DWIH Annual Report 2018

“In 2018, the work pursued at the DWIH Moscow once again reflected the numerous facets of German-Russian academic relations. DWIH events brought researchers from Germany together with Russian start-up entrepreneurs and allowed leading German companies to network with Russian researchers. Interdisciplinary discussions about the innovative design of working worlds revealed the degree of overlap in both countries as far as the search for solutions is concerned.”

Dr Andreas Hoeschen

The Skolkovo research and innovation centre some 17 kilometres south-west of Moscow city centre is a hub not only for Russian start-ups, but also for international companies that spotlight innovation. Developing innovative start-ups is also one of the goals of the German-Russian cooperation to which the German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) in Moscow is committed. “Skolkovo is extremely relevant to the work of the DWIH Moscow because future technologies are viewed not only from a research perspective there; they are also regarded in terms of their concrete application, for example through the introduction of modern business models”, says Dr Andreas Hoeschen, the Director of the German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) Moscow.

NEW POSSIBILITIES
It was only logical then for the DWIH Moscow, together with other organisations such as the Skolkovo Foundation and the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce, to stage a discussion entitled “Germany’s Innovation Ecosystem: Opportunities for Russian Start-ups” at Skolkovo’s Startup Village in May 2018. This brought together representatives of universities, research institutions and technology firms from Russia and Germany, as well as representatives of innovation and start-up centres from several of Germany’s federal states. They talked about ways to initiate research projects and put the results into practice. Companies such as Bayer, SAP and Bosch presented the programmes they run to support start-ups in Germany and Russia. Experts from Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI) explained how international and Russian start-ups can be helped to access the German market. “The Startup Village contributes to a dialogue between science and research and between state and business – a dialogue that is vital when it comes to developing an innovation ecosystem”, stresses Thomas Graf, head of the business and science department at the German Embassy in Moscow, adding that international cooperation plays an important part in this.

FOR A HUMANE WORKING WORLD
“Working Innovatively in a Digital World”, the focus theme for all the DWIH in 2018, not only featured at the event in Skolkovo, however; it was also addressed for example during a panel discussion of the same name that took place in Moscow in early December. This was jointly hosted by the DWIH, the German Embassy and the National Research University Higher School of Economics – and attracted more than 100 attendees. At the event, Russia-based companies like the German building materials manufacturer Knauf explained how they are reacting to digitisation. Knauf’s management believes for instance that innovative training concepts and methods are the best way to prepare employees for the new skillset requirements in the field of digitisation. The company has established its own academy that develops and tests curricula which it then arranges to be put into practice. “Examples such as these in the area of lifelong learning make it clear that digitisation cannot be a question solely of technological optimisation; the changes must also be implemented in a way that will still allow a humane working world to evolve”, emphasises Andreas Hoeschen.

DIALOGUE IN BASIC RESEARCH
In 2018, the work of the DWIH once again reflected the diversity of German-Russian academic and scientific relations. The German-Russian Week of the Young Researcher for example, which already took place for the eighth time in 2018, has proved a resounding success. The DAAD, the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the DWIH had invited young researchers to spend several days in September at the host institution, the German-Russian Institute of Advanced Technologies (GRIAT) at Kazan National Research Technological University. “This dialogue serves as the foundation for German-Russian scientific exchange in the area of basic research”, stresses Hoeschen. Experienced scientists and young researchers took advantage of the opportunity in Kazan to share their ideas and thoughts about the subject of “Chemical Energy Storage and Conversion”. As the DWIH’s director explains, this provided important impetus for further German-Russian collaboration.

GLOBAL CHALLENGES
In terms of science and research policy, it was above all the workshop on “International Cooperation in Research and Innovation” that took centre stage in 2018. The workshop was organised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Higher School of Economics in conjunction with the DWIH. More than 100 participants drew up recommendations for how to breathe life into international cooperation – with a view to strengthening a country’s research and economic competitiveness while taking into account the major global challenges. “We were able to provide a forum for the best strategies to establish lasting innovative partnerships in science and research. During the event, German-Russian collaborative ventures were presented as examples of best practice”, is how Andreas Hoeschen sums up the workshop, remarking that this will have long-term benefits for German-Russian cooperation.

