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Euractiv
5 days ago
- Business
- Euractiv
One AI company's battle against Europe's tech roadblocks
Germany's is, in many ways, a company made to win the hearts of EU lawmakers: Relatively young, doing business with established players and, most importantly, developing artificial intelligence. Co-founder Kai Kölsch tells Euractiv the company has been in the AI business since before US giant OpenAI launched its viral AI chatbot ChatGPT in 2022 – back when the technology was still simply called 'machine learning'. Now, like many other players in the AI field, Seedbox re-trains large language models (LLMs) developed by other companies – such as Google's Gemini or Meta's Llama – for its specific uses, for example a chatbot where patients can ask questions about their medication or an AI assistant for real estate appraisals. This is where 38-year-old Kölsch sees Europe's big chance: piggybacking on LLMs, rather than trying to clone them. 'We want to drive the [AI] field forward, take part in developing technology that makes technology more efficient,' he says. The Stuttgart native, still living in Germany's automotive capital, likens the situation to a car that's already on the road. Europe's tech field shouldn't be trying to reinvent the wheel, he suggests, but rather should focus its energy on improving the quality and efficiency of the drive. Of course, there are still bumps in the road for achieving this vision. Good projects for more hardware The first big problem for Europe's AI companies is that they do not have the same access to computing infrastructure as the US giants. Kölsch also says it would be good to have access to more of the coveted specialised chips needed for AI work – either for training or for running models. For Seedbox, there's a potential solution: The EU is currently building one of its AI factories in Stuttgart, designed to link startups and established industry players with the hardware to integrate AI into their offerings. The company is already cooperating with the computing centre where the factory is being set up, which allows it to train an AI model in all 24 official EU languages. But the new specialised chips will extend the possibilities, says Kölsch. And while he welcomes plans for far larger gigafactories also planned in the EU, Kölsch argues that these should be concentrated as tightly as possible to be useful for training new foundational models, in the vein of Google's Gemini or Meta's Llama. The Commission already split up the original 'AI CERN' idea into five separate gigafactories, which governments and companies are now debating to divide up even further. Dial down the rules Kölsch also has his doubts about EU regulation, specifically the AI Act. He'd like to see it delayed because of the effect he reckons it's having on established companies. 'They would rather do nothing than do something wrong,' he says. 'Doing nothing is the worst thing you can do right now.' The past months have seen several calls to delay European AI rules, with a parallel discussion about whether, and how much, they should be watered down as part of the Commission's ongoing digital simplification drive. While the EU executive was late in delivering key supporting documents for the AI Act – and some detail is still missing – most countries are also delayed in announcing which authorities will be responsible for implementing the Act in their territory, amplifying the legal uncertainty. 'That's where we need really clear signals', Kölsch says. 'Like, you won't be flogged and thrown into jail if you mess up. You just have to start now.' The bloc's data protection law, also often singled out by critics for blocking European companies, is also set to be – at least in part – simplified. Money, money, money But Kölsch highlights one particular issue as central to Europe's problems: 'At the end of the day, the key point is capital,' he tells Euractiv. There is a vast gulf between the sums of money pumped into tech in Europe vs in the US, even though the two economies are broadly comparable in size. Key to this is venture capital for young and innovative tech companies. Such investments are higher risk but also have enormous growth potential. According to numbers from the European Investment Bank, US companies receive six to eight times more venture capital investments than European startups. There are many, often-reported, reasons for the lack of cash. To pick just two: There are rules preventing big institutional investors like pension funds from putting money into venture because of the inherent risks. What's more, the bloc is not a single financial sector, it's 27 small ones, which don't work well enough in funnelling cash to promising start-ups. 'It's absurd that we want to finance Europe and at the same time European pension funds are investing in US bonds', says Andreas Schwarzenbrunner from Speedinvest, an EU venture fund. 'The money is there, Europe is still very rich', he continues – 'it's simply invested in the wrong channels.' Schwarzenbrunner is quick to point out that Europe has made significant progress after realising it missed the boat for thirty years. There is now a working ecosystem for financing young companies. Still, European tech companies face big problems in accessing financing – both for building prototypes and then, once they have proven the tech, for expanding, optimally across the EU. Even if they manage to do so, US Big Tech is lurking with many billions in cash which they will gladly use to snap up (and close down) promising start-ups. Kölsch says that is already being courted by non-European companies like AMD and Nvidia while European ones are failing to keep up with the speed of technical innovation. 