What can you expect?
This workshop offers you a comprehensive overview of the funding structure and guides you step by step through the application process. Learn how to turn your idea into a project, find the right funding program and the right call for proposals, form suitable partners and consortia, calculate the budget and plan the entire application process. You will also receive valuable tips and tricks to make the application process efficient and successful.

Benefits for your company:

• Increase your chances of success: learn how to create high quality and convincing applications to maximize your chances of funding.
• Network and exchange: Take the opportunity to network with other entrepreneurs and share valuable experiences.
• Avoid mistakes: Benefit from expert knowledge to avoid common application mistakes and optimize the process.
• Increase efficiency: Find out how you can make the application process more efficient and save valuable time and resources.
• Long-term planning: Gain insights into the long-term planning and implementation of funding projects to strengthen your company in the long term.

Take this opportunity to expand your knowledge and prepare yourself optimally for the application process. We look forward to your participation!

Companies worldwide are increasingly relying on AI to optimize their processes and meet the challenges of digital transformation. In Europe, the path for innovative AI use through advanced regulations and a growing range of support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is particularly exciting. But what opportunities doeset this change and what strategic paths can SMEs take now?

1. The Opportunities for SMEs in the AI Era

Despite these challenges, there are numerous opportunities for SMEs in Europe:

Trust through regulation: The clear and structured legal framework of the AI Act creates transparency and trust. Theclarity can be used by SMEs to develop products that are considered safe and responsible internationally. Particularly important is the potential CE marking for AI products, which stands out as a seal of quality in global competition.

Ethics and human-centered AI: In Europe, the focus is strongly on ethical and human-centered AI.responsible AI. SMEs can use this focus to position themselves as pioneers and offer principles such as fairness and transparency through innovative, socially responsible products and services.

Support programmes and funding opportunities: The EU provides support through programmes such as Horizon Europe, Digital Europe and EICAccelerator. These can help SMEs finance their AI projects and develop innovative solutions. In addition, there are the European Digital Innovation Hubs and AI Centers as a starting point for questions about AI applications and digitization topics.

niche markets and tailor-madee Solutions: There are great opportunities, especially in the area of specialised AI applications. Thanks to their flexibility and agility, SMEs can quickly develop solutions that meet specific needs. This opens up enormous potential, especially in areas such as agricultural technology, healthcare or sustainability.

Brandenburger Landpartie goes into the next round! On the second day, the focus will be on the connection between artificial intelligence and the creative industries. How can artificial intelligence support creative processes? What new ways of working are created as a result? This meeting brings together experts and interested parties to discuss specific applicationsand to get into conversation with each other. An opportunity to get to know AI from a new perspective.

The event is a cooperation between the ICT, Media and Creative Industries Cluster, the AI network NET4AI and the TMB Tourismus-Marketing Brandenburg GmbH. The costs of the event will be borne by the cooperation partners for you. In order to enable as many interested parties as possible to participate, the event will be held hybrid.

A review of day 1 of the country outing on the topic of "AI & Agriculture" on May 6 in Nauen can be found in the video on the WFBB YouTube channel.

EU AI Act: Opportunities and Challenges for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Europe

The world of artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the landscape for companies. Companies worldwide are increasingly relying on AI to optimize their processes and communication and to meet the challenges of digital transformation. In Europe, the path for innovative AI use underlies tough advanced regulation with a growing range of support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). But what opportunities and challenges does this change offer?

1. The state of AI policy in Europe

Europe is considered a world leader when it comes to regulating AI. Especially highlighted is the EU AI Act, which is considered the first comprehensive legal framework for AI worldwide. This regulation takes a risk-based approach and divides AI systems into different risk classes. High-risk technologies, such as in the field of healthcare or recruitment, are subject to strict requirements in terms of transparency, data quality and human supervision. The focus is on ethical principles and the promotion of transparent, secure AI technologies, providing an important basis for SMEs in particular to gain trust and to design the use of AI responsibly.

In addition to regulation, the Digital Governance Act and the Data Act are also driving the creation of data rooms and simplified use of data. These initiatives offer new opportunities to develop AI-powered solutions based on high-quality data.

2. The current challenges for SMEs

Despite the clear policy framework, many SMEs face significant challenges:

- Regulatory burdens: Compliance with the requirements of the AI Act can be particularly difficult for smaller companies a big hurdle. The necessary compliance measures, especially for high-risk AI applications, are often expensive and technically demanding.

