OpenAdvo in Dialogue with Public Administration and Policymakers – AI for Social Inclusion and Data Protection

At the Pitch & Connect event of the Civic Coding Accelerator in Berlin, marking the conclusion of an intensive three-month funding and development program for public-interest AI projects, Tim Poppen, Simon Ebeling and Franz Schwärzler presented the Enactus GovTech project OpenAdvo and its AI-based housing benefit assistant KIWo to an expert audience from municipalities, federal ministries, research institutions and foundations. The session was moderated by Dr. Jacob Beautemps.

The Civic Coding Accelerator supports public-interest AI teams in further developing their solutions, building strategic partnerships, receiving practice-oriented feedback and connecting with key stakeholders before presenting their projects to a broader public.

The objective of KIWo – AI Housing Benefit Assistant is to facilitate access to housing benefit services through a user-centered, privacy-compliant and administration-ready AI solution, while simultaneously establishing a scalable system architecture that can be reused for additional public benefit application processes in the future.

The project is being piloted in close cooperation with the City of Tübingen, ensuring the early integration of real administrative processes and user perspectives.

Particularly valuable was the feedback from Michael Schäfer, State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, as well as the exchange with additional stakeholders. These insights are directly informing the further development of the project, especially with regard to the responsible deployment of AI in the public sector.

OpenAdvo illustrates how Enactus projects successfully combine entrepreneurial thinking with social impact and how student-led teams can actively contribute to the digital transformation of public administration.

Photos: J. Konrad Schmidt