Convide Summer School

Convide Summer School – A Week Full of Highlights

From 27 to 31 July 2026, the CONVIDE Summer School 2026 was in full swing in Weimar!
 
We kicked off on Monday with arrivals, lunch, and a warm welcome by Prof. Ralf Reussner. A real highlight of the day were the inspiring talks by Prof. Eric Sax (KIT), Dr. Jochen Hagel (InnovationCampus Future Mobility, KIT), and Dr. Christian Müller (ZF Group), who shared valuable insights on bridging research and industry.
 
The day ended with a great dinner and a fun pub quiz featuring curious scientific questions, where everyone teamed up, competed for the first place, and enjoyed a relaxed evening together.
 
On Tuesday, the program continued with interactive sessions on the past and future of cars, leadership, and innovation, led by our distinguished speakers.

Next, we welcomed Prof. Dr. Judith Michael (Regensburg) and three doctoral researchers (RWTH Aachen) who presented and discussed their internationally recognized work on digital twins.

On Wednesday, our guests from Regensburg/Aachen led our researchers through two hands-on engineering sessions where the group was able to explore the potentials of digital twins in a guided setting.

After lunch, Dr. Jan Keim (KIT) shared valuable practical insights into GenAI use at Convide. With LLMs becoming more impactful and important every day, it was great for an expert to showcase the technology’s immense potential – while not ignoring its pitfalls!

In the evening, we had the highlight of the week – our social event in Weimar! We explored the city in teams during a fun scavenger hunt, learning interesting facts and stories about Goethe, Schiller, Bach, and other famous personalities who shaped Weimar.

Afterwards, we enjoyed a traditional dinner with Thuringian specialties at a cozy local restaurant. It was a great opportunity to get to know each other better, talking not only about work but also about life outside the office. It was the perfect way to recharge before the busy months ahead.

On Thursday, Prof. Dr. Felicitas Krämer (Potsdam) gave us an extensive introduction to ethical questions in cyber-physical systems research. The three sessions were intellectually stimulating and equally challenging,

 Later, members of the IPEK Institute organized a fun but no less competitive team event – the Bridge Building Challenge. Our task was to build a paper bridge strong enough to hold at least three water bottles while keeping an eye on costs and profit. While every team succeeded, we had to learn a hard lesson: overengineering is the enemy of profit!

On Friday, Dr. Monika Klippert (Physikalische Instrumente) shared very personal impressions on her career journey from KIT to industry, followed by a feedback session by Philipp Scherzer to reflect on the whole week.

A big thank you to everyone who joined us – we were very happy to have you with us!