On September 14 and 15, 2023, the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities hosted this year's Symposium for Foresight and Technology Planning (SVT) with two exciting days of exchange and knowledge deepening under the motto: "Recognizing tomorrow's potential for success and how AI can support this". Since 2005, the symposium has promoted the exchange of experiences between decision-makers from major companies and leading figures from relevant institutes.
This year, the symposium experienced a remarkable innovation in its organizational structure, which brought new ideas and perspectives. For the first time, the event was organized under the leadership of Prof. Dr.-Ing. Roman Dumitrescu (Head of the Advanced Systems Engineering Group at the Heinz Nixdorf Institute of the Paderborn University) and Prof. Dr. Katharina Hölzle (Fraunhofer Group for Innovation Research) as well as acatech - German Academy of Science and Engineering. The new impulses in the organizational structure were reflected in particular in the program structure. The first-time inclusion of a high-profile panel discussion (on the topic of "Generative AI & Foresight") on Thursday evening advanced to become one of the highlights of the entire event, leaving participants with fresh food for thought heading into the convivial evening event.
Overall, however, the basic structure of the event did not change. Once again, science and business met at eye level to present the latest research results and practical application examples. More than 70 participants provided exciting contributions and lively discussions that made this year's symposium an unforgettable event. There were numerous new impulses and insights for all participants, which primarily revolved around a new understanding of the interaction between humans and machines, as well as AI as an impetus for the discussion of new visions and ideas.
The Heinz Nixdorf Institute was represented with the presentation "Entering the Circular Economy: Integrative Planning of Products and Business Models" by Michel Scholtysik (Advanced Systems Engineering Group) and Christoph Pierenkemper (CP contech electronic GmbH). The lecture presented current findings in the field of circular economy, which were gained in the context of the it's OWL research project ZirkuPro.
Another highlight of the event was the closing lecture "Of Bytes and Bees: Collective Intelligence in the Age of AI" by Prof. Dr. Tim Landgraf, Freie Universität Berlin. Here, a completely new point of view was presented and another perspective on the topic of foresight and AI was cast.
Many thanks to all participants of this year's symposium as well as to the co-organizers Fraunhofer Group for Innovation Research and acatech - German Academy of Science and Engineering. A special thanks goes to Prof. Dr. Katharina Hölzle, who, in her first engagement as co-organizer, immediately presented herself as host, keynote speaker and moderator of the panel discussion.
We are already looking forward to next year, when we will meet again in Berlin on September 26 and 27, 2024, to explore the latest developments in futurology and technology planning together.
