Topics & Speakers
At European Publishing, the best media makers in Europe present their strategies and talk about the future of the industry.
photo: Julia Herzsprung
Strategy
AI and organization: The path to an AI-enabled media company
Laura Seiffe // AI Project Manager, ZEIT Publishing Group, Germany
New technologies only have an impact when people understand them and want to use them. At ZEIT Verlagsgruppe, the focus is therefore not solely on technology, but on how to get there: How can you get an organization on board, break down barriers, and build real expertise? The answer lies in close interaction between strategy, communication, and practical formats. Whether workshops, impulses, or dialogues—every offering aims to make AI tangible and create space for questions. Laura Seiffe from the ZEIT publishing group shows which approaches have proven successful, where the stumbling blocks were, and what it takes to ensure that technological change is not imposed, but grows organically. Laura Seiffe is responsible for artificial intelligence in the business development department of the ZEIT publishing group. After working in AI research and the start-up scene, she has been accompanying the company-wide transformation process since 2024, which combines technological innovation with journalistic responsibility and user-oriented product development. At ZEIT, AI transformation is understood as a cultural change, with a focus on attitude, transparency, and collaborative learning.
photo: Michael Shelford
Strategy
From the User Needs Model to AI in Multimodal Content Strategies
Dmitry Shishkin // Developer of the User Needs Model for the BBC, United Kingdom
It is no longer enough to understand the needs of media users. In 2026, media companies will not fail because they lack insights. The problem lies elsewhere: formats are not aligned, systems are fragmented, and teams speak different languages. Dmitry Shishkin, who introduced the original User Needs Model at the BBC and has since adapted it for the news, travel, and sports sectors, demonstrates how a clean data architecture and shared taxonomies enable both the scaling and the use of AI in multimodal content strategies.
photo: private
Practice
The Transition from Static Design to Animated Design
Marianne Bahl // Bahl Visuel Strategi, Denmark
The e-paper currently serves as an important bridge to the online world. Many print readers are now switching to the e-paper. New subscriptions are also largely coming through this channel. The next step—an exclusively online offering—is already on the horizon for some media companies. In terms of design, this development has not been adequately addressed. So far, newspapers have often limited their news websites to one image per story and a very long text. Marianne Bahl presents alternatives that work in both worlds: specifically, what an infographic should look like when it is intended not only for print but also for animated presentation. How a photo essay should be prepared for both print and online. How a multimedia story can function effectively in both print and online formats. Marianne Bahl has been a member of the jury for the European Newspaper Awards for many years. She runs her own studio, Bahl Visuel Strategi, in Copenhagen, where she develops integrative visual strategies. With her experience as design director at the financial newspaper Børsen and the women’s magazine ALT for Damerne, as well as a graphic designer at Politiken, a major Danish newspaper, she has specialized in visual communication, editorial design, and storytelling.
photo: private
Strategy
“Liquid Publisher” as a Model for the Media Company of the Future
Marcel Semmler // Chief Product Officer for Global Digital Publishing at Bauer Media, Germany
The volume of content is set to explode. Human attention, however, will not. This has enormous implications for how media companies will generate revenue in the future. With the “Liquid Publisher,” Marcel Semmler outlines a model for the media company of the future. In this model, AI is not viewed as an add-on feature, but is redefined as infrastructure. “The future of media will not be determined by who produces the fastest or the most, but by who structures content the most intelligently,” says Marcel Semmler. As Chief Product Officer for Global Digital Publishing at the Bauer Media Group, he is responsible for the transition to a product-oriented organization and an AI-driven content platform.
photo: 506.ai
Impulse
The End of the Tech World. Why the Media Industry Is Being Hit the Hardest
Gerhard Kürner // CEO of 506.ai, Austria
AI has broken out of the chat window. The new generation no longer functions as a tool, but as an independent employee: it researches, verifies, and delivers results. For media companies, this means a twofold disruption. It is not only changing how content is created and distributed. With AI agents, new players are emerging in newsrooms and publishing houses, taking on tasks for which there are no longer any humans available. Gerhard Kürner shows why the crucial question is not of a technical nature, but rather: Who dares to be the supervisor of an AI agent? Gerhard Kürner is CEO of 506.ai, the developer of the AI employee Kollega, and co-founder of Choose European.