Author
Benjamin Haerdle

Mr Stüdemann, what in your view particularly characterised the work of the DWIH Moscow in 2018?
In 2018, the DWIH Moscow again organised numerous workshops, discussions and conferences. This plethora of events is thanks to the wide range of DWIH supporters in the areas of research and industry. As in previous years, important events in 2018 included the Helmholtz Winter Talks and the German-Russian Week of the Young Researcher. Of course, another highlight was the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the partnership between Freie Universität Berlin and St. Petersburg State University. These events are an ideal tie-in with the formats of the German Russian Year of Higher Education Cooperation and Science that was launched in December 2018 and for which the DWIH Moscow is acting as the main point of contact for German activities in Russia.

“Working Innovatively in a Digital World” was the DWIH focus topic for 2018. What new impetus has this generated for German-Russian relations?
This focus topic suited the DWIH Moscow very well because there is a strong desire on the Russian side to place greater emphasis on digitisation, as reflected for example in state funding programmes. The DWIH Moscow staged events relating to all aspects of “Working Innovatively in a Digital World”, partly with a view to raising awareness of German innovations in the Russian higher education landscape. Generally speaking, however, the impetus generated by the DWIH went far beyond this focus topic. The centre and its supporters are constantly engaging with a whole spectrum of issues relevant to the future.

How is the DWIH’s work changing the science and innovation scene in Russia and Germany?
This is a long-term process. Naturally, one cannot expect a scientific conference to immediately spawn 20 new collaborative projects. It is more a question of regularly and reliably facilitating contacts that will ultimately lead to concrete cooperative ventures and innovations. The DWIH Moscow very actively supports this development and to this end also pursues regional activities outside the Russian capital. We will further build upon this engagement and also implement new event formats. The German-Russian Year of Higher Education Cooperation and Science 2018 – 2020 will hopefully help to additionally raise our profile.

Interview
Benjamin Haerdle

“We believe it is important to bring Indian and German players together to engage as concretely as possible with selected topics. This is why we tailor our event formats to specific target groups: students, established academics or industry representatives. This allows us to reach a wide, interested and expert audience. The DWIH New Delhi is also well-known in the Indian science and innovation landscape thanks to its recurring event formats such as the Science Circle Lectures and Indo-German Dialogue.”

Heike Mock

It is possible to check the quality of the milk inside by ear without opening a coconut – assuming one has been taught by the older generation how to listen carefully for the right sound. However, this traditional knowledge is lacking in the cosmetics industry, which in India uses a lot of coconut oil. A bad coconut can quickly ruin an entire production batch, resulting in significant losses for the manufacturer. Veera Shanthi Ram M, a young researcher from the National Engineering College in Kovilpatti, was convinced that a sensor should be able to do just as good a job as the human ear. Together with his team, he invented a sensor that can distinguish good coconuts from bad, and in 2018 his idea beat 287 other entries to win the Falling Walls Lab India innovation competition. “As the competition organiser, we were delighted to receive the world’s largest number of Falling Walls Labs entries”, says Heike Mock, Director of the German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) New Delhi. The resounding response to this scientific talent competition is a reflection on Indian society, which on average is just 28 years old.

BRIGHT YOUNGSTERS
The bright youngsters who are pouring into India’s universities and will shape the working world of the future are one of the key target groups for the DWIH New Delhi. In 2018, the Young Innovators Tour format once again raised the profile of the DWIH among young researchers. Students from Bremen accompanied the DWIH to the Techfest hosted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, where they presented their football-playing humanoid NAO robots. Asia’s largest science and technology festival organised by students lasts just one weekend and attracts some 50,000 visitors each year. Around 15,000 young people came to see DWIH’s stand with the “B-Human” team from Bremen – internationally renowned as six-times RoboCup world champion – in 2018. “A great success”, remarks Heike Mock, who wants to make the Techfest visit a regular fixture on the DWIH events calendar in future. “This allows us to foster interpersonal exchange and collaboration between young researchers from India and Germany, while at the same time making our institution even more visible.”

HUMAN-COMPUTER INTERACTION
Human-machine interaction was also the subject of a Science Circle Lecture on “Empowering Digital Media” in February 2018: Professor Rainer Malaka from the University of Bremen joined the audience in a discussion of human-computer interaction – and how it is changing the way we think, communicate and work. As Malaka illustrated, this even applies to computer games, which can accompany laborious tasks to make them easier and less tedious. The Science Circle Lectures are another series of events with which the DWIH New Delhi has long since made a name for itself in the Indian research and innovation landscape: at regular intervals, lectures given by top academics from Germany provide an opportunity for discussion.

