Artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining momentum: With twelve new AI professorships at the university locations in Kiel, Lübeck, Flensburg and Heide, the future viability of science and industry in Schleswig-Holstein is being further strengthened. The state is providing a total of nine million euros for this over the next five years. Prime Minister Daniel Gunther and Science Minister Karin Prien presented the plans on February 8th in Kiel.
The Vice President for Studies and Teaching at the Lübeck University of Applied Sciences, Prof. Dr. Henrik Botterweck is enthusiastic about the growth at the university: “The two AI professorships for data sciences and education offer us the opportunity to design ‘intelligent’ data processing in an interdisciplinary manner and beyond the TH Lübeck as a natural cross-sectional topic in application and education . AI should serve people and their immediate living environment – we are committed to this together with our partners at the Hanse Innovation Campus, teacher training at universities and many companies.”
Promote the country’s innovative strength in the long term
“Until now, the state has made twelve new chairs available for a specific top topic. For the state and for the universities, this is a great joint effort,” said Günther. He was convinced that the investment would pay off: “The state government has pushed the topic of artificial intelligence in Schleswig-Holstein with a lot of energy over the past three years. The twelve new AI professorships are intended to be a driver for the development of universities, for non-university research and for the state’s future-oriented industries,” said the Prime Minister. Without AI skills, the state’s innovative strength would suffer massively in the long term: “This means that the state government will continue to support the topic of AI in the future.”
The state has already set up the AI special fund for precisely this purpose, from which development projects such as the AI transfer hub, the AI ecosystem in Lübeck or the AI data campus in Kiel would be funded. But the long-term AI measures in the beginning of the ERDF funding period – such as the AI application center or the Digital Learning Campus – could also be very well linked to the professorships.
Schleswig-Holstein’s AI professorships are characterized by special focal points: one of them at the TH Lübeck
“I was particularly pleased that a high level of networking between business and science was already successful in the conception of the professorships, because both non-university research institutions and a large number of companies were involved in the concepts for the AI professorships, for the AI skills already are essential for survival today,” said Prien. The minister emphasized that two of the twelve professorships are dedicated to educational research. “They can answer the question of how we will learn faster and better via learning analytics in the future with data analysis and AI. Or how “Edutechs” and thus AI-controlled tools such as augmented reality, robotics and platforms can also be used in lessons and studies.” Schleswig-Holstein is committed to this and other strategic projects such as the planned Digital Learning Campus Schleswig-Holstein “Top of learning research in Germany”.
selection process and priorities
According to defined criteria, the state universities expressed their interest in positions for AI professorships last year. In a first step, there were 22 applications from the universities. After a public university exchange, 15 applications from six universities were finally submitted for these positions and evaluated by the Institute for Innovation and Technology from Berlin (iit) – a VDI/VDE company that is also active in the field of AI and education as a project manager of the Federal Ministry of Research . Ultimately, twelve applications were selected. According to Minister Prien, a special mix has been achieved here, both between application-oriented and research professorships and between the declared future-oriented sectors for the development of the state.
The six W2 and six W3 professorships at the university locations in Flensburg, Kiel, Heide and Lübeck are funded over a period of five years with the requirement that the universities then take over the professorships. Funding is provided for the personnel costs and a flat rate for equipment and staffing. Minister Karin Prien: “Now we’re going to take the next step and advertise the positions as soon as possible. Our goal is for recognized experts in AI to teach at our universities as early as the 2022/23 winter semester.”
Schleswig-Holstein has a good hand in the competition for the brightest minds. “We offer future professors a convincing overall package of equipment, cooperation with industry and research and support from a state-wide AI network”.
Further information
The press release of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Science
Media report SAT.1 at the TH Lübeck from minute
Media report RTL at the TH Lübeck from minute 12:20
Media report NDR Schleswig-Holstein Magazin from minute 23:22 and Short report AI at the TH Lübeck