To path indicator Subpages of “Studies“ To navigation by target groups To navigation by topic To quick access To footer with other services
To content
lecture hall with a lot of students © Jürgen Huhn​/​TU Dortmund
Start-up FocusCenters.NRW

Statewide AI Focus Center Launched

-
in
  • Founding & Transfer
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Top News
A graphic showing a hand with an outstretched index finger on a dark background. A rocket rises from the index finger toward the top of the image. © MSTTASPRIYA​​/​​​​stock.adobe.com
With AICE.NRW, TU Dortmund University and the University of Bonn will strengthen the start-up landscape at universities in the field of AI.
To strengthen scientific spin-offs in the field of artificial intelligence, TU Dortmund University – together with the University of Bonn – will establish the statewide “AI Center for Entrepreneurship NRW (AICE.NRW)” as a new AI focus center. As part of the “Start-up FocusCenters.NRW” program, AICE was recommended for funding at the end of July. The state government of North Rhine-Westphalia and the European Union are providing a total of around 1.5 million euros for three projects over three years from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for the program.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is considered a key technology of the coming decades – with profound effects on industry, services, medicine, mobility, and many other areas of society. At the same time, AI start-ups face major challenges, such as access to high-quality data and technical infrastructure, as well as dealing with complex legal frameworks and data protection. Sina Schmidt, project manager at the Center for Entrepreneurship and Transfer (CET) at TU Dortmund University, explains: “Many researchers interested in founding start-ups possess solid technical expertise but encounter obstacles in practical implementation. This is precisely where AICE.NRW comes in – with the goal of bridging the gap between excellent research and successful entrepreneurship.”

Identifying potential and imparting competencies

AICE.NRW is aimed at all 30 universities in North Rhine-Westphalia and seeks to enable them to support AI-focused start-ups more effectively. The focus center, established jointly with the Transfer Center enaCom at the University of Bonn, will analyze the current state, potentials, and challenges universities face in promoting AI-based start-ups. It will identify future scientific AI topics and formulate recommendations for action. In addition, AICE.NRW aims to strengthen exchange and networking between universities, establishing itself as a central hub for AI-based entrepreneurship support in NRW.

“At AICE.NRW, we will develop workshops and strategies for start-up coaches and transfer-oriented researchers,” says Sina Schmidt. “This way, start-up advisors and transfer actors at universities will be specifically qualified as experts in AI start-ups. Universities will thus be able to serve as incubators before the start-ups scale up.” In the coming months, the operational structures of the new focus center will be established. Initial programs for qualification and networking are already being planned. CET Managing Director Dr. Ronald Kriedel notes: “Together with our partners in Bonn and across the entire university system in NRW, we look forward to bringing AICE.NRW to life – as an impulse generator for technology-oriented start-ups and as a catalyst for a sustainable innovation location in North Rhine-Westphalia.”

Contribution to innovation in NRW

With the “Start-up FocusCenters.NRW” program, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia aims to facilitate the transfer of innovative research ideas into viable business models. As a focus center, AICE.NRW is intended to ensure that research does not remain filed away in a drawer but finds its way into practice – as products, services, or start-ups with real added value for society and the economy.

Contact for queries:

Back