The University:Future Festival (U:FF) is the largest event regarding the (Digital) Future of Academic Education. Its fifth edition took place from May 13–15, 2025.
On May 13, 2025, the TU Braunschweig participated for the first time, offering a diverse program of presentations on two stages, along with inspiring workshops and numerous opportunities for exchange and networking. Topics included AI, future skills, didactics, and strategic processes.
We are delighted with the positive feedback as it shows us that our presentations were both engaging and relevant.
As a hybrid festival, U:FF connects five stages in Berlin, Braunschweig, Graz, Nuremberg, and Zurich, following the digital-first principle — meaning the entire festival program is accessible online only. The festival aims to appeal to university members as well as professionals from business, civil society, and the media — in other words: anyone who wants to drive innovation in education.
The festival was all about the future of university education and focused on key topics such as AI and technological innovations, strategic processes, didactics, future skills, and inclusion.
The program was primarily shaped through an open call: anyone could contribute ideas, concepts, and stories to the festival.
Under the theme /imagine, the festival invited participants to think creatively and critically in challenging times.
The command-line symbol aims to highlight the central role of technology in discussions.
"What impressed me was the wide range of topics covered — from ethical issues and new learning formats to specific technological developments. I found the discussions and thought-provoking ideas about justice, participation, and the courage to break new ground particularly inspiring. I'm taking away a lot of ideas — both professional and personal."
The topic of future tech was addressed on stage in Braunschweig — as a pipe dream and subject of research, as something already in practice, and sometimes as a dystopia. Future technologies were examined from various perspectives here, technically and didactically, but also strategically and humanely. In addition to the content-related aspects, there were numerous opportunities to network within and outside the program and to take advantage of the inter-university dialogue.
“In a wide variety of formats, it became clear that education today must not only impart knowledge, but rather create spaces in which people can critically reflect on themselves, their role in society, and the impact of technological developments, and actively help shape them.”
The presentation stage at the Technical University of Braunschweig was organized by the Project House with Media Lab and EmergingTech Lab. The Emerging Tech Lab is a project within the framework of Hochschule.digital Niedersachsen and brings together several network and cooperation partners. These include the Technical University of Braunschweig, Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences, the University of Hildesheim, Leuphana University Lüneburg, the Georg Eckert Institute, and the Hochschulforum Digitalisierung. The Future-Tech:Stage featured contributions from the KI4ALL joint project between TU Braunschweig, Ostfalia University, and TU Clausthal.
The University:Future Festival is a cooperation between Hochschulforum Digitalisierung, Stiftung Innovation in der Hochschullehre, and the Stifterverband.
