Volkswagen’s Commitment to Supporting Culture and the Arts Highlighted in Kultursymposium Weimar Partnership

Volkswagen AI-expert Patrick van der Smagt speaking on the panel discussion „In Tech We Trust?”

(IN BRIEF) Volkswagen has announced its continued partnership with the Kultursymposium Weimar, a biennial event organized by the Goethe-Institut. The fourth edition of the event will focus on trust in social, cultural, and technological contexts and will feature creative performances, panel discussions, and networking opportunities. Volkswagen is a leading partner of the event and will provide support with three full-electric ID. Buzz vehicles. Professor Patrick van der Smagt, Director of the Machine Learning Research Lab at Volkswagen Group, will participate in a discussion on trust in AI systems. The partnership underscores Volkswagen’s commitment to supporting the global initiatives and projects of the Goethe-Institut and promoting encounters between art, culture, and the public.

(PRESS RELEASE) WOLFSBURG/ WEIMAR, 10-May-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — Volkswagen Group (ETR: VOW3), one of the world’s leading manufacturers of automobiles and commercial vehicles, has announced its partnership with the Kultursymposium Weimar for the fourth time, continuing its support of the biennial event organized by the Goethe-Institut. Among the international speakers and guests at the three-day program is Professor Patrick van der Smagt, Director of the Machine Learning Research Lab at Volkswagen Group. Volkswagen also supports the Goethe-Institut as a founding member of the Business and Industry Advisory Board, represented by Volkswagen’s Board Member Hauke Stars.

The Kultursymposium Weimar, now in its fourth edition, will focus on trust in social, cultural, and technological contexts. The event will feature creative performances, panel discussions, and networking opportunities, allowing participants to explore the theme from various perspectives. The Goethe-Institut will contribute ideas and thoughts from its network of 157 institutes worldwide, while other locations on different continents will hold local events to reflect the 2023 theme.

Hauke Stars, member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG with functional responsibility for IT and organizational development, comments on the start of Kultursymposium Weimar: ”Kultursymposium Weimar strengthens the dialogue between the business world and the people. Digital technologies have an overwhelming effect on our life, and they create many new innovation fields for industry, culture and arts alike. Especially when it comes to AI, sharing knowledge and initiating constructive debates is of central importance when we want to enable people to actively participate in the development and to benefit from it.”

Volkswagen is one of the leading partners of the Kultursymposium Weimar, offering a festival program that combines cultural experiences and conference elements. From May 10-12, 2023, guests will have the opportunity to engage with different aspects of trust through art performances, film screenings, panel talks, concerts, workshops, and interactive games. Volkswagen will also provide support for the festival team with three full-electric ID. Buzz vehicles.

Professor Patrick von der Smagt, Director of the Machine Learning Research Lab at Volkswagen AG and Head of the European etami project which develops guidelines for ethical and thrustworthy development and implementation of AI technologies: “The advancing AI technology leads to high expectations but also strong skepticism. With technological excellence, we can build trust which is an essential element when we want to to differentiate between the potential and the risks of AI technology. Kultursymposium Weimar allows us to exchange views and findings on an international level and that is an important step on our way.”

As part of the discussion format “In Tech We Trust? – Confidence and Innovation in the Age of Artificial Intelligence,” Professor Patrick van der Smagt will join Rasika Bhalerao, Assistant Teaching Professor at the Northeastern University Khoury College of Computer Sciences, and Ramak Molavi Vasse’i, an internationally recognized AI research specialist and digital rights lawyer, to share their findings on trust in AI systems.

The Volkswagen Group is committed to supporting global initiatives and projects of the Goethe-Institut, partnering with different institutions and cultural players to promote encounters between art, culture, and the public, and innovative formats for cultural education. Volkswagen believes that the widest possible audience should have the chance to engage with creative ideas and works, leading to new perspectives that ultimately foster progress, innovation, respect, and tolerance within our society.

More details about the Kultursymposium Weimar at https://www.goethe.de/prj/ksw/de/index.html

Media contact:

Rita Werneyer
Spokesperson Live Communications
Tel. +49 5361 9-79864
rita.werneyer@volkswagen.de

SOURCE: Volkswagen AG