In preparation

What really makes a city center attractive? For a long time, this question was answered based on experience, political ideals, and individual interests. Today, data and AI can reveal how people actually use urban spaces, where quality of life is created, and what amenities are missing. But who collects this data, who interprets it, and who uses it to make decisions about public space? The panel will discuss whether AI and data lead to better cities - or merely raise new questions of power in urban development.

New tools, AI, and digital processes in the construction industry promise greater efficiency, new business models, and competitive advantages - and companies are already investing heavily. But two questions remain unanswered in most organizations: How can the actual value contribution of AI be measured - in revenue, productivity, costs, on-time delivery, and quality? And how can you win over the people who are expected to use these tools in their day-to-day work?

The panel discusses how digital transformation in construction can succeed: with the right KPIs to demonstrate impact, and through empowering teams. The speakers share how they make progress measurable in their organizations and how they genuinely bring employees along, instead of simply presenting them with finished decisions.

AI promises more efficient processes and better decision-making, but also raises questions around responsibility, security, data protection and employee participation. This panel discusses how companies can use AI effectively without losing control over their data, processes and decisions.

In this interactive live podcast, Maxim and Bernd, “der Baucoach”, discuss the current challenges facing the industry: rising costs, uncertain markets, increasing sustainability requirements, lengthy approval processes, and new digital opportunities. The conversation focuses on how the role of clients is changing, which decisions are becoming particularly difficult, and how construction projects can remain feasible despite growing pressure.

Climate change, heat stress, and soil sealing pose challenges for our cities. Climate resilience and biodiversity are no longer merely environmental issues, but rather decisive factors for the real estate industry of tomorrow. In a rapidly changing world, how do we preserve—or reinvent—the foundations of our way of life?

This panel brings together politics, urban planners, and real estate professionals to explore how synergies might even emerge from the tension between construction and nature.

Many construction projects begin with grand promises of sustainability. But how much of that actually translates to the construction site? This Fireside Chat examines the gap between aspiration and reality: What decisions truly make a project more sustainable, where does greenwashing begin, and who is responsible when green plans result in gray buildings?

In preparation

Wood is considered climate-friendly, while concrete is seen as indispensable. But the choice of materials in construction isn’t that simple. This Fireside Chat examines the reality of sustainable building material decisions: What advantages do timber construction and low-carbon concrete each offer? What are their limitations? And how do construction companies balance sustainability, cost-effectiveness, availability, and scalability?

Everyone is talking about sustainability, the circular economy, and climate-friendly construction, but in practice, demolition and new construction often remain the easier option. This panel discussion explores why renovating existing buildings doesn’t work under the same logic as new construction, which processes, contracts, and economic models need to be reimagined for this purpose, and why genuine climate policy begins with sufficiency: the preservation, improvement, and continued operation of existing buildings.

"The beauty lies in the loop" _under this title, Wiebke Ahues takes her audience into the practice of circular building. The talk traces the processes, questions and obstacles of circular construction while foregrounding its opportunities: how circular thinking reshapes planning logic, what conditions it requires, and what it sets in motion – in design, execution and collaboration. Material stories drawn from real projects make abstract principles tangible and invite the construction industry to reimagine itself – across disciplines and sectors alike.

Whether buildings are truly sustainable, efficient, and user-friendly becomes apparent during day-to-day operations. Facility management thus becomes a key driver for energy consumption, maintenance, data quality, service, and operating costs. This panel discussion explores how modern building operations must be structured today, which technologies truly help, and why FM is becoming increasingly important for the future viability of real estate.

How is artificial intelligence transforming collaboration between architecture and engineering? This fireside chat explores how AI can accelerate BIM processes, support planning decisions, and create new interfaces between design and structural engineering - while also examining where responsibility, data quality, and human expertise remain indispensable.

AI promises to make the construction industry more efficient. But what happens when the very simple tasks that young professionals have traditionally used to learn the ropes are eliminated? The panel examines the gap between reducing the workload and building skills: What routines are needed to truly understand the fundamentals? How are training and career paths changing? And who is responsible for ensuring that AI not only takes over tasks but also facilitates the acquisition of new knowledge?

Corporate real estate has long been more than just an office, a location, or a cost center. Hybrid work, new user expectations, sustainability goals, digitalization, and cost pressures are changing the way companies plan, operate, and evaluate their spaces. This Fireside Chat explores the role corporate real estate plays today in corporate culture, efficiency, the employee experience, and future-readiness, and how companies are adapting their real estate strategies to a changing world of work.

In preparation

Housing companies are under pressure: rising costs, high service expectations, complex portfolios, and limited human resources. Digital processes, automation, and AI can help make customer communication, maintenance, and portfolio management more efficient, but they also change roles, work methods, and responsibilities. The panel will discuss how much digitization actually makes sense in the housing portfolio, how to get employees on board, and where people remain indispensable despite automation.

In preparation

Industrialized construction promises greater efficiency, quality, and speed  but the path forward is still up for debate. Should the industry move more planning and production into factories, where standardization and automation can scale more easily? Or will the construction site remain the center of building, supported by robots, AI, and autonomous machines? This international panel explores which approaches are already working across different markets, where scaling still falls short, and whether the future of construction will be factory-built, robot-built, or hybrid.

High demand meets cautious capital: Many real estate projects today are caught between rising construction costs, stricter risk requirements, ESG guidelines, and uncertain market conditions. The panel brings together perspectives from financing, project development, and the municipal housing sector and asks: Which projects are still bankable today? How do the parameters differ between commercial developments, residential projects, and municipal property owners? And what is needed to turn demand back into viable real estate projects?