Kiel Digital Week 2026: Focus on AI, cultural data and research infrastructures

Published on: May 12, 2026

FDM.SH took part in the tenth Kiel Digital Week 2026 with two events that brought together artificial intelligence, research data and networking.

Group photo of the participants at the NFDI event held at KITZ as part of Digital Week. Photo: FDM.SH
Group photo of the participants at the NFDI event held at KITZ as part of Digital Week. Photo: FDM.SH

AI on the rise in culture and research

Under the title “DIWO2026 – Data Ahoy! AI on Course in Culture & Research”, DigiCult, the Schleswig-Holstein State Library and FDM.SH came together at Kulturspeicher SH to explore how structured data enables AI applications and how AI is already being used in cultural institutions today. The LEGO-FDM method provided practical insights into the basics of documentation, data structure and reproducibility. Sonja Köster (Flensburg Municipal Museums) and Michael Merkel (Hamburg Archaeological Museum) offered vivid insights from their practical experience. A workshop led by Lukas Städing (digiCULT) rounded off the programme with ideas and insights into prompting.

Michael Merkel presents ‘Photo Detective’, a tool for AI-assisted cataloguing of museum collections. Foto: FDM.SH
Michael Merkel presents ‘Photo Detective’, a tool for AI-assisted cataloguing of museum collections. Foto: FDM.SH

NFDI Connect SH: Boosting research

Following a speed-networking session, which gave participants an informal and open opportunity to strike up conversations, Bridget Murphy (DESY) opened the series of presentations with an overview of current developments and future prospects within the NFDI.

Anja Busch (ZBW), as the newly elected deputy spokesperson for the International Engagement Section, presented the section’s work and provided clear insights into opportunities for participation and international networking.

Hela Mehrtens and Klaus Getzlaff (both from GEOMAR) used the example of NFDI4Earth to demonstrate in a practical way how an NFDI consortium can support researchers in their day-to-day work with specific tools and services.

Profiles of NFDI affiliates. Photo: FDM.SH
Profiles of NFDI affiliates. Photo: FDM.SH

Takeaway

The two events highlighted the fact that FDM is increasingly seen as a unifying force between academia, culture and digital technologies. At the same time, it became clear just how vital collaboration, exchange initiatives and practical programmes are in actively developing sustainable and future-proof data management practices and embedding them within institutions.