experimenta is expanding its offerings: In the exhibition in a new wooden pavilion, the science center presents insights and perspectives on artificial intelligence (AI). The third structure (e3) joining the experimenta ensemble encourages visitors in the 180-square-meter exhibition space to try out AI applications and explore the technology’s opportunities and risks.
Beginning on April 23rd, visitors can experience the fascinating world of artificial intelligence in the middle of Heilbronn. In a 180-square-meter wooden pavilion christened e3, the experimenta team presents a varied exhibition. The focus is not just on technological milestones but also on trying out AI in practice and offers a first glimpse behind the scenes of the Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence (IPAI): Probably the most ambitious project on artificial intelligence in Europe, it is currently under development north of Heilbronn and aims to bundle the resources of various partners as a platform to work on AI solutions together.
The Age of Artificial intelligence Is Changing Humanity
“With our new exhibition, ‘AI: Insights and Visions’ our aim is to introduce this ground-breaking topic to the public and illustrate how artificial intelligence is changing our world,” says Prof. Dr. Bärbel Renner, experimenta’s managing director. “We facilitate access to AI in a way that is easy to understand and includes playful elements, moving people into the focus as the shapers of a new age,” Ms. Renner continued. In order to allow a broad public to visit the AI Pavilion, admission is free during the opening hours of Germany’s largest science center.
The exhibition is divided into three parts: In the “Auftakt” section, visitors can learn, for example, what chess or the Rubik’s cube have to do with the emergence of AI and they can experience the developments that have contributed to its meteoric rise.
The emphasis at six interactive stations in the “Werkstatt” section is on using AI in practice. Here, visitors can compose poems or create works of art and experience the limits of AI applications. True to the motto “The source of AI is human,” people remain the driving force in this exhibition section too, using AI as a tool. They can take a digital copy of the co-created works home.
The “Chancen” section presents a large media installation. It provides exciting insights into the “Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence” (IPAI). Who works there? And what applications are being developed? The answers to these and other questions are given in this part of the pavilion.
“KI-Klankunst” is all about music: Current information such as the weather and data from the exhibition become part of a musical AI experiment. The artificial intelligence combines individual sound elements to create ever-changing soundscapes. At night, when the exhibition is asleep, the façade outside is bathed in colorful, changing light. Passersby can light up the façade with their voices—naturally with the help of AI.
Further information about the AI Pavilion is available online at www.experimenta.science/ki/.
Temporary Timber-Frame Exhibition Pavilion
The new structure is a sensation not only because of the content but also architecturally. With its curved entrance façade, the AI Pavilion completes the ensemble on the west side of the experimenta plaza. Under the canopy, tiered platforms invite visitors to linger, take a break, and engage in conversation. Partially translucent façade elements allow plenty of daylight into the exhibition. At the rear of the building a large panorama window allows a view of the boat harbor in the Neckar Canal.
Sustainability characterizes the temporary AI Pavilion building designed by the internationally renowned architectural firm Sauerbruch Hutton. Prefabricated wooden elements allow for flexible assembly and reuse. Timber, as a renewable building material, not only creates a pleasant sense of space but also binds CO2 long-term and is recyclable.