photo: Kevin Payravi
Impulse
The AI revenue shift: why licensing deals are just the beginning
Ulrike Langer // Trendscout, USA
Publishers who rely solely on content licensing agreements with OpenAI, Google, and others are acting defensively. The real opportunity lies in building their own infrastructure for AI distribution and setting their own rules: with structured data, API-enabled content, and archive monetization. Some media companies are already doing this – they are transforming their content into a platform, selling data points to B2B customers, enabling paid scraping, and creating new products from archive material. Innovation expert Ulrike Langer presents concrete case studies that work.
photo: Wolfgang Koehler
Strategy
The Madsack-Strategy - How Can We Achieve Both Growth and Efficiency?
Thomas Düffert // CEO of Madsack, Germany
“We’re heading toward an economic gap, and the pressure is mounting,” said Madsack CEO Thomas Düffert recently at the “Future of German Media” event in Hanover. The next three to five years alone will determine what the next 30 or 50 years will look like for journalism. In a conversation with “kress pro” Editor-in-Chief Markus Wiegand, Germany’s Media Manager of the Year explains why print will no longer suffice to finance journalism and why we must now grow even faster in the digital realm. Also: Why we must shift our focus away from reach and toward trustworthy brands, and why we should rely on ourselves rather than on media policy in doing so.
photo: Bose Park
AI and audio
Editorial offices and AI: Why we need a common data language
Chris Guse // BosePark, Germany
The unrestrained use of artificial intelligence risks turning newsroom workflows into a patchwork. A growing number of AI tools means a growing number of places where proprietary data is stored. On top of that, costs continue to rise. A sustainable long-term strategy puts the newsroom itself in control as the sovereign owner of its data. Chris Guse demonstrates in practical terms how this can be achieved through an ontology of media production. He is the Managing Director of the Berlin-based podcast production company BosePark, where he developed the concept of a media ontology for production.
photo: Nilay Aydin
Strategy
The dual-track AI approach at Russmedia
Lena Leibetseder // Head of Digital Publishing, Russmedia, Austria
Russmedia in Austria has established two new AI teams. The first is Russmedia Beta, an AI team for the entire media company. It focuses on a clear proof of concept approach. This involves clarifying at a very early stage whether an idea is feasible before investing extensive resources. Russmedia Beta deals with the identification of relevant use cases, with rapid prototyping through to scaling decisions. The second new venture is VOL.at AI Studio. This AI team serves exclusively the editorial department. AI applications are developed and tested directly from everyday editorial work. To this end, it works very closely with journalists. Lena Leibetseder talks about the working methods and functional logic of the two teams and the consistently experimental proof of concept approach. As Head of Digital Publishing at Russmedia, she presents three specific flagship projects that demonstrate how AI supports journalistic work, improves processes, and creates strategic added value.
photo: private
Practice
AI in News Websites and the Future of Editorial Design
Björn Heselius // Head of the Data Platform at Swedish Radio, Sweden
Many publishers are already using AI-generated content to expand and enrich their storytelling. However, one important question remains: Why isn’t AI also being used in the user experience of news websites? Björn Heselius explores this gap and the opportunities it presents. He also addresses the shift in data journalism and infographics. Instead of fully immersive presentations with large datasets, more and more media outlets are opting for visually striking, carefully curated narratives based on selected, meaningful data points. Heselius presents vivid examples, practical inspiration, and a glimpse into the future of editorial design—along with food for thought for the next wave of innovation in journalism. Björn Heselius is Head of the Data Platform at Swedish Radio in Stockholm and a leading expert in digital transformation and sustainability. He has worked internationally for major media organizations to develop new forms of storytelling and integrate advanced technologies into editorial and product strategies. His work combines design, innovation, and data-driven developments.
photo: FUNKE Foto Services Reto Klar
Case
AI and newsletters: How attitude in your inbox becomes a strategic advantage
Pascal Biedenweg // head of digital, FUNKE Medien Berlin/Berliner Morgenpost, Germany
AI can write newsletters faster than any editorial team. But without a recognizable attitude, a newsletter becomes nothing more than a mailing list: efficiently produced, but interchangeable. “An AI text is far from being a journalistic voice, and it doesn't take responsibility either,” says Pascal Biedenweg. The head of digital at FUNKE Medien Berlin / Berliner Morgenpost reports on his experiences from everyday editorial work with concrete examples, mistakes, and lessons learned about how attitude in newsletters becomes a strategic advantage.