FRUGAL INNOVATIONS
“Frugal innovations” are in particular demand in India: in all kinds of industries, the aim is to develop lean and inexpensive solutions – especially by concentrating only on functions that are absolutely necessary and by using components that already exist or are bought in. These are innovations that make work easier for humans but do not destroy jobs. Its seminars on “Frugal Innovations” are the DWIH New Delhi’s response to this trend. “Excellent solutions that people can actually afford are extremely important for India, for instance in the areas of healthcare or energy”, explains Heike Mock. “That’s why we are engaging with this issue and keeping a close eye on what is happening in this respect in the start-up scene.”

SIGNIFICANTLY LARGER NETWORK
Apart from academics, the DWIH is increasingly attracting the attention of representatives of Indian industry. Heike Mock believes this is because its events are tailored to particular target groups. “We specifically address issues that are of interest in India, and then think about what we might be able to offer in this regard from Germany.” This success is also evident from the feedback given via social media and from the enquiries made to the DWIH following joint events. These relate first and foremost to the subjects of innovation and the start-up scene. “The DWIH network grew considerably in 2018”, says Heike Mock.

INNOVATION AND INCUBATION
Another central event format staged by the DWIH New Delhi is the Indo-German Dialogue, which in September 2018 explored collaboration between the academic world and industry. “Innovation and incubation are hot topics at many Indian universities at present”, explains Heike Mock. The DWIH New Delhi is looking at how to help people turn their research into products that can ultimately be placed on the market. “Germany boasts many successful examples of this – and our events with senior representatives of industry and higher education from both countries have met with a great response.”

Author
Bettina Mittelstrass

Indian universities as a breeding ground for successful start-ups were one topic addressed at the major Indo-German Dialogue staged by the DWIH New Delhi in September 2018. “For us, it is fundamental that our events should showcase innovative ideas”, says DWIH Programme Manager Aadishree Jamkhedkar. “In this context we attach particular importance to targeting not only experts but the widest possible audience.”

Climate change research attracts great interest in India

The DWIH New Delhi has a variety of formats that reach a wide audience. Featuring German and Indian experts, the DWIH’s “Frugal Innovations” tour for example was staged in Bangalore twice, and once in Pune. Furthermore, the DWIH placed particular emphasis on the topic of climate change in 2018. The Science Circle Lectures on “Monsoon Forecast under Climate Change” and “New Insights and Hot Topics from Climate Science” were given in New Delhi by experts from the renowned Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). “Like many other people in India, I have a special interest in the subject of climate change”, stressed Aadishree Jamkhedkar. “Both events provided an opportunity to gain easily understandable insights from high-ranking scientists.”

Dr Kiesselbach, bearing in mind the DWIH focus topic of “Working Innovatively in a Digital World”, how is Indian society looking ahead to the future?
Its fundamental optimism is impressive. Of course, people are concerned about robots, autonomous systems and artificial intelligence. Yet it is generally felt that the future will not be any worse than the present, and that it will probably be better in fact, as robots will take over the unpleasant chores, leaving the more pleasant ones to humans. Despite all the optimism, however, there are those who are sounding a note of caution: it is by no means certain that robots, autonomous systems or artificial intelligence will benefit the huge numbers of people employed precariously in the informal sector.

Which developments are emerging in India’s research and innovation sector?
Considerably less is spent on research and innovation than in Germany, relative to gross domestic product. In absolute terms, however, expenditure is on the increase. It is important to realise that India is enjoying massive economic growth of up to eight percent. More and more people want to go to university, so the research sector is also growing in its turn. Many new elite universities with a strong research profile are being founded. This is of great interest to German scientists as potential cooperation partners, above all in the disciplines of material sciences, information technology and chemical engineering. Many areas of the life sciences are also very well established in India. Indian research policy is very much focused on applied research, product development and the solving of social problems, though outstanding basic research is also pursued in India.

How is the DWIH New Delhi responding?
One very “Indian” issue that the DWIH has been picking up on recently is the idea of “frugal innovation”. This involves product development concentrating radically on core functions – and then ensuring that the product in question is inexpensive and can be bought by the masses rather than by small target groups. Incidentally, this has nothing to do with low-tech. High-tech products can also be frugal. German researchers and developers can learn a lot from their Indian colleagues in this area, situated as it is at the interface between science and business. And this is also where the DWIH comes in – bringing people together. This has proven a resounding success in the field of “frugal innovation”.

