(The meeting's Miro board with presentations, links and further details can be found  here  – password as always: “FGKIAachen”)



News from the region / AI events

The AI ​​Events working group has once again compiled numerous exciting events from the region. As usual, you can find the presented dates and further information on the Miro board.



A new idea has been added that will allow us to benefit even more from the knowledge and experience within our group in the future: Anyone who attends a supra-regional AI conference, trade fair or other interesting event is welcome to briefly share their personal impressions, highlights and key insights at the next focus group meeting.



This way, even those who couldn't attend can get an impression of interesting events – and we bring even more experience from the vast world of AI into our discussion.



AI focus group visits MachBAR

Before our next regular meeting, a special event is coming up: On September 7th, as part of our series “AI Focus Group visits…”, we will be visiting the MachBAR of the Aachen Chamber of Skilled Crafts .



Under the motto "Craftsmanship meets digitalization, robotics and AI", we want to look at the influence these technologies already have on the craft sector today – and what developments we can expect there in the coming years.



All information and registration details can be found here:  AI Focus Group visits MachBAR 



AI Tool/Tip of the Month: PromptCowboy

Frank B. presented PromptCowboy , a deliberately simple but very practical tool that allows structured and significantly better prompts to be generated from just a few pieces of information.



What's exciting isn't just the improved result: the generated prompts also provide excellent insight into the information and structure that make a good prompt . The tool thus not only offers immediate help but also supports users in formulating their own prompts more effectively in the future.



Introductions

After the introductory round was cancelled in July in favor of our specialist group speed dating event, it took place as usual this time. Three people took the opportunity to briefly introduce themselves, their professional backgrounds, and their experience with AI – including both familiar faces and someone attending our focus group meeting for the first time.



A look back at the specialist group speed dating event

Our specialist group speed dating event, which we held for the first time in July, generated a tremendous response. The specialist groups were able to take away numerous concrete suggestions, requests, and ideas – both regarding their thematic priorities and regarding formats and potential new activities.



The results are now being evaluated within the individual working groups. Initial conclusions, adjustments, and new ideas will be presented gradually at upcoming meetings.



Many thanks again to everyone for their dedicated cooperation – and especially to the specialist group spokespersons who are now processing the many responses!



News from the Compliance Working Group

This time, the Compliance working group addressed a topic that immediately attracted a lot of attention: current developments surrounding the EU AI Act and, in particular, the transparency obligations for AI-generated or AI-manipulated content.



The focus was on the question of under what conditions AI-generated images, texts and other content will have to be labelled in the future , and what this means in practical terms for companies and their communication.



The numerous inquiries clearly demonstrated the high demand for information on this topic. It's quite possible, therefore, that we will dedicate a separate special event to this subject.



Keynote speech: “Obsidian meets AI – two paths to personal knowledge and workspace”

Philipp G. and Hartmut R. jointly designed our keynote speech – and in doing so, they demonstrated two very different approaches to how Obsidian can be used as a personal knowledge and workspace and combined with AI.



The differences between the two approaches made the presentation particularly interesting: Instead of a "right" way, it became clear how flexibly Obsidian can be adapted to very different requirements and ways of working.



The ensuing discussion quickly moved beyond personal involvement. How could such a solution function within the company and the team ? How can permissions and shared knowledge be effectively organized? And above all: How can access be created that works not only for technically savvy individuals?



These questions have already given rise to the idea for a possible continuation – perhaps even more strongly in the direction of an LLM wiki , where the existing knowledge is not only made accessible by LLMs, but the wiki itself can be maintained, structured, and further developed with the help of LLMs. An exciting approach that we will certainly revisit.



September Outlook: Focus on Avatars

In September, for the first time, we want to examine a topic across several program items from different perspectives: AI avatars .



Plans include a short film, an interview, and a detailed keynote presentation . We want to not only showcase current technological possibilities but also examine concrete applications, experiences, and open questions.



If anyone would like to present an interesting avatar tool, a special use case, or a practical tip for our "AI Tool/Tip of the Month" section , please feel free to contact us!



End of the evening with pizza and drinks.

This meeting, too, didn't end with the final presentation slide. Over pizza and cold drinks, the evening's topics were discussed in greater depth – from Obsidian and the LLM Wiki to compliance, the specialist groups, and numerous individual AI projects.



The fact that the networking lasted well past 9 p.m. this time probably speaks for itself. 😊



A heartfelt thank you goes once again to digitalHUB Aachen and EDIH for pizza and drinks.



