Live and networked: AI meeting of HSG alumni celebrates premiere

Campus der HSG Alumni

A successful start: the first face-to-face event of the HSG Alumni AI Club

On Tuesday, October 8, 2024, the HSG Alumni AI Club, founded by our CEO Balz Zürrer, hosted its first in-person event. Microsoft hosted the event at The Circle in Zurich and provided the ideal setting to present the latest developments in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). The Online Group was also present, providing important impetus for the participants with its expertise and practical AI solutions. 55 AI-interested alumni were on site to take the opportunity to network, learn from each other and further expand the AI community.

Education for the future of Switzerland

The evening began with an inspiring welcome from Primo Amrein, AI National Skills Director Switzerland at Microsoft, and Balz Zürrer. Primo Amrein gave an insight into his vision of how he would like to move Switzerland forward in terms of AI education. In particular, he emphasized the need to educate the population about the opportunities and challenges of AI to ensure that Switzerland remains competitive in an increasingly digitalized world. Through targeted education initiatives, he plans to address the skills shortage in this area and make Switzerland a leading AI location.

Microsoft’s AI strategy: the platform of the future

Susanna Pepe and Tine Petric, both representatives of Microsoft, introduced the participants to the company’s AI strategy. Microsoft is pursuing the goal of making AI accessible to all companies and industries. The advantages of the Azure AI platform, which offers an extensive collection of tools for machine learning, cognitive services and application-based AI services, were highlighted in particular. Special attention was paid to the role of AI in Switzerland, with a recent study conducted together with ETH Zurich, W.I.R.E. and Innovate Switzerland confirming the positive impact of AI on the Swiss economy, society and environment. Microsoft demonstrated how AI can act as a catalyst for innovation and efficiency in various industries.

A working day with Copilot for M365

Sandro Hürsch, Copilot Lead & Consultant at the Online Group, presented how he uses Copilot for M365 to make his day-to-day work more efficient. Using a practical example, he showed how Copilot automates administrative tasks, summarizes emails, follows up on meetings and creates documents. What was particularly impressive, as Sandro explained, was that Copilot summarizes decisions and important developments from meetings while he is away, so that he is immediately up to date when he returns. This shows how AI can increase productivity while reducing stress by managing information.

Practical B2B AI solutions

In his presentation, Ralf Angermann introduced several innovative B2B AI solutions that he has implemented together with various Swiss companies. One outstanding example was the AI-supported chatbot “BERNINA Mate”, which provides retailers in Switzerland with round-the-clock information on repairs, spare parts and marketing activities. Ralf also discussed the AI-supported optimization of waste management at the canton of Thurgau, which was implemented using Microsoft’s low-code architecture. These real-life application examples impressively demonstrated how AI not only increases efficiency, but also enables new business models and service offerings.

Lively interest and exchange at aperitif & dinner

After an exciting Q&A, during which the participants were able to delve deeper into the AI solutions presented, a relaxed part of the evening followed: aperitifs and dinner. This was the perfect opportunity to further deepen the newly gained impressions in personal conversations and build valuable networks within the AI community. The feedback was consistently positive, and the lively participation in the discussions made it clear that the community is on the right track to tackle AI as a key topic of the future.

Conclusion: A successful start

The first event of the HSG Alumni AI Club was a complete success and laid the foundation for many more exciting events. Thanks to the support of Microsoft and the expertise of the Online Group, participants were able to gain practical insights into the world of artificial intelligence and network with like-minded people at the same time. The mixture of inspiring presentations, practical examples and intensive discussions made the evening a special experience.

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