Interview
Bettina Mittelstrass

“Our transatlantic remit also involves explaining the history of German innovations. How were we able to develop our innovative capacity? I believe Germany only succeeded in doing this by always being open and interested and keeping track of new developments around the world. With its highly dynamic innovation scene, the USA has been and remains a role model. The DWIH New York is keen to function as a radar for identifying new trends and innovation ideas.“

Benedikt Brisch

During the second panel of the “Future of XR” event, which the German Center for Research and Innovation New York staged in late October 2018 with a view to provoking a debate about the future technologies of virtual and augmented reality, Kathleen Schröter from the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich Hertz Institute in Berlin steps up to the microphone. She asks the audience whether anyone has ever heard of Fraunhofer. A few hands go up, and someone calls out “MP3”. Schröter smiles – and explains that Fraunhofer is behind not only the invention of MP3: “When you play a video on your smartphone, it is highly likely that it was encrypted using a technique we developed.”

INTERESTED AND ENTHUSIASTIC
This is the kind of revelation that will also impress a US audience. “Our main objective is to foster dialogue between the German and US innovation scenes”, says DWIH New York Director Benedikt Brisch. “The first key step is to make it clear just how strong research is in Germany.” The DWIH New York achieves this time and again: “Our American dialogue partners are always extremely enthusiastic about Germany, appreciate its innovative capabilities and want to find out more.” One question that is frequently asked is: “How do you do it?”

SME WORLD MARKET LEADERS
While the “Future of XR” was primarily about adding German research expertise to the more market-oriented US approach, the “Hidden Champions” event in May 2018 explored the role companies play in the German innovation system. The German phenomenon of highly-specialised small and mid-sized companies evolving to become global market leaders is something that is still often unknown in the USA. Benedikt Brisch also notes differences between the two countries in terms of how innovations come about: “The US typically sees disruptive innovations that have a volatile, almost revolutionary character. Germany has perfected the concept of the incremental innovation – i.e. innovations that develop gradually.”

At the event, the DWIH New York brought experts from the Stern School of Business at New York University together with the Hidden Champions Institute of the ESMT European School of Management and Technology Berlin in order to engage these two different worlds in a dialogue. “It was clear that the American participants were greatly interested in these lesser-known German world market leaders”, recalls Dr Gerrit Rössler, the DWIH New York’s Programme Manager, who chaired the event with its spotlights on “Blockchain Technology” and “Artificial Intelligence”.

DIGITAL PROGRESS
The focus on future technologies also tied in well with the DWIH’s 2018 theme of “Working Innovatively in a Digital World”. “Digital education was also of interest to us in this context”, explains Gerrit Rössler. A May 2018 event entitled “The University of Tomorrow” was devoted to this subject in its entire breadth. Not only were new opportunities for digital learning discussed; the event also looked at the structural changes that universities are facing as a result of digitisation. “We attached particular importance to inviting a wide variety of expert participants”, reports Rössler. After a welcome address given by DAAD President Professor Margret Wintermantel, Jarek Gabor, Chief Financial Officer at Bertelsmann Education, and Oliver Janoschka, Managing Director of Hochschulforum Digitalisierung, joined others in a discussion of how digitisation is changing the way academics work. Representing higher education on the panel were Michele Norin, Chief Information Officer at Rutgers University, chairman Scott Yoest, Senior Director of IT at Cornell Tech, and Professor Klaus Kreulich, Vice President of the University for Applied Sciences Munich. His university is keen to prepare its students for the working world of the future with a new master’s degree programme that specialises in aspects such as digital business models and the subject of data literacy.

STRENGTHENING THE NETWORK
Creating excellent local-level networks – and by no means only in higher education – forms a key part of the DWIH New York’s work. “This is particularly crucial in the US given that it is one of the world’s top innovators. And to be able to work on an equal footing and engage in a constructive dialogue, the support of the largest possible number of partners is of course helpful”, explains Director Benedikt Brisch. He believes that one of the DWIH New York’s most important strategic tasks in future will be to pool the resources and strengths of this network to an even greater extent. “Even before the DWIH was founded, a great deal was done for transatlantic relations by individual actors, companies, universities and business organisations. Our goal is to combine all of these activities.”

Author
Klaus Lüber

In October 2018, the German Consulate General in New York brought space – the final frontier – that little bit closer. A salon event organised by the Consulate General and the DWIH New York, featuring the German astronaut trainer Laura Winterling, impressively conveyed the fascination of space travel. “Laura Winterling gave some fascinating insights into the challenges astronauts face in their work, while at the same time answering questions from scientific experts”, explains DWIH New York Programme Manager Dr Gerrit Rössler.