A thoroughly successful evening – with stimulating ideas, many questions, intensive discussions, and once again, impressive participation. Thank you all so much!



Next meeting

Our next regular meeting will take place on Monday, September 14, 2026 at 5:00 PM in the digitalHUB Aachen.



We hope to see many of you before that, on September 7th, when we visit MachBAR !



That's all for now.



We look forward to seeing you again in September!



Stefan and Alex

(You can find the meeting's Miro board with all presentations and details  here  – password as always: “FGKIAachen”)

News from the region / AI events

The AI ​​Events working group presented numerous exciting events for the coming weeks. They also reviewed two successful events from the past few weeks – the Kimiko Festival and Digital Day at OecherLab .

You can find more information and dates as usual in the Miro board.



AI Tool/Tip of the Month

This time, Stefan presented a selection of leading German-language AI podcasts .

Since the podcast landscape is currently developing rapidly, we would like to expand this collection together with you. If you know of any podcasts that shouldn't be missing from the list, we would be happy to receive your recommendations . The goal is to build the highest quality and most comprehensive overview of recommended AI podcasts within the focus group.



For our August meeting, we're also looking for a short contribution for the "AI Tool/Tip of the Month" section . Have you discovered an exciting AI tool or a practical use case in recent weeks that makes your everyday life easier? If so, please get in touch!



Specialist group speed dating

Instead of the usual sections "What I did with AI last month" and the introduction of new participants, this time a special event was on the agenda.

In order to better align our now six specialist groups with the expectations and wishes of the members, we conducted a specialist group speed dating event for the first time .

All participants were divided into six groups. Every five minutes, the groups rotated between the different working groups, whose representatives presented their goals, activities, and planned initiatives. At the same time, all participants were able to directly contribute their ideas, wishes, and suggestions for improvement.

The initial feedback from the specialist group spokespeople was overwhelmingly positive. In the coming days, we will jointly evaluate the numerous suggestions and present initial adjustments and new formats at the next meetings.

A heartfelt thank you to all participants for the many constructive ideas – and of course especially to our specialist group spokespersons for the preparation and execution!



Keynote speech: “What if the Future of Leadership Isn’t Human?”

Almudena Rodriguez Pardo took us on an exciting journey into a possible future of collaboration between humans and artificial intelligence.

Under the title "What if the Future of Leadership Isn't Human?", she explored the question of how leadership will change when humans and AI work together more and more closely in the future.

The numerous questions and the lively discussion that followed made it clear that she had struck a chord with this topic. It was a fascinating contribution that will surely spark many more discussions within the focus group.



End of the evening with pizza and drinks.

To finish off the meal, we had pizza again – despite the sweltering summer temperatures. The only advantage of the heat: this time it definitely couldn't get cold. 😉

The discussions about the future of our specialist groups and the topic of leadership continued for a long time afterwards, resulting in another intensive exchange until late in the evening.

A heartfelt thank you goes once again to digitalHUB Aachen and EDIH for sponsoring pizza and drinks.



A thoroughly enjoyable evening with many good conversations, great ideas, and wonderful camaraderie. Thank you so much for your active participation!



Next meeting

Our next meeting will take place on Monday, August 10, 2026 at 5:00 PM in the digitalHUB Aachen. Further information will follow with the invitation as usual.



That's all for now.



We're already looking forward to seeing you again in August!



Stefan and Alex

Please vote for one of the offered dates using the following link:  https://nuudel.digitalcourage.de/sjjZy79QoZ8IR9FU 

AI Tool/Tip of the Month – Alternatives to WisprFlow: Stefan Kirch briefly presented some alternatives to WisprFlow. The goal was to find a way to reliably transcribe speech input in a way that is as local and confidential as possible, thereby reducing keyboard input in everyday life.

Among the solutions presented were TypeWhisper, Whispering, and OpenWhisper. Whispering, in particular, fulfills almost all requirements and wishes – and can noticeably simplify everyday work.

Supplementary presentation: People, language models and tokens. Originally announced as a "counter-presentation", Hartmut Roebke's contribution developed into more of a supplementary presentation during the more intensive preparation.

Hartmut elaborated on some of the specific features of the previously discussed perspective, thereby helping to develop an even better understanding of it. The presentation materials will be provided later.

Keynote address: Cyber ​​Resilience Act. Dieter Froning gave a very clear and comprehensive overview of the Cyber ​​Resilience Act. Many were likely surprised to learn that important parts of it are already in effect and that a large proportion of the participants will be directly or indirectly affected.

