Fifth Annual “German AI Award” Recognizes Excellence in Artificial Intelligence

Fifth Annual “German AI Award” Recognizes Excellence in Artificial Intelligence

(IN BRIEF) The fifth annual “German AI Award” was presented in Berlin by WELT to honor outstanding achievements in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). The award ceremony included the AI Innovation Award, the AI User Award, and the AI Start-Up Award, with a total of €35,000 in prize money. Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Dr. Volker Wissing, delivered the keynote speech, emphasizing the need for better framework conditions for digital innovations in Germany. The AI Innovation Award was presented to Prof. Dr. Josef “Sepp” Hochreiter for his groundbreaking work in AI language models. The AI User Award was granted to the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) for its contributions to microbiology using AI, and the AI Start-Up Award went to Syte, a Münster-based company specializing in AI-driven construction optimization. The awards aim to recognize and promote AI advancements for the benefit of society.

(PRESS RELEASE) BERLIN, 30-Sep-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — In Berlin on Thursday evening, WELT awarded the “German AI Award” for the fifth time. Since 2018, Germany’s most important award in the field of artificial intelligence has recognized outstanding achievements in the application and development of AI.

The renowned jury around the German AI pioneer and entrepreneur Chris Boos awarded the AI Innovation Award endowed with 35,000 euros as well as the AI User Award in the Axel Springer Tower. Together with spectators on site and in the livestream, they also named the winner of the AI Start-Up Award. The annual keynote speech was given this year by the Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Dr. Volker Wissing.

Carolin Hulshoff Pol, CEO of the WELT Group: “AI is one of the defining topics of our time and has been discussed worldwide since ChatGPT at the latest. We are proud to present the ‘German AI Award’ for the fifth time to make visible those whose work uses and develops artificial intelligence for the benefit of society – and thus show what great innovations are being created in Germany and Europe.”

Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Dr. Volker Wissing: “We need to create better framework conditions for digital innovations in our country. Developers of AI need easy access to data, clarity on future standards and tailored funding offers. We have a strong research landscape on AI and innovative startups. I would like to strengthen these.”

Innovation Award for Prof. Dr. Josef “Sepp” Hochreiter 

The recipient of the 2023 AI Innovation Award, which is given for groundbreaking achievements in the research and development of artificial intelligence, is Prof. Dr. Josef “Sepp” Hochreiter, internationally renowned AI scientist and chairman of the Institute for Machine Learning at Johannes Kepler University Linz. Professor Hochreiter is honored with the award for his development of a high-performance AI language model. A great honor and confirmation of his research work, Hochreiter is pleased – but the prize is also an incentive to further develop artificial intelligence in the sense of people and for the benefit of society in the long term.

Jury member and AI entrepreneur Chris Boos: “Sepp Hochreiter is one of the absolute thought leaders in artificial intelligence. Because he does what scientists should do, namely share his knowledge, seek feedback and educate others, he has not yet received the public recognition that he and his results deserve. That’s why I’m particularly pleased that such a researcher, teacher and down-to-earth person is now being honored with the ‘German AI Award’.”

User Award for the European Molecular Biology Laboratory

The un-endowed AI User Award went to the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), based in Heidelberg, which is significantly advancing microbiology with its use of AI in areas such as structural biology, image analysis and technology development – for juror Boos, an optimal winner of the “German AI Award”: A European project with a strong German base that combines science and entrepreneurship with a special focus on society, education and scientific progress. With the use of AI, EMBL is overcoming the complexity of scientific challenges, reducing the cost of experiments, and thus decisively advancing their field, according to Boos.

Professor Edith Heard, Director General of EMBL, said, “It is great that EMBL’s contributions to international AI-based research and scientific development are being recognized with the German AI Award. We are honored by this recognition of our work and look forward to continuing to build on this success with future developments in the application of AI in life science research.”

Syte wins AI Start-Up Award

The young company Syte from Münster was awarded the AI Start-Up Award. The start-up identifies untapped potential for economical and climate-friendly construction based on enormous data sets and with the help of AI.

Media Contact:

Moritz Schudnagies
Communications Manager
WELT Group
moritz.schudnagies@axelspringer.com

SOURCE: Axel Springer SE