Kraken Robotics
This spin-off from the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence is working on underwater imaging using various sensors and on the automation of underwater robots. The company is using machine learning and artificial intelligence to enable the robots to act autonomously.
DFKI Industrials
DFKI Industrials is working along similar lines. The Bremen-based company translates the research findings of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence into products for which there is a demand in industry.
In a number of research projects, XTL has developed an AI-based dispatching system for the logistics sector that makes real-time route optimisation a reality. The software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution can improve routes at any time in response to changing conditions, making transport more efficient, customer-friendly, flexible and reliable. Future events are taken into account in route planning using machine learning processes and analytics.
Science & research
The internationally renowned DFKI is a major player in AI. In Bremen, it focuses its research on the Robotics Innovation Center (RIC) and on cyber-physical systems (CPS).
The RIC works on the connection between robots and artificial intelligence. Its scientists are doing pioneering work on numerous projects, especially in the three areas of perception, recognition and execution. One day, robots will have to be able to use AI to independently recognise, interpret and react to complex situations, such as unforeseen road traffic events. CPS complements this research by verifying the accuracy of AI systems, so that the AI does not suddenly mistake a cat for an apple.
DFKI contributes its expertise to the BREMEN.AI network, especially in the field of applications. “We recently founded Raise Robotics, a company that supports businesses through training, education and consulting. It is also developing a platform ecosystem that is designed to provide users with quick and easy access to AI technology,” says Professor Frank Kirchner, head of the Robotics Innovation Center. The founding of Raise Robotics also gives highly skilled workers the opportunity to continue their career in Bremen – completing the circle in the value chain, as Kirchner puts it.
At the TZI, numerous working groups and research areas are shaping the digital future. One of the institute’s core tasks is to transfer the findings from basic research into industry, so that the benefits can be enjoyed by society at large.
In its Digital Media Lab, the working group led by institute director Professor Rainer Malaka is developing new intuitive and intelligent forms of interaction for the digital media of the future, whether it is in the automotive sector, in telecommunications or in the ‘smart home’.
“The TZI works with regional and national companies on research projects. We help new technologies make the leap from the research lab into industry and society, and that is the specialism we bring to the Bremen.AI network,” says Professor Malaka. In addition to its research partnerships, the TZI is also heavily involved in teaching and trains the specialists on whom Bremen-based companies in the digital economy rely.
The Bremen.AI network benefits from the IAI’s contacts to international research networks and its wealth of expertise in helping technology to break through. The institute specialises in research into AI in robotics, conducts basic research in the context of innovation and helps technologies to break through. It cooperates in numerous projects with national and international companies and research institutions, such as the University of Tokyo.
“When we bring together all the network members in Bremen, we are able to exploit valuable synergies,” says Professor Michael Beetz, head of the IAI.”A strong consortium of Bremen-based companies is particularly useful when it comes to raising research funds from the federal government or the EU.”
The IAI’s EASE research unit focuses on improving the way that robots and humans interact and cooperate at work and at home. “AI is not just a topic for large IT companies. There is a lot of research, especially in Bremen, into how AI can assist individual users in their day-to-day lives – without spying on them,” Beetz adds.
The Obelisk project at the Bremen Institute for Production and Logistics uses AI to provide intelligent lighting for ports
© WFB/Frank Pusch