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The Fraunhofer Industrial Quantum Computing Consulting and Testing Center INQUBATOR is implementing innovative, easy access offerings to help industrial users get started with quantum computing. The aim is to identify and evaluate new application-related use cases where the use of quantum computers promises a foreseeable advantage. Close cooperation with industry will enable the development of innovative solutions that will secure the competitiveness of the German economy. The institutes Fraunhofer IAF, IAO, ITWM, and IPA are jointly conducting the four-year project.

How can cities in Europe translate their climate goals into concrete measures that are fair, resilient, and inclusive? This question was the focus of the international event “Cities in Action”, which was curated by Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO for the Horizon Europe UP2030 project, in collaboration with the City of Barcelona, Universidad Internacional de Catalunya (UIC Barcelona), WeDigital, ICLEI Europe, Resilient Cities Network andproject partners. Around 190 urban planners, policymakers, and researchers gathered at the historic Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau to discuss solutions for sustainable climate action and implementation in cities.

Harnessing quantum computing for industry: The Competence Center Quantum Computing Baden-Württemberg (KQCBW) is continuing to pursue this goal in the current funding phase, five years after its founding in 2020. Building on a preparatory transfer project, expertise is being further expanded under the leadership of the Fraunhofer IAF and IAO institutes.

With the ML4QT — Machine Learning for Quantum Technologies international symposium held at the start of July, Heilbronn sent a strong signal in relation to the pioneering field of quantum AI. Leading minds from science and industry — including representatives of the renowned University of Waterloo (Canada), German research institutions and the European quantum industry — met at the experimenta science center to discuss current advances at the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing.

In the ‘AI Cockpit’ project, a research team from Fraunhofer IAO and the IAT at the University of Stuttgart, together with partners from academia and industry, has developed solutions to support people in challenging situations when interacting with AI applications. The AI cockpit is designed to ensure that people can understand and control the decisions made by the AI.

Fraunhofer IAO, Fraunhofer IPA and the IAT of the University of Stuttgart are pooling their research expertise to set up the cross-institute Fraunhofer Lab “flaQship.” The lab focuses on applied quantum computing in Stuttgart and Heilbronn.

From March 31 to April 4, 2025, Fraunhofer IAO invites visitors to explore new service ideas in an immersive environment with AI personas at the joint booth of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in hall 2, booth B24. The goal of the exhibition is to make service ideas tangible at an early stage and to consider the different requirements of different customer groups in the development of business ideas.

The European Robotics Forum (ERF), the flagship event of the European robotics association (euRobotics) will take place in Stuttgart's Liederhalle from March 25 to 27, 2025. Numerous partners, prominent guests, a wide-ranging program, and a major public engagement event on the afternoon of March 24 will turn Stuttgart into an outstanding meeting place for industry, science, and public interested in the topics of robotics and AI.

A concrete solution for pressing challenges: In the CYCLOMETRIC project, researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO have devised a solution that allows companies to incorporate sustainability assessments and circular economy concepts into the early phases of development processes — right where there is the most leverage for ecofriendly design.