Thank you so much for this great, entertaining and – despite the serious topic – surprisingly unfrustrating presentation ;-)

New Focus Group “Robotics & Automation”: Amine Kharrat introduced the new focus group “Robotics & Automation” as its spokesperson. There are certainly many overlaps in content with our AI topics – accordingly, we welcome exchange, participation, and collaboration.

You can find more information here:  https://platform.aachen.digital/groups/fokusgruppe-robotics-automation/RJ2KzLaxmo 

News from the specialist groups

The AI ​​Events working group's landing page, specifically developed for AI events in the region, is now online and can be used to post new events:  https://ki-events.info/ 

Furthermore, current AI events from the Aachen area were presented as usual. You can find more details on the Miro board.

Steffi Jansen presented the new working group "AI, Culture & Transformation." Several interested individuals have already joined, and a promising first meeting has taken place. More details will follow next time.

Speaker call from digitalHUB: Anna reminded everyone of the digitalHUB's call for applications to be speakers for various AI events and topics.

Anyone interested can find the form here:  https://forms.hubaachen.de/zs/OVD6NW 

The evening concluded with pizza and drinks. Given the large number of participants, the subsequent networking was particularly lively this time – and, as mentioned earlier, lasted well past 8 p.m. Over pizza and cold drinks, the topics of the evening were discussed in detail.

A heartfelt thank you goes once again to digitalHUB Aachen and EDIH for their sponsorship.

A thoroughly enjoyable evening with excellent presentations, engaging discussions, and once again, fantastic participation. Thank you all for joining us!

The next meeting will be on Monday, July 13, 2026, at 5 p.m. in the digitalHUB Aachen. Further details will follow in the invitation.

If you have ideas for a post in the section “What I did with AI last month” or for the “Tool/Tip of the Month” – please get in touch!

That's all for now.

We are delighted by how lively, diverse and practical the focus group has become – and how many impulses are now also emerging from the specialist groups and related subject areas.

See you again – at the latest on July 13th in the digitalHUB!

Stefan and Alex

(You can find the meeting's Miro board with the details  here  – password “FGKIAachen”)



Innovations in organization and technology

In this meeting, we directly tested some of the improvements discussed recently: additional notices with information on the schedule, organization and specialist groups, a more consistent use of microphones for better acoustics, and initial live online surveys at selected points.



The feedback was very positive – so we will continue working to keep the meetings well-structured, understandable and interactive as the number of participants grows.



New category: Tool/Tip of the Month

For the first time, we introduced our new section "Tool/Tip of the Month" . The idea: short, concrete tips with direct practical value – without a long introduction, but with as much takeaway as possible.



The event began with a compact presentation of GPT Image 2, including a brief comparison with Nano Banana 2 and FLUX 2 .



If you'd like to present an exciting tool or a practical tip at one of our next meetings, please get in touch!



News from the region / AI events

The AI ​​Events working group presented current and upcoming AI events from the Aachen area, as usual . Details can be found on the Miro board.



Additionally, digitalHUB issued a call for applications to be speakers at various AI events and on various topics. You can find more information about this on the forum – if you are interested, please contact Anna directly .



Lecture “Are we just token generators?”

With his lecture “Are we just token generators? / Why humans and language models are on the same scale — only far apart”, Artur Löwen delivered a deliberately provocative and philosophically oriented impulse.



The presentation explored the intersection of AI, ethics, philosophy, and the concept of humanity – and thus polarized the audience in the best possible way. Particularly gratifying was the immediate interest in a kind of "counter-presentation." It is precisely these shifts in perspective that make the focus group so engaging.



Lecture: “AI agents for everyone”

In his presentation “AI agents for everyone / How to use AI agents productively in everyday business today”, Jürgen Brosterhues impressively demonstrated how AI agents can already be used practically in everyday work.



The presentation was exactly what many people were looking for: down-to-earth , hands-on, and packed with concrete takeaways. Several participants reported afterwards that they wanted to try out some of the ideas directly in their own work the very next day – a practical presentation couldn't be more effective.



News from the specialist groups



AI Events Working Group

As mentioned above, the working group once again presented current events and information from the region. The collection continues to grow – and remains an important component in making the many AI activities in the region more visible.



Compliance Working Group

The Compliance working group presented initial findings from the ongoing survey on the use of AI. At the same time, they reiterated their call for participation in the  survey  so that the working group can tailor its work as closely as possible to the actual questions, uncertainties, and needs of the participants.



Business Use Cases

The existing Business Use Cases working group is expected to evolve in a new direction. We will present more details at the next meeting.



