Portrait of our student assistant Jolina Berndt

»I especially like that I learn something new every day. «

Jolina Berndt has been a student assistant at KI.NRW since May 2023. She is mainly involved in AI-related professional development and AI use cases, which she curates for KI.NRW’s interactive AI.Map. In an interview with PR colleague Michael Schwarz, she talks about her work at the competence platform.

Jolina, what brought you to KI.NRW?

I chose to focus on marketing modules as part of my Bachelor of Business Administration degree. One module was about current developments in marketing and, as part of that, about artificial intelligence. I thought that was really exciting, so I decided to look further into the topic. During my research, I came across KI.NRW and was particularly impressed by the AI.World, as it showed me where AI was already present in my everyday life without me knowing about it. The idea of doing transfer work between science and business, facilitating processes in professional life, and getting to know exciting new areas of application for AI ultimately led me to apply to KI.NRW.

What do you do at KI.NRW?

As a competence platform, KI.NRW is the central point of contact for artificial intelligence in North Rhine-Westphalia. This means that companies can come to us if they have questions about AI or are interested in AI use cases in their industry, for example. We also network stakeholders from the fields of research, business and society in NRW in order to support AI projects. In addition, we also carry out educational work in relation to artificial intelligence, both at company and societal level.

What are your tasks at KI.NRW?

I mainly work on the AI.Map, creating or revising profiles and finalizing new entries. In the beginning, I was mainly dedicated to the map area of AI-related professional training, but currently my focus is on companies that use artificial intelligence or have AI products. I also research AI use cases, which is exciting. That’s how I find out how AI is used in different industries and what is possible with artificial intelligence. With KI.NRW, we are regular guests at events and also organize our own events. I’m happy to assist with this because it allows us to exchange ideas with and between other companies and AI stakeholders. There are also recurring tasks that you can take on as a student on your own initiative, depending on your own capacities at the time.

Which tasks do the other students have?

The students’ tasks vary depending on their degree program and interests. Some of the students work on the AI.Map and/or the AI.World. In general, however, every student has the opportunity to express what they are interested in and which tasks they find exciting. All students also have a buddy, or mentor. When assigning them, we make sure that the degree program and fields of interest match the daily business of the KI.NRW colleague so that you can work on projects and topics that you really enjoy.

What do you particularly like about your work?

I especially like that I learn something new every day. This doesn’t just apply to my knowledge of AI, but also to working life in general. The KI.NRW team really helps each other.

What was your highlight at KI.NRW?

One of my highlights was definitely when we made it to 1000 entries on the KI.map at the end of 2023. The events are also always a highlight for me personally, as they are thematically exciting, and you can network and exchange ideas.