photo: Kevin Payravi
Impulse
Build, buy, or be left behind: The new market for AI tools in newsrooms
Ulrike Langer // Trendscout, USA
US newsrooms are building AI tools that don't just work within their own companies – some are being made available as open source for the entire industry, while others generate licensing revenue. European publishers are facing a strategic decision: develop their own tools, adopt what's coming out of the US, or risk falling behind. AI expert Ulrike Langer maps the landscape and provides a decision-making framework for build versus buy.
photo: Pope
Case Podcast
Podcast: The AI-secure market of the future
Stefan Lassnig // Founder & CEO Missing Link Media, Austria
The story of the Goldenstein nuns attracted worldwide attention last year. The international hype was triggered by the Austrian investigative podcast “Die Dunkelkammer” (The Darkroom) by Michael Nikbakshsh and Edith Meinhart. This podcast was co-founded by Stefan Lassnig. His Vienna-based company Missing Link markets “Die Dunkelkammer” and around 100 other Austrian formats. Lassnig's role model is the US, where podcasts have long been reaching impressive user numbers and generating billions in advertising revenue. Is this a development we can also expect in Europe? Stefan Lassnig explains why audio in the context of AI has many exciting aspects for the future of media companies. In 2025, he was named Media Manager of the Year in Austria.
photo: Annette Milz
Strategy
“The future is already here, but it hasn’t arrived everywhere at the same time”
Richard Sochor // CEO of you.com, USA
That’s what Richard Sochor says. To assist with research and fact-checking, his company, you.com, has introduced AI agents to numerous media outlets, including dpa in Germany and The Telegraph in the UK. You.com also develops style guides that create or improve texts in the style of the respective medium. “In the future, however, the goal is for almost all articles to be interactive and linked to videos. That keeps people on the site longer,” says Sochor. He cites the “New York Times” as a good example: It has already created something like its own little Instagram with a “recommendation system.” Such tools should be part of the basic toolkit for newsrooms, Sochor recommends. In a conversation with Annette Milz, he explains how media companies can use AI to make their processes more efficient, improve existing products, and develop new ones. Another topic of discussion will be: What must media do that AI cannot? Richard Sochor is one of the world’s leading AI pioneers. Born in Dresden, he served as a professor at Stanford and chief scientist at Salesforce, among other roles, before founding you.com in 2020, which is now valued at approximately $1.5 billion.
photo: Kevin Payravi
Live-Briefing
AI in newsrooms: what's really happening beyond the hype
Ulrike Langer // Trendscout, USA
Not a keynote speech, but a smaller-scale working briefing. AI expert Ulrike Langer draws on her continuously updated case study database and walks the audience through the most important developments of recent weeks and months. Real numbers, real results, real failures. Questions at any time. What Ulrike Langer does every week for her News Machines newsletter audience – here live, exclusively and condensed for the participants of the European Publishing Congress.
photo: Martin U.K. Lengemann/Welt
Case
How AI Has Transformed Work in the “Welt” Newsroom
Olaf Gersemann // Deputy Editor-in-Chief of “Welt,” Germany
Axel Springer’s “Welt” is one of the leading media brands in the German-speaking world when it comes to the use of artificial intelligence. Olaf Gersemann, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, explains how AI is already providing crucial support in the newsroom—for example, through avatars and voice clones that automatically narrate content and convert it into audio and video formats. He also explains which do-it-yourself tools his team uses and how the Openclaw revolution is further transforming editorial processes.
photo: T Bartilla Future Image
Keynote
AI and journalism: The truth is sacrosanct—even if it looks less spectacular
Stefan Aust // Germany
As editor-in-chief at Der Spiegel, he had to assign the right people to the right topics and come up with the right headlines. “And that was really an art in itself,” says Stefan Aust. He spent hours refining the covers with the head of title graphics. Back then, half of the print run was sold at newsstands, and the cover story, cover image, and headline determined the magazine's success. In his keynote speech, Aust analyzes how the role of the media has changed in the age of social media and AI and how he sees the future of journalism. He will be honored for his life's work at the European Publishing Congress.