AI, Culture & Transformation

There seems to be a great deal of interest in a new working group focusing on "AI, Culture & Transformation" —the first interested parties have already contacted us. More information will be provided at the next meeting.



End of the evening with pizza and drinks.

Even after the official part of the event, the discussions continued in earnest – covering agents, tools, ethics, compliance, transformation, and many other topics. Over pizza and cold drinks , it became clear once again how valuable the informal exchange afterwards is.



A heartfelt thank you goes once again to digitalHUB Aachen and EDIH for their sponsorship.



A thoroughly enjoyable evening with excellent presentations, engaging discussions, and once again, fantastic participation. Thank you all for joining us!





Next meeting

Monday, June 8, 2026 , 5 p.m., at the digitalHUB Aachen. Further details will follow in the invitation. If you have ideas for a presentation or for the new " Tool/Tip of the Month ," please get in touch!





Survey Participants

At this point, we would also like to remind you once again of the survey regarding your prior knowledge of AI, expectations, and wishes for the focus group:

 https://forms.gle/9oQY1sr6uYR8StT2A 



That's all for now.



We are delighted by how lively, diverse and practical the focus group has become – from tools and agents to compliance, ethics, culture and transformation.



See you again – at the latest on June 8th. in the digitalHUB !



Stefan and Alex

(You can find the meeting's Miro board with the details  here  – password “FGKIAachen”)



News from the region / AI events

This time, too, there was an overview of exciting AI events from the region . Among other things, the very successful Code & Streusel event by digitalHUB was reviewed.



At the same time, we were able to provide an overview of other upcoming events, which were compiled on a website created specifically for this purpose – naturally using Vibe Coding . Unfortunately, the publication of this site is currently delayed due to some legal issues concerning the imprint.



Further information about the events presented can be found as usual in the Miro board.



Introductions

As usual, the introductions provided a good opportunity to get to know new participants and establish initial points of contact for later discussions. Especially in a group of this size, it becomes clear time and again how valuable the diversity of our group is.



"What I did with AI last month" – Recording, transcribing and analyzing meetings

Michele provided a very practical insight into different approaches to recording, transcribing and evaluating meetings – both in online and offline contexts.

What was particularly interesting was that this article deliberately addressed a topic that is truly relevant to everyone – and not just techies. Michele not only highlighted the technical possibilities but also very practical experiences, pitfalls, and limitations in the use of various tools.



A lively discussion ensued regarding compliance issues . This led to the idea of ​​dedicating more time to this topic in a later special presentation by the Compliance working group – ideally including concrete best practices on the topic of "recording meetings".



News from the specialist groups



Compliance Working Group

The Compliance working group has created a  survey  for participants regarding the use of AI. We encourage as many of you as possible to participate – in the hope that the results will provide concrete approaches for how the working group can best support us on these topics in the future.



Other possible key topics

As the evening progressed, it became clear that a focus on leadership, people, and change would be of great interest to many in the group. However, to prepare and develop such a topic effectively, we need support from the group – if you can contribute or have any ideas, please get in touch.



Keynote speech: “Mastering LLMs with Open Source: Open WebUI as the key”

In his presentation, Alex provided a very clear introduction to the topic of RAG based on Open WebUI . He not only succeeded in explaining the technical basics in an understandable way, but also in highlighting the platform's special possibilities and optimization approaches.



This was a particularly strong impetus for the technically minded participants – including insights into advanced concepts such as graph-based RAG . Overall, a very successful introduction to a topic that will certainly continue to occupy us.



The presentations can be found linked in the Miro board.



End of the evening with pizza and drinks.

The subsequent networking session was once again characterized by many engaging conversations – and this time, apparently, they lasted particularly long. Over pizza and cold drinks, the various topics from the meeting were discussed at length and in depth.



A heartfelt thank you goes once again to digitalHUB Aachen and EDIH for their sponsorship.



A thoroughly successful evening with great presentations, lively discussions, and impressive participation. Thank you all for joining us!





Next meeting

Monday, May 11, 2026 , 5 p.m., at the digitalHUB Aachen. Further details will follow in the invitation.







Survey Participants

At this point, we would also like to remind you once again of the survey regarding your prior knowledge of AI, expectations, and wishes for the focus group:

 https://forms.gle/9oQY1sr6uYR8StT2A 



That's all for now.



We are delighted about the continued growth of the focus group – and especially about how diverse and vibrant the exchange between users, specialist departments and techies has become.



See you again – at the latest on May 11th. in the digitalHUB !



Stefan and Alex