Please note: The R2B live event in September will be held in German. We kindly ask for your understanding that the English website does not contain all information about the event.

RESEARCH TO BUSINESS live: Smart Labs of the Future

How can research laboratories become more efficient, faster, and better connected? “Smart Lab of the Future” represents a fundamental transformation: automated processes, AI-powered analytics, and data-driven development open up new opportunities to significantly speed up innovation. For industrial companies, access to these technologies is increasingly becoming a decisive competitive factor. KIT combines excellent research with concrete application areas, thereby laying the foundation for successful technology transfer.

Our networking event RESEARCH TO BUSINESS live offers you the opportunity to exchange ideas with KIT researchers about technologies related to self-driving labs and to discuss challenges. Join us for a tour of five labs at KIT that are helping to shape the future of automated, digitized laboratories, particularly in materials development. The spectrum ranges from materials synthesis and characterization to coating and sample transport, supported by machine learning. The event is jointly organized with the KIT Business Club.

What to expect: 2 campuses. 4 institutes. 6 lab tours.

Key event details

Date: Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Location: Various locations on the KIT South and North Campuses (bus transfer included)
Program: Guided lab tours in small groups and expert networking
Target audience: Industrial and commercial companies in the fields of IT, automation, laboratory infrastructure, and logistics, as well as digitalized, data-driven materials development
Registration: The number of participants is limited. Therefore, registration is required for this free event. Registrations will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration is expected to remain open until September 10, 2026.

Register for the event now

To the form

Program*
From 9:00 a.m.	Check-in at Campus South, Building 30.48, MZE
9:45 – 10:00 a.m.	Official Welcome
10:00 – 10:40 a.m.	Lab tour at the Institute of Lighting Technology (LTI), research group led by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Colsmann: “*E-MAP - A Self-Driving Lab for Solution-Processed Semiconductor Discovery*”
10:40 – 10:50 a.m.	Coffee break
10:50 – 11:00 a.m.	Bus transfer to the Institute for Conveyor Technology and Logistics Systems (IFL), Building 50.38
11:00 – 11:40 a.m.	Lab tour at the IFL, research group led by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Kai Furmans: “*Autonomous Sample Transport: Mobile Robots Connect Labs Across Campus*”
11:40 – 12:10 p.m.	Bus transfer to North Campus
12:10 – 13:00 p.m.	Lunch break. A lunch snack will be provided.
13:00 – 14:00 p.m.	Lab tour at the ZEISS Innovation HUB, Institute for Functional Interfaces (IFG), research group led by Prof. Dr. Ute Schepers: “*Self-driving Labs for BioMaterials (Bio.MAT)*”
14:00 – 14:20 p.m.	Bus transfer to Building 332
14:20 – 14:50 p.m. / 15:00 – 15:30 p.m.	Two parallel tours with rotating groups and a short break: “*The Autonomous Future of Bioprocess Development: Self-Driving Labs, Agentic AI, and Digital Twins,” research group led by Prof. Dr. Matthias Franzreb, Institute for Functional Interfaces (IFG) “Digital Chemistry*,” research group led by Prof. Dr. Stefan Bräse, Institute for Organic Chemistry (IOC)
15:30 – 15:45 p.m.	Conclusion and transfer to South Campus
Approx. 16:15 p.m.	Final stop at South Campus