Viewing digitisation from every conceivable angle in the US

Gerrit Rössler at the DWIH New York made many connections possible in 2018, for example at “The Work of Art in the Age of Blockchain”, an event that explored the digitisation of science and art. In March 2018, Rössler travelled to Austin, Texas to attend the “SXSW” digital and music festival, where he represented the DWIH New York by giving a lecture on “Digital Germany” and sitting on the jury in a start-up competition, among other things. For Rössler, however, it is the DWIH New York’s “Transatlantic and Interdisciplinary Take on the Future of XR” event that constitutes “the core focus of our work: we brought experts from all kinds of different disciplines together. All of them are already working with virtual and extended reality, in areas such as research, art, medicine and real estate.”

Professor Becker, how did you experience 2018 in your role as the DWIH New York’s Advisory Board chairman?
In the second year following the DAAD-led restructuring of the German Centres for Research and Innovation, we further consolidated our new strategic orientation. For us, this meant raising the profile and extending the reach of our events. To this end, we reduced the overall number so that we could concentrate more on larger individual events. To put it simply, this improves the chances of their actually being noticed in a city like New York. We also decided to use attractive venues outside the DWIH, such as start-up and innovation labs at universities and other locations in New York.

Were there any particular event highlights for you?
Especially our two events in October, “Crossmodal Learning in Humans and Robots” and “Future of XR”, were a great success. I feel that our new focus on larger event formats really paid off when it came to the concept of “mixed reality”. The fact that the “Future of XR” event coincided with the New York City Economic Development Corporation’s launch of a new programme dedicated to augmented and virtual reality certainly also helped. I found the event particularly fascinating against the backdrop of our focus topic of “Working Innovatively in a Digital World”: reticence and scepticism on the one hand met with enthusiasm and a willingness to embrace risk on the other. In fact, this clash of attitudes was evident at all of the year’s events: digitisation destroys jobs for some, while for others it creates new ones.

Is it not also the case that there are two distinct mentalities – the German “wait-and-see” approach and the less risk-averse American attitude – that the DWIH wants to bring together in its role as transatlantic mediator?
Yes, that is one way of putting it. People always used to say that the German start-up scene was too conservative and risk-averse, and that it should follow the lead of the much more dynamic US scene. That is too much of a generalisation, however. While German entrepreneurs are slowly becoming less risk-averse, people in the US have realised that easy access to early-stage capital often resulted in companies being launched prematurely – which is one reason for the high insolvency rate among US start-ups. Despite their many differences, the two worlds are slowly moving towards one another. And I believe that the DWIH is making an important contribution.

Interview
Klaus Lüber

“I am particularly pleased that the DWIH São Paulo has been able to further expand its network of partners and supporters. This is a small miracle in view of the ongoing crisis in Brazil. There is no shortage of big topics of common interest, after all: the bioeconomy, digitisation and Industry 4.0 with all its consequences for research, business and society, to name just a few of the issues that are frequently addressed during our events. We also do our best to support start-ups, as they make an important contribution to innovation.”

Dr. Martina Schulze

Millions of people have medical conditions that make them unable to communicate, either with words or gestures. All they can do is move their eyelids or eyes. Special headsets, hooked up to a PC or tablet, can measure these small movements and turn them into letters. The technology is expensive and not particularly practicable, however. Brazilian researcher Marcus Lima came up with a clever idea: why not use a smartphone? He developed the EyeTalk app, which allows people to navigate to the desired letter using their eyes. The app then converts the text into spoken language – a groundbreaking technology that is affordable into the bargain.

SERVICES FOR SOCIETY
Lima was the winner of the Brazilian Falling Walls Lab, the global competition for innovative ideas. The German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) São Paulo hosted the Brazilian competition for the first time in 2018 and 94 competitors took part – more than in any other country on the American continent. “Many of these projects focused on improving services for society”, says Dr Martina Schulze, Director of the DWIH São Paulo. EyeTalk for example helps not only with communication – the app also gives people the chance to participate more in society again, she adds.

