{
  "id": 17950603,
  "title": "Ecosystem NRW: Where AI is being created for medium-sized businesses",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/okosystem-nrw-wo-die-ki-fur-den-mittelstand-entsteht",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-03T10:52:46.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/start-ups/oekosystem-nrw-wo-die-ki-fuer-den-mittelstand-entsteht/100263486.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "The German company Maela uses a KI system developed by Hidesk, a Cologne-based start-up, to handle around 40% of its 573 monthly customer inquiries. The KI system can book appointments and process vouchers, saving Maela's administration team around one to two hours of work per day. North Rhine-Westphalia, where Hidesk is based, is not a hub for large KI models, but rather for applied KI solutions that solve specific problems for medium-sized businesses and service providers. The region's polyzentric structure, with multiple cities and universities, allows for a dense network of start-ups, talent, and companies, enabling short paths to customers and problems. As of May, Cologne had 89 active KI start-ups, with a total financing volume of $224.4 million.",
  "summary": "The next ChatGPT will not come from North Rhine-Westphalia. Its strengths lie elsewhere. AI start-ups are emerging there that connect research, industry and medium-sized businesses and solve specific problems.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}