'No company in Germany... really understands what we do', he says. 'Who understands us is the Americans.' Talent follows money This connects to another problem that EU and national governments have wrestled with for years: talent. currently has 15 employees and is recruiting a new AI engineer – as are other European companies, with many struggling to find staff. To boost the potential workforce, the EU made 2023 a 'Year of skills', with a strategy on a 'Union of Skills' that aimed for one in three university students to enrol in STEM degrees by 2030 – which are foundational for AI development. 'By offering world-class education and research infrastructure, competitive career prospects, and a supportive regulatory and funding environment, the EU can become a destination of choice for the brightest minds,' the skills strategy reads. But it's hard to compete when Big Tech is dangling eye-watering salaries to reel in AI talent. Top researchers have reportedly been offered first-year pay packages of more than €100 million to join Meta. Meanwhile, the word 'salary' does not appear in the EU's Union of Skills strategy. 'We can't allow ourselves to complain that we can't educate talent,' says Kölsch. 'Talent just goes to where the capital is.' (nl, jp, ow)
Times
30-06-2025
- Times
10 of the best hotels in Cologne
The Rhine divides Cologne, with its key visitor attractions on its west bank, around the historic Altstadt (old town), which roughly extends from the railway station to the Rheinauhafen (river port). The east bank is more focused on business, particularly trade fairs, for which Cologne has long been well known. Most of the city's buildings are post-war, although the magnificent cathedral, right by the station, miraculously survived Allied bombing raids. Among German cities, Cologne is freewheeling and unorthodox, particularly in its annual carnival, when processions and parties take priority over a whole week's work. When I first visited, many years ago, I took a bicycle tour with a guide who had just been given a ticket. 'What's the point of riding a bike,' he muttered, grumpily, 'if you have to obey red lights?' It's an attitude you wouldn't find elsewhere in Germany. Most hotels are located in the wider downtown area, the Innenstadt, which includes the Altstadt and extends as far as the ring road. The Innenstadt's main thoroughfares — Hohe Strasse and Schildergasse — are pedestrianised, with nightlife focused on the likes of Heumarkt square, for visitors, and the Belgian Quarter, more for locals and for Cologne's large gay community. Also dotted through the Innenstadt are a handful of traditional restaurants famous for the brauhaus experience, serving Kölsch beer (pale and fresh in tall, thin glasses) and traditional cuisine such as Kölscher Kaviar (Cologne caviar), made from blood sausage and onions, and Himmel un Ääd, (heaven and earth), from mashed potatoes and apples. Try them both at the wood-panelled and chandeliered Peters Brauhaus, which dates back to 1544. After that, you'll need a lovely place to lay your head, preferably within walking distance. These are some of the best hotels in Cologne. This article contains affiliate links, which may earn us revenue ££ | Best for traditionalists If you like a bellhop in uniform, gold-plated chandeliers, marble bathrooms and pillow menus, plus a location right opposite the cathedral, the Excelsior Hotel Ernst will warm the cockles of your heart. More than 150 years old, it's part of the Leading Hotels of the World collection and is properly grand, with a big emphasis on decorous service. The hotel's restaurant, taku, has been awarded a Michelin star for its minimalist pan-Asian cuisine, while the likes of scallop ceviche can be found in the wood-panelled, gourmet French restaurant Hanse Stube. For tea and petit fours head to the Wintergarten, drenched in light from its stained-glass ceiling. £ | Best for design groupies This eye-catching, neo-gothic building, which feels like a film set, is home to an impressive collection of international design, art, and photography — and 34 rooms, each one unique. It's almost hidden in a square called the Gereonskloster, accessible via two small alleyways, in the shadow of the Romanesque St Gereon's Basilica. The hotel building was opened as the city archive in 1897, but these days it is owned by the publisher of the Qvest design and fashion magazine, so its rooms are furnished with the likes of Eames chairs and armchairs by Walter Gropius, founder of the Bauhaus school. The overall effect is both eclectic and monastic, with reverential guests coming back for the attention to detail. • Discover our full guide to Germany £ | SPA | Best for repurposed architecture Much of the furniture in this unique hotel has been tailor-made to fit with the curvature of the walls of what was, 150 years ago, a city water tower — as its name suggests. Significant architectural details include the brick-arched lobby and unique circular interior, complete with portholes and arched windows. The tower's other big feature is its view; it looms over downtown and is just a few minutes' walk from the centre. That 360-degree vista also makes its rooftop terrace, Bar Botanik, a magnet for residents. Some of the neutral-toned, wooden-floored rooms are split-level for extra space, and in many the bed faces the window so that you can look out over the city. There's a small spa and gym and Bar Botanik serves the likes of Philly steak and wasabi shrimps.