DISCUSSING DIGITAL JOBS
Meanwhile, the 7th German-Brazilian Dialogue on Science, Research and Innovation addressed the question of how politics and business should prepare people for work in a digital world. To this end, the DWIH São Paulo and the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) invited 15 experts from various fields to take part in a discussion at the end of October. Over 150 participants came to listen to and discuss with the experts. “Justified questions were raised, such as which jobs are actually at risk from the digital transformation, and which skills will be needed for success on the labour market in the future”, explains Martina Schulze. The experts expect only certain tasks to be taken over by “smart” machines, but not all. Nonetheless, the fundamental process will need to be controlled, they say. FAPESP President Professor Marco Antônio Zago warned that this must happen quickly given the rapid pace of the changes. Professor Hartmut Hirsch-Kreinsen, who studies Industry 4.0 from a sociological perspective at TU Dortmund University, explained that universities must work together with companies that are interested in finding solutions.

INVOLVING THE CONSUMER
“Everyone agreed on one thing: digitisation needs creative ideas”, sums up Martina Schulze. The DWIH focus topic of “Working Innovatively in a Digital World“ also tied in well with the 6th German-Brazilian Innovation Congress that was jointly staged by the German Chamber of Commerce Abroad São Paulo (AHK São Paulo) and the DWIH. It brought together 400 representatives of government, business and research from both countries. Fábio Pires, head of innovation at the National Service for Industrial Training (SENAI), believes that mid-level jobs will gradually disappear, while more and more jobs for high- and low-skilled workers emerge. When asked how innovation comes about, Ulrich Petschow from the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) in Berlin raised a point that tends to be neglected: “Companies all too often assume that they know what people need. When consumers are actually involved directly, however, they can also initiate or contribute to the development of innovations.”

BRIGHT SPARKS
Agricultural innovations were the theme of the 2018 “Agro 4.0” workshop in São Paulo that the DWIH São Paulo had organised with the Fraunhofer Liaison Office Brazil and the AHK. The future of agriculture requires new ideas – about how to reduce the use of fertilizers, for instance. This alone has huge consequences, both for yields and for the problematic issue of nitrate concentration levels in groundwater. Luckily there are bright sparks who are addressing such issues. Vijay Deep Bhatt and other postgraduates from the Technical University of Munich launched a company called SoilSpy and developed a sensor system that uses nanoelectronics to analyse soils. SoilSpy gives farmers plant-specific recommendations so that fertilizers can be used on a more targeted basis. For his idea, Vijay Deep Bhatt won the “Startups Connected” prize awarded by the AHK São Paulo in the Germany category curated by the DWIH São Paulo. The German Centre for Research and Innovation invited Bhatt to Brazil, where his itinerary included visits to the Embrapa Institute for Soil Research, start-ups such as Fazenda Urbana and companies like BASF. “It was a great experience”, says Bhatt, also stressing the “extremely helpful support” provided by the DWIH São Paulo.

INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE
Another highlight in 2018 was the DWIH’s participation in the 70th Annual Meeting of the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC). The DWIH ran an exhibition booth with representatives of German research institutions, attracting around 600 visitors despite considerable competition. “Our open day met with a similarly positive response”, says Martina Schulze. “The DWIH São Paulo was bursting at its seams, which illustrates how successful it has been at establishing itself as an international platform for exchange.”

Author
Boris Hänssler

“Bioeconomy is one of the top scientific issues in Brazil”, reports DWIH São Paulo Programme Manager Marcio Weichert. In 2018, for example, the innovative use of biobased resources was the central focus of the DWIH-supported workshop on “New Business Opportunities in Bioeconomy” that was organised by the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging (Fraunhofer IVV) and the Agropolo Campinas-Brasil platform. And at the 2018 “Startups Connected” competition that was already staged by the German-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the second year running, Marcio Weichert awarded a prize to the winner of the DWIH-curated Germany category for innovations in digital agriculture.

Digitisation is also changing Brazilian agriculture

The DWIH German-Brazilian Dialogue on Science, Research and Innovation was held for the seventh time in 2018. Marcio Weichert has been involved in the event ever since it was founded. As he stresses: “For our topic of working in a digital world, we were able to engage two particularly prominent keynote speakers in 2018: Professor Hartmut Hirsch-Kreinsen, a member of the Research Council of Plattform Industrie 4.0, and Professor Glauco Arbix, head of the Observatory for Innovation at the University of São Paulo.”

Mr Metz, what in your view was the highlight for the DWIH São Paulo in 2018?
We were delighted that the number of supporters increased by eight: with two new main supporters, the Gesellschaft für Akademische Studienvorbereitung und Testentwicklung e. V. and the University of Potsdam, and six new associated supporters, the Bayerische Hochschulzentrum für Lateinamerika, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, RWTH Aachen University, Technische Universität Berlin and the University of Cologne. This increases our opportunities for hosting joint events and focusing on topics that are relevant to German-Brazilian exchange.

