Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) establish a strategic partnership. The partnership aims to develop insights on digital solutions for industry, science and society through innovating teaching and learning, collaborating in the area of entrepreneurship, and driving joint research and innovation projects. The announcement was made today (December 22, 2016) when signing the partnership contract in Walldorf. Cooperation in academic education will focus on development and consulting projects for students based on real challenges posed by industry. Joint activities in the areas of research and innovation will concentrate on power grids, autonomous driving, Industry 4.0, big data, cyber security, robotics, and automatic translation.
“KIT’s activities clearly focus on the areas of energy, mobility, and information. Innovative solutions for e.g. the interaction of smart homes and electric vehicles require a specific, networked approach,” says the President of KIT, Professor Holger Hanselka. “SAP is a strong partner in research, innovation, and close-to-practice academic education. I am looking forward to the close collaboration and the results of this intense partnership.”
“We are excited about this great partnership with KIT which builds on a history of successful collaboration,” says Gerhard Oswald, Member, Executive Board of SAP SE. “Several SAP executives are KIT alumni: For example Prof. Dr. h.c. mult. Hasso Plattner, one of the founders of SAP and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of SAP SE, is an alumnus. He was awarded the Heinrich-Hertz guest professorship at KIT earlier this year.”
Joint activities in the areas of entrepreneurship include e-learning and innovative software solutions for the administrative sector of research institutions. Research and innovation will concentrate on power grids, autonomous driving, Industry 4.0, big data, cyber security, robotics, and automatic translation.
Students in particular will benefit from this partnership, as SAP solutions including the SAP HANA Cloud Platform are used in several education programs and SAP Next-Gen Consulting projects are carried out. Students are enabled to better understand IT-based business processes and to develop and implement digital products and services on their own. They reimagine work experience in real world challenges posed by industry partners, develop innovative business models, design digital services, and implement them by way of example. Since becoming a member of SAP University Alliances in May 2016, the first SAP Next-Gen Consulting projects have already been completed by KIT students under the supervision of Professor Alexander Mädche during the summer 2016 semester. Apart from university courses, joint bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral theses are envisaged.
About SAP University Alliances
SAP University Alliances opens up the world of SAP to 3,107 educational institutions in 106 countries worldwide. It aims to develop critical skills for the exponential enterprise among academics, university students and young thinkers, and to build the bridge to digital futures for executives and professionals.
Caption: Left to right: Vice President and President of KIT, Thomas Hirth and Holger Hanselka, Member of the Board of SAP, Gerhard Oswald, and Bernd Pelz, Chief Knowledge Officer, SAP. (Photo: SAP)
Being “The Research University in the Helmholtz Association”, KIT creates and imparts knowledge for the society and the environment. It is the objective to make significant contributions to the global challenges in the fields of energy, mobility, and information. For this, about 10,000 employees cooperate in a broad range of disciplines in natural sciences, engineering sciences, economics, and the humanities and social sciences. KIT prepares its 22,800 students for responsible tasks in society, industry, and science by offering research-based study programs. Innovation efforts at KIT build a bridge between important scientific findings and their application for the benefit of society, economic prosperity, and the preservation of our natural basis of life. KIT is one of the German universities of excellence.