£ | Best for cool kids A little upstream but still within walking distance of the city centre, the Rheinauhafen is Cologne's former river port. It has been given a fancy docklands makeover, and now hosts the popular Chocolate Museum and signature modernist buildings housing digital firms such as Microsoft — and an outpost of the trendy art'otel collection. It's a new-build on the waterside, with bright rooms bearing designer furniture and artwork by Berlin-based artist SEO, whose giant paintings also enliven the public spaces. There's a rooftop Rhine-view terrace, a compact fitness centre and a sauna for soothing post-sightseeing muscles. £ | Best for showbiz The Germany-based Ruby chain has a relaxed, 'lean luxury' concept, which means that some services (such as room service and minibars) have been deemed unnecessary; but luxury touches like oversized beds remain and there's plenty of personality, with Marshall amps and bulb-surrounded Hollywood-style mirrors in the rooms. Cologne is the headquarters of TV broadcasters RTL and WDR, and Ella occupies the former site of a studio that hosted late-night shows, so it was a no-brainer to give the property a glitzy, Nineties TV feel with details such as neon signs, microphones and musical instruments. Rooms are compact havens of calm, with fluffy duvets, and they're heavily soundproofed, so you can hire a guitar at the bar and let rip without having to worry about your neighbours. • Best cities to visit in Germany• Best Christmas markets in Germany ££ | SPA | Best for divas Unlike its genteel namesake in London, the Cologne Savoy (no relation) belongs to a world of carnival kings and queens. From the outside it looks like just another staid office building, but inside is all kitsch chic, with plush velvets and drapes, bead curtains and chrome mirrors, done with humour and flair and with splashes of intense colour. The spa is Turkish-inspired, with a steam room and ayurvedic treatments, and the hotel is popular with media folk. It's located a convenient three-minute walk from the train station and well-placed for the ancient Eigelstein Torburg gate, which is in an area that's lively in the evenings and has a particularly traditional Cologne brauhaus, the Em Kölsche Boor.£ | Best for retro futurists What do you do with an obsolete, listed, rotunda building, originally built for an insurance company? One that is outside the centre, albeit within walking distance of the trendy Belgian Quarter? Turn it into a hotel. But one that incorporates several imaginative, utopian worlds, and functions as a community in itself, with an armful of concerts, readings, yoga sessions and more. Lavish, whimsical, playful and hip, the Circle attracts a younger, co-worker crowd. Rooms are colourful and futuristic, with concrete ceilings and freestanding bathtubs. Bicycles for hire, an in-house record library and a restaurant serving Lebanese-influenced cuisine help complete the picture. ££ | SPA | POOL Best for river and rail fans This showpiece property is a postmodern palace of concrete and glass situated next to TV broadcaster RTL's red-brick headquarters. Rhine-view rooms are stylish, spacious and modern and have views of the river, with its stately flow of freight and passenger traffic, and across to the cathedral. It sits at one end of the Hohenzollern Bridge, the busiest railway crossing in Germany, which provides convenient pedestrian access to the centre. As befits a big, five-star property there's a substantial gym and a four-lane pool — and the riverside is a spectacular jogging track. The hotel's Glashaus restaurant, in a conservatory setting with a view across the river, serves an excellent grilled tuna steak. £ | Best for automotive enthusiasts This hotel, 23 minutes northwest of downtown on U-Bahn line 5, is on the premises of the historic Butzweilerhof airport, whose old hangars house car collections and event spaces. V8 is Motorworld Köln Rheinland, a hub for car enthusiasts and for automotive sales and service. Accordingly, the hotel is lavish with themed detailing: classic Mercedes bedsteads, car seats for armchairs, themed rooms with names such as Carwash, Garage and Henry Ford. There are even car suites, where your own beloved vehicle is parked on the other side of a glass wall so that it is the first thing you see in the morning. There's a huge Ikea across the road, and while the hotel itself serves only breakfast, there are other restaurants nearby, notably Ahoi, which serves inexpensive fresh salads and sushi bowls.££ | SPA | POOL | Best for out-of-town relaxation This baroque Schloss hotel, on a hilltop with a view westwards over the city, dates back to the early 18th century, when Elector Palatine Johann Wilhelm II had it built as a hunting lodge. Today there are 111 capacious and elegant rooms and suites in impeccably classic style, with marbled bathrooms and polished hardwood tables. Of the hotel's five restaurants and bars, one — Vendôme — has two Michelin stars. There's a spa for ordinary wellness, as well as a discreet medical institute offering cosmetic surgery. Downtown Cologne is 40 minutes away on the S-Bahn from Bensberg station, but you can also walk out from the hotel directly into the peace and calm of the wooded hills, largely unchanged since the Elector's days. • European hotspots to visit in 2025• Best Rhine river cruises Any we've missed? Let us know in the comments below
