AI Initiative Rhineland-Palatinate: AI Pilot for Mobility

Are you thinking about how you can use AI to benefit your company or your research? What exactly is Artificial Intelligence? In which processes can AI be helpful? – To help answer these questions, the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of Science and Health relies on AI pilots. Our Institute Director Prof. Dr. Anita Schöbel was already appointed AI pilot for mobility in 2020. Prof. Dr. Stefan Kramer from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has been an AI pilot for life sciences since mid-2024. The state government is now also supporting the project financially.
 

What Is an AI Pilot?

One component of the AI agenda is the appointment of contact persons who support the application of AI technologies in science and industry. These AI pilots are links that bring science and business together in order to leverage the potential for companies. The first in Rhineland-Palatinate is Anita Schöbel. She is an internationally recognized expert in the field of »artificial intelligence and mobility« and, together with our institute, the Fraunhofer ITWM, is responsible for a large number of innovative AI projects.

Activities of the AI Pilot

»As an AI pilot, I am primarily active in an advisory capacity; above all, I am available to the public as a contact person for experts and users. Together with my colleague Dr. Henrike Stephani, we work on presenting projects and methods that use AI successfully in the field of mobility. We want to bring Artificial Intelligence and mobility together to enable the use of AI where added value can be expected,« says Prof. Dr. Anita Schöbel at the beginning of her term of office.

»Mobility is important for living and working in Rhineland-Palatinate«

We asked the two researchers to sum up the past five years and wanted to know whether the focus will shift in the next phase.

Prof. Schöbel, Dr. Stephani, can you briefly explain to us why Rhineland-Palatinate is particularly well suited for researching and applying AI in mobility?

Schöbel: Mobility is highly relevant for living and working in Rhineland-Palatinate. There has always been local automobile production, which is now changing, also in the direction of electromobility. As we have many rural regions, public transport is also very important. In some cities, there are also great smart city model projects and initiatives that are driving forward digitalization and thus also urban mobility.

Stephani: In the »AI Pilot for Mobility« project, our task is to demonstrate the potential for the practical use of AI in mobility. Thanks to the Fraunhofer ITWM and links to the various departments of the Rhineland-Palatinate University of Applied Sciences Kaiserslautern-Landau RPTU, a broad scientific and applied expertise is available here.

What was your work like in the first phase as an AI pilot?

Schöbel: In principle, we are always available with our expertise for inquiries. We provided information about this via local media, especially at the beginning of the term. There is a website and a consultation hour. At the same time, we have organized workshops on the topic of »AI in mobility« together with experts from various specialist areas and presented them to local businesses.

Stephani: We have given presentations at various events to highlight the relevance of AI in mobility. We are also active in various specific networks in Rhineland-Palatinate. And we have summarized our thoughts on this in writing, namely in the book »Arbeitswelt und KI 2030«.

A central aspect is the networking of science and business. What specific collaborations are you planning and which companies in Rhineland-Palatinate will benefit from them?

Schöbel: We already have a wide range of collaborations with universities in Rhineland-Palatinate, which will be further expanded in the future. Furthermore, we are focusing on existing, well-functioning networks such as the Science and Innovation Alliance Kaiserslautern SIAK, the Rhineland-Palatinate Future Initiative ZIRP or the Rhineland-Palatinate Development Agency and will be involved in these. We do not want to create parallel structures. In the current phase, we also want to focus more on international relations. In Rhineland-Palatinate, we have a lot to contribute scientifically and economically to the topic of »mobility« and want to increase our visibility in science and business on the international stage.

Stephani: We would also like to support small and medium-sized companies in particular in the area of mobility, as well as offering services for local and regional mobility providers. In contrast to large companies, it is sometimes more difficult to drive innovation from within the company. We also see a link here to the new state project »KI4KMU«, which encourages SMEs to integrate AI methods into their day-to-day work.

What long-term effects do you hope the project will have on the mobility sector in Rhineland-Palatinate?

Schöbel: We hope that the potential of AI for mobility will be leveraged and that this will improve mobility in Rhineland-Palatinate on the one hand, and that the mobility-oriented economy and production will be future-proofed with expertise and jobs on the other.