AI and sustainability for small and medium-sized enterprises

Induxtry: Smart City & Smart Region / February 13, 2026

As part of the "Mittelstand-Digital" funding priority of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Fraunhofer IESE, together with Ansbach University of Applied Sciences, Nuremberg Tech, and the Academy for Artificial Intelligence (AKI), supports companies in classifying and introducing AI and sustainability in their own operations.

Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Franken unterstützt kleine und mittlere Unternehmen (KMU) in Nordbayern — © Celine Schneider

Last modified: February 13, 2026

The Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Franken supports companies in classifying and implementing digital strategies, tools, and processes in the areas of AI and sustainability. Companies can obtain vendor-neutral information, gain qualifications, and network. The AKI and Ansbach University of Applied Sciences focus on sharing knowledge about AI and its technical application. In addition, the AKI is responsible for information transfer and networking in the field of AI, while the Technical University of Nuremberg concentrates on communicating content related to sustainability. One focus of Fraunhofer IESE is on evaluating the activities of the overall project with regard to the defined goals. Furthermore, it contributes topics such as Industry 4.0, data science, and cybersecurity to the service portfolio of the Mittelstand-Digital Center.

The challenge facing small and medium-sized enterprises:

Slow progress in digitalization in companies due to lack of time, complexity of digital processes, acceptance difficulties, training requirements, and costs
Legal uncertainties, technical barriers, lack of expertise, and poor data quality when using data
Implementation of the EU AI Act: Companies must ensure that their workforce has the required "sufficient level of AI competence."
Dependence of German companies on imports of digital key technologies: solutions for cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, IT security technologies, and cloud computing.

Support from IESE:

Creation of a roadshow concept to penetrate the Franconia region
Contributions on the topics of dependable AI, Industry 4.0, digital twins, data science, digital ecosystems, digital sovereignty, and IT and cyber security.
Creation of an evaluation concept to measure the success of the transfer formats in the project
Monitoring and evaluation of the project measures

Results of the SME Digital Center Franken:

Strengthening small and medium-sized businesses in Franconia through resource optimization, artificial intelligence, sustainability management, and digital transformation
Increasing the digital maturity of companies through supported development measures
Enhancing the digital skills of specialists and managers so they can independently implement digitization strategies
Improving energy and resource efficiency through data-based analyses and targeted measures

Reference Project: Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Franken

AI and sustainability for small and medium-sized enterprises

Mittelstand-Digital
Zentrum Franken

The challenge facing small and medium-sized enterprises:

Support from IESE:

Results of the SME Digital Center Franken:

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