On Tour With Medieninsider: That Was the AI Tour in Munich

Artificial intelligence is changing journalism. Medieninsider wanted to show how Bavarian media companies are dealing with this development with its event “Insider Tour: Artificial Intelligence in Media Companies.” The AI tour, which brought together nearly 30 creative and innovative media minds, took place on October 21 in Munich.

As a partner and sponsor, XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria supported the event, enabling executives, AI specialists, and media professionals from all over Germany to learn from each other in Bavaria. During a joint lunch at Hirschgarten, hosted by XPLR: MEDIA, lively discussions and networking continued.

Insights into practice: How media companies use AI

The tour took participants to well-known locations in Munich’s media landscape, including Ippen Media, Web.de/GMX, and Google Munich.
On site, experts provided exclusive insights into their AI strategies:

• Markus Knall (editor-in-chief, Ippen Media) presented the LocalAIze BTW 2025 project, which is setting new standards in local journalism with AI-generated election result texts. His goal: to use artificial intelligence as a tool to strengthen and scale regional reporting.
  
• Katharina Happ (AI Manager, Editorial Department, Web.de) emphasized the importance of optimism: AI must be seen as an opportunity and a tool – not as a threat.
• Cécile Schneider (Product Lead AI + Automation Lab, Bayerischer Rundfunk) presented BreznBot – a chatbot that uses generative AI to personalize access to BR content related to Oktoberfest.
  
• Marco Parrillo (CEO, Ebner Media Group) spoke about the transformation of his company, which prepared 200 employees for the AI era at an early stage, and about the future of publishing, in which only premium content and human connections will remain.
• Dr. Wieland Holfelder (Google Munich) provided insights into Google’s AI strategy and emphasized how closely the future of journalism and technological development remain intertwined.

Three lessons learned from the AI tour

1. It is worth promoting local journalism:
Ippen Media’s projects show that AI can help secure and strengthen local journalism—provided that editorial offices invest in technology, cooperation, and new ways of working.

2. As a media maker, you must not lose your optimism:
Whether at Web.de, BR, or Ebner Media Group, the message was clear. AI is not an enemy, but a tool. Those who remain curious and willing to experiment can improve journalistic quality and create new formats.

3. In the future, journalists will increasingly become creators:
Social media, proximity to users, and personal perspectives are becoming increasingly important. AI takes over routine tasks – humans become the creative, visible voice in the digital space.