Why is Brazil a valuable partner when it comes to innovations?
Brazilian society is very tech-savvy. The country has an extremely high rate of smartphone usage, with around 90 percent of the population owning one. Brazil is more advanced than Germany in terms of using mobile devices. Banking services for example are provided by messaging providers. Smartphones also played an important role during the presidential election campaign. My university, the Technical University of Munich, is analysing this relationship between politics and technology. I also see potential for cooperation in the area of Agriculture 4.0. Brazil is in many respects a trailblazer as far as the application and use of new technologies are concerned.

What role in Brazil is played by the DWIH’s focus topic “Working Innovatively in a Digital World”?
Naturally, digitisation is not progressing at the same pace everywhere, and not everybody is profiting from it, but there is evidence of numerous innovations, for example in Brazilian higher education. There are many e-learning courses, including entire online master’s degree programmes – these can also be accessed by people living in remote regions. Every conceivable digital application can be found in the agricultural business: from automatic irrigation systems to almost fully automated harvesting in the sugar industry. In Brazil, a country with a population of almost 210 million people, big data solutions are likewise an important topic, for instance for banks and insurance companies. E-health, smart cities, the Internet of things – Brazil probably features all of the changes in everyday life and work that are also relevant to Germany.

Interview
Boris Hänssler

“The DWIH Tokyo draws on an extremely extensive network in its work. All supporters boast wide-ranging contacts that are particularly valuable when it comes to German-Japanese exchange. The DWIH Tokyo makes sure that this joint network enjoys a high profile in the Japanese science and business community. The DWIH Tokyo is also regarded on a political level as an important partner when discussing all aspects of innovation.”

Dorothea Mahnke

Japanese society is optimistically preparing itself for a future in which digitisation, automation and artificial intelligence (AI) shape our everyday lives and work as a matter of course. In Japan’s strategic plan for science and technology, the concept is dubbed “Society 5.0”. More economic growth and solutions to global problems are expected, says Japanese Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy Takuya Hirai. Speaking at the first Japanese-German-French DWIH Symposium on Artificial Intelligence in November 2018, he pointed to the forthcoming challenges posed by AI: “Much needs to be considered: the working environment, care for older people, data security and protection of privacy, and a good balance between security and the promotion of concrete applications.”

WIDE RANGE OF OPPORTUNITIES
The digitised world of work is increasingly being influenced by AI, a trend that was discussed right at the start of the symposium by a panel of experts from Germany, France and Japan. They also addressed issues of insecurities and societal concerns: Will artificial intelligence replace workers? Should it be used to screen applicants? Despite such worries, AI offers a wide range of opportunities, as it can make tasks performed by humans more interesting, create new jobs and improve entire production processes. There was a consensus that the working world will ultimately profit from the new technological possibilities – but that this will require experimentation and learning. “In Japan, ethical discussions about new technologies are conducted as they are being introduced”, explains DWIH Tokyo Programme Manager Konstanze Lang. For its symposium on the global hot topic of AI, the DWIH pooled the resources of all its German partners and research actors in Japan. Bringing France in as a symposium partner significantly widened the circle of high-ranking participants from the fields of science, business and politics. “This played a vital role in raising the profile of the event and making it a success”, stresses Ingo Höllein, head of the science and technology department at the German Embassy in Tokyo. The political will to continue jointly tackling the future issue of AI was repeatedly expressed at the event; this culminated in a trilateral final declaration.

SUCCESSFUL DIALOGUE
Partners from all three countries took advantage of this meeting of high-ranking decision-makers to discuss strategies and hold talks on the fringes of the symposium: representatives of the Japanese economics ministry met with German and French members of the European High-Level Expert Group on AI, representatives of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence and of Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology discussed further steps in their cooperation, and the national research promotion organisations of Japan, Germany and France engaged in talks aimed at creating a trilateral programme to promote AI.

