DiWiSH: Delegation trip to Boston and Silicon Valley

The whole delegation in Boston

© DiWiSH

From DiWiSH, the following took part in the delegation: Dr Hauke Berndt, 1st Chairman DiWiSH e. V. and ppi media; Dr Johannes Ripken, Cluster Head DiWiSH Cluster Management, WTSH; Björn Schwarze, Addix, Specialist Group Head Smart City; Prof. Dr Stefan Fischer, 2nd Chairman DiWiSH Advisory Board.

The following entrepreneurs from several DiWiSH members were also present: Torsten Koss from Dataport, Knut Nicholas Krause (knk Business Software), Hauke Brauer from P-Labor, Jan Wendt from north.io, Thomas Ewoldt and Hans-Jürgen Rösler (The Bay Areas, EUROCON) as well as Werner Kässens from Kiel Economic Development.

The trip was organised by the Schleswig-Holstein State Chancellery, the Northern Germany Innovation Office (NGIO) and the WTSH.

The participants of the delegation trip gained important insights. Some of these are:

• Schleswig-Holstein can hold its own internationally in the field of digitalisation and artificial intelligence: The delegation participants have shown that we in Schleswig-Holstein have a highly competent and innovative community of experts that plays an important role in the global technology landscape. The companies and research institutions have shown that they are leaders in the field of green energy and healthcare and do not have to hide from international competition.
• Building ecosystems as a game changer: The trip showed that building ecosystems with a clear focus on specific areas can be a game changer for a region. Boston and Silicon Valley have successfully created ecosystems that bring together companies, start-ups, research institutions and investors and foster innovation. We should take this model as inspiration for the delegation participants and consider which ecosystems they can develop in Schleswig-Holstein.

Conclusion

The delegation trip was a valuable experience for DiWiSH and showed the representatives of the cluster that they are on the right track. They will use the knowledge gained to further advance the digital economy in Schleswig-Holstein and to strengthen the cooperation between companies, research institutions and politics.