Press release of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labor and Tourism Baden-Württemberg

Stuttgart, April 20, 2023 - In an initiative funded by the EU and the state of BW, standards are being set in a new type of testing and experimentation infrastructure for artificial intelligence in production. The Fraunhofer IPA is leading the German participation in the EU project together with the Institute for Electrical Energy Conversion (IEW) at the University of Stuttgart and ARENA2036. The Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt is a satellite in the project.

"With the "AI-Matters" test and trial center, a real engine for more AI in production is being created in Stuttgart," said Dr. Nicole Hoffmeister-Kraut, Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism, on the occasion of the presentation of a funding decision to representatives of the AI-Matters network in Stuttgart. "Above all, our small and medium-sized companies are to be supported here in developing AI solutions for their production processes and bringing them to market maturity. With ARENA2036, "AI-Matters" has a partner on board who knows how to transfer excellent science into commercially successful solutions," continued the Minister of Economic Affairs.

The AI Matters network was successful in a competition organized by the European Commission for funding to set up test and experimental infrastructures for AI in the field of production. It consists of 25 institutions from eight EU countries. The network will receive a total of 60 million euros in funding, of which 30 million euros will come from the EU and 30 million euros from the participating member states. The consortium from Baden-Württemberg, consisting of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA, the Institute for Electrical Energy Conversion, ARENA2036 and the University of Stuttgart, is a central partner in the network and will receive around 3.95 million euros from the EU. The state of Baden-Württemberg is providing co-financing in the same amount with the funding decision handed over today.

"The test and trial center for AI will create an infrastructure that is unique in Germany for the Baden-Württemberg economy, which will support companies in the introduction of reliable AI," said Prof. Dr. Thomas Bauernhansl, Director of Fraunhofer IPA, at the presentation of the decision on April 20 in Stuttgart. "The overall AI-Matters project, which is co-financed by the state of Baden-Württemberg and the EU, will give companies from the region and Germany as a whole additional access to the concentrated expertise of the leading European research and transfer organizations for AI, robotics and automation," said Bauernhansl with regard to the joint European project.

About the Network AI-Matters:

The AI-Matters network is expected to provide companies from all over Europe with test and experimental facilities at seven locations from 2024. Fraunhofer IPA will coordinate the German partners in the project (Fraunhofer IPA, Institute for Electrical Energy Conversion and ARENA2036 at the University of Stuttgart and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt). From mid-2024, suppliers of AI-based components for the manufacturing industry will be able to test, evaluate and, if necessary, have their services certified at the AI Matters sites in a realistic environment. Small and medium-sized companies with production processes in particular will also be able to test their specific application scenarios for AI on an experimental basis. The funding phase will last until the end of 2027.

About ARENA2036:

ARENA2036 stands for "Active Research Environment for the Next generation of Automobiles" and is the innovation platform for mobility and production of the future. The research campus is part of the funding initiative "Research Campus - Public-Private Partnership for Innovation" in Germany. ARENA2036 is supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and is run as a registered association with members from science and industry. ARENA2036 is currently in its second funding phase and has over 50 members. The innovation platform based in Stuttgart stands for cooperation between science and industry under one roof. ARENA2036 aims to make its contribution to actively shaping the work, mobility and production of the future in the context of digitalization. The partners are active in various disciplines - from the automotive industry to aerospace technology, textile and materials research through to ergonomics.

Press contact:

T: +49 711 685 608 23 | marketing@arena2036.de | ARENA2036 e.V. | Pfaffenwaldring 19 | D-70569 Stuttgart

Background to the EU competition:

As part of its "Digital Europe" program, the European Commission launched the Cloud Data and TEF (DIGITAL-2022-CLOUD-AI-02) funding call on 15 February 2022. A total of four networks designated as "Testing and Experimentation Facility" (TEF) in the areas of production, health, agriculture/food and smart cities are to be funded with EU funds totaling 110 million euros. This funding will be co-financed by the member states in the same amount. The central aim of the Testing and Experimentation Facility is to further develop AI research results in these areas into marketable AI solutions. Further information can be found at Testing and Experimentation Facilities under the Digital Europe Program | Shaping Europe's digital future (europa.eu). Research institutions from various EU member states have already joined forces in advance to form cross-border networks for an application. In the field of production, the German partners (the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt is also a project partner alongside the aforementioned institutions) have joined forces with the internationally renowned research institutions CEA-LIST (France), DTI-Robotics (Denmark), Brainport-Industries (Netherlands), CIIRC-CTU (Czech Republic), Tecnalia (Spain), MADE (Italy) and LMS (Greece) to form the "AI-Matters" network.