- Access to data and infrastructure: Many SMEs are still struggling with access to high-quality data sets and the necessary technical infrastructures. Sharing data across borders is also complicated by the development of innovative AI solutions.

- Competition and fragmentation: Global competition, especially with the US and China, poses another challenge. Market fragmentation and different regulations can make it difficult to keep up with international markets.

In the AI era, small and mediumsized companies (SMEs) in Europe have numerous opportunities. The clear regulation of the AI Act creates trust, ethical AI enables positioning as a pioneer and funding programs support innovation. SMEs can also gain competitive advantages through tailor-made solutions in niche markets.

Opportunities for SMEs in the AI era:

• Trust through regulation: Transparency and trust through the AI Act and CE marking for AI products.
• Ethics and human-centric AI: Using the focus on ethical, responsible AI to differentiate.
• Support programs and funding opportunities: EU programs such as Horizon Europe and national funding for AI innovations.
• Niche markets and tailor-made solutions: potential in specialized AI applications, e.g., in agricultural technology, healthcare, or sustainability.

In the next article, I will delve deeper into these opportunities and give concrete strategy hints for SMEs to use these potentials effectively.

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In the second part of the workshop series, the focus is on practical implementation with Canva: you create a concrete design for your company – for example, a social media post, flyer, a job advertisement or checklist for employees. With impulses, individual tips and feedback, you will receive support in the design and implementation. Whether marketing, recruiting or internal communication – design content that you can use directly.
Previous knowledge from Part 1 is recommended, but not mandatory.

What to expect:

• Inspiration from design examples
• Efficient work with templates
• Individual practical work: You set your own design idea in a targeted way andm
• Individual feedback, tips and exchange in the group

The Digital Workshopreihe is jointly organised by the @Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Spreeland and the @ EDIH pro_digital.

Would you like to create modern and convincing graphics for your company yourself – quickly, inexpensively and without any design knowledge? In the first part of our workshop, we'll show you how easy it is to use the Canva online tool to create engaging designs for social media, flyers, presentations, and more. With a few basics and the right instructions, you can design in a shorttime professional content.
No design experience needed – you just need curiosity and a device with internet.

What to expect:

• Basic principles for appealing design
• DIY tools and their benefits
• Live entry into the Canva online tool: user interface, templates, embedding elements
• Practical exercise: How to create your first own design
• Tips

The Digital Workshopreihe is jointly organised by the @Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Spreeland and the @ EDIH pro_digital.

Artificial intelligence (AI) offers companies numerous exciting opportunities in marketing. For example, it can help create content such as newsletter copy, social media posts, or even complete marketing campaigns. Tools such as ChatGPT generate texts, while Midjourney or DALL-E can create images that are individually tailored to campaigns.can be efficiently produced with tools such as Pictory. In addition, virtual influencers are gaining importance, which can be developed with AI software such as Heygen to make targeted advertising.

Data Analysis

AI is also proving extremely useful in data analysis. It evaluates data such as social media comments or the behaviour of customers in order tooptimise arketing strategies. These insights can be used to create personalised content such as product recommendations or predict potential customer churn. AI-based chatbots also improve the customer experience by quickly and effectively answering questions and increasing conversions.

Hello Davide, how did you come up with the idea for UniRents?
Exchange students face the problem of having to buy new everyday items and then having to resell, give away or even dispose of them - usually at a loss. UniRents offers a practical, cost-effective solution: renting the products for the required period. This saves money and reduces waste at the same time.

What are the key features of the products and services?
We offer a wide range of products tailored to the needs of exchange students. There are, for example, kitchen sets with cooking utensils to dishes, but also electrical appliances, bicycles or bedroom furnishings. Our user-friendly platform offers 24/7 customer service and we can deliver within 24 hours of an order being placed. We then collect the products on the day of departure.

These milestones reflect our ongoing work and commitment to fostering innovation and upskilling in regional SMEs. The badges are not only an award for our team, but also a testament to the strength and commitment of all participants in our network!

Our achievements motivate us to take the next steps and to continue to grow. As a transfer project, we pursue the goal of opening up even better access to innovation networks and effective training opportunities for medium-sized companies and public institutions. In doing so, we focus on making digitization tangible and on finding sustainable solutions for the challenges of tomorrow.

Through our offers, we want to expand our network and inspire even more companies and people for innovative approaches. Together we can shape the future - with new ideas, strong partnerships and bold decisions.
A big thank you goes to the entire team and our partners for their support, inspiration and collaboration. Let's continue to make progress together and master new challenges!