Using AI for the Benefit of the Company

For a long time, most people only had a vague idea of artificial intelligence (AI). Then a US company made the product ChatGPT available to the public - and in one fell swoop, AI became a tangible reality. That was at the end of 2022.

Since then, developments in the AI sector have been so rapid that many people have been taken by surprise. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are also often faced with the question of whether and how they can benefit from artificial intelligence and the digital transformation.

Bavarian SMEs that want to find out more are invited to take part in a new project organised by Julius-Maximilians-Universität (JMU) Würzburg: In the "Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation" forum, they can gain insights into different areas of AI and digital transformation and discuss and experiment together with experts from the university.

30 companies are already taking part in this form of knowledge transfer; more SMEs from Bavaria are welcome. Interested parties can get in touch by emailing kidt@uni-wuerzburg.de or via the forum's website .

Assessing Potential for the Present and Future

"We want to support companies in realistically assessing various AI and digital transformation technologies," says project manager Birgit Lugrin, Professor of Media Informatics at JMU. The aim is to jointly assess the potential for the future as well as the possibilities for optimising business processes in the current working day.

In order to provide SMEs with the most comprehensive support possible, the JMU team has a broad range of expertise:

• Professor Jana-Kristin Prigge, Head of the Chair of Business Administration and Marketing, and Professor Frédéric Thiesse, Head of the Chair of Information Systems Engineering, cover areas such as digital marketing and website optimisation, including with a view to search engines (SEO).
• The expertise of Professor Thomas Dandekar, Head of the Chair of Bioinformatics, lies in the field of statistics and data analysis - companies are often unaware of the potential that lies in their data.
• Professor Frank Puppe, Head of the Chair of Computer Science VI (Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge Systems), focuses on generative AI, for example speech and image generation. Possible applications include chatbots or the creation of logos and advertising materials.
• Professor Birgit Lugrin is an expert in social robots that can support staff or entertain people, for example. The forum will focus on facilities for the elderly.

1.6 Million Euros From the European Social Fund

The Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts is funding the JMU forum "Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation" (KIdT) with 1.6 million euros. The money comes from the "Networking activities between universities and companies" funding programme of the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+). This EU fund invests in measures that support people in overcoming economic and social challenges.

The Würzburg KidT team consists of around 30 people. Seven of them have been recruited thanks to the ESF funding. KIdT officially started on 1 March 2024 and the project will run for three years.