developing sustainable solutions for pressing future issues is an important goal for us,” says Prof. Dr. Thomas Hirth, Vice President for Innovation and International Affairs at KIT and Chairman of the karlsruhe.digital initiative. “We are delighted to be able to celebrate the rollout of the autonomous field robot “Beteigeuze NOVA” at the InnovationFestival, for example, as well as a virtual test field for the verification of networked and automated driving functions and a program for the simultaneous automatic translation of lectures and presentations – a globally unique service at KIT.”