FURTHER-REACHING NETWORKS
“It is vital for the work of the DWIH Tokyo that we regularly bring together our supporters, the number of whom has grown yet again recently, so as to jointly address issues that are discussed in Japan and Germany”, says DWIH Tokyo Director Dorothea Mahnke. “More extensive networking with international partners likewise plays a crucial role.” The activities of the DWIH Tokyo in 2018 also included events such as the established “Falling Walls Lab” innovation competition and support for the DFG lecture series given by Professor Thomas Bock, who holds the chair in building realisation and robots at the Technical University of Munich. The winner of the 2017 Eugen and Ilse Seibold Prize talked in Osaka, Tokyo and Fukuoka about his technological and planning concept of “robot-oriented design” and the use of new technologies such as robotics and mechatronics in architecture, urban development and construction. Concrete ideas for German-Japanese collaboration also took shape on the fringes of these events.

START-UPS AND LARGE COMPANIES
Jointly staged with the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (AHK) in Japan, the German Innovation Challenge in Tokyo on 26 June brought science-based start-ups from all over Japan together with leading German technology-oriented companies such as Bayer, Bosch, Continental, Daimler and Merck. The event resulted in concrete joint plans to apply the showcased technologies in German industry. These were also spotlighted at “NRW in Germany – Land of Innovations: German-Japanese Smart Mobility Symposium”, an October 2018 event organised in partnership with the DWIH Tokyo by NRW Japan K.K., the Japanese representation of the North-Rhine Westphalia economic development agency. A delegation of around 30 business representatives and scientists headed by NRW Economics Minister Professor Andreas Pinkwart had travelled to Japan to raise the profile of topics such as electric vehicles, energy storage and healthcare management. “German-Japanese exchange is extremely diverse and future-oriented”, says DWIH Director Dorothea Mahnke. “We will continue to actively promote it with our supporters such as NRW Japan K.K.”

Author
Bettina Mittelstraß

The first Japanese-German-French Symposium on Artificial Intelligence (AI) brought numerous prominent experts together, such as Dr Yuichiro Anzai, the Japanese government’s leading AI advisor. Keynote speakers included mathematics professor Cédric Villani, Fields Medal winner and adviser to the French president, and Professor Wolfram Burgard, Leibniz Prize winner and head of the Autonomous Intelligent Systems working group at the University of Freiburg. In the opinion of DWIH Tokyo Programme Manager Konstanze Lang, however, it was not only the prominent speakers that made the event such a success.

Broad-based dialogue on artificial intelligence in Japan

“We did not focus solely on the lectures taking place on stage, as we also wanted to facilitate meetings on the fringes of the symposium“, explains Konstanze Lang. For example, a delegation from the German Research Foundation (DFG) met with representatives of the Japanese and French national research promotion organisations; exchanges between the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and the Japanese Artificial Intelligence Research Center (AIRC) quickly led to an initial outline being drawn up for a joint project in the field of driverless vehicles. This is very much in the spirit of the DWIH, says Konstanze Lang: “One of our key objectives is to provide a breeding ground for future cooperative ventures.”

Dr Schneider, which developments are particularly influencing the Japanese research landscape at the moment?
Japan is currently making very rapid advances in the area of artificial intelligence in particular. Research in this field is more application-oriented than in Germany. Focal topics include for example driverless vehicles and the use of artificial intelligence in nursing care in view of the challenging demographic trends. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) also influence the Japanese innovation scene, and many people at universities even wear the SDG emblem. These goals are also regarded as a kind of yardstick in research institutes and industry: the idea is for high-tech to help overcome the global challenges we are facing. This applies among other things to climate change, whose effects on sea levels in Japan will be alarmingly profound.

Are these all topics that the DWIH Tokyo can pick up on?
Absolutely. Our Japanese partners see considerable areas of common interest with Germany. This applies especially to the various applications for artificial intelligence. An appropriate platform for further exchange is the DWIH Tokyo, where there is traditionally significant involvement of the business world, and which simultaneously addresses applied research at universities and in industry. Particularly among German universities, interest in the work of the DWIH was raised even further last year: by early 2019, no fewer than five universities had been recruited as new associate supporters.

How did the DWIH Tokyo position itself in 2018?
Through its Symposium on Artificial Intelligence, it very successfully showcased the advantages of Germany as a land of research and innovation. Acting as a catalyst, the DWIH Tokyo brought about an agreement between Germany, Japan and France to jointly promote artificial intelligence. This kind of trilateral agreement to work together on projects in such a highly competitive field is an important step. The DWIH Tokyo also found itself strengthened by the lengthy preparations for this major conference, with all partners working towards it together. The DFG helped fund the event and contributed to the programme because there are still very many unresolved issues in AI today that basic research needs to address.

Interview
Bettina Mittelstraß