On October 28, 2025, the third AI x Design Meetup took place—for the first time at Degginger Regensburg. Organized by intive, AIR, and the host, Kreativbehörde Regensburg, the event brought together around 90 participants to discuss current issues at the intersection of design and artificial intelligence.
Nadine Trautzsch, professor of game design at IU International University, kicked off the event. In her keynote, she demonstrated how generative AI tools can be specifically used in iterative design processes for exploration, modulation, and composition—without relinquishing creative control. Using the project “Das Sanatorium”—a point-and-click game developed in-house—she presented a three-stage model for the structured integration of AI into design processes. The presentation made it clear: AI does not replace design, but rather meaningfully enhances it—provided it is consciously curated.
Next, Marcel Kurovski, Senior Applied Scientist at Wolt (DoorDash) and host of the only topic-specific podcast, “Recsperts,” delved into the world of recommender systems. With great enthusiasm and vivid examples ranging from Netflix to Pinterest to LinkedIn, he made it clear why he considers this technology to be the most powerful application of AI. He demonstrated the treasure troves of data that Spotify and other companies collect and how they use them—for example, through complex “collaborative filtering”—to personalize their offerings. The difference between recommendations based on general popularity and personalized suggestions based on user behavior also became clear.
After a networking and Pinsa break, the event took a performative and incisive turn: Florian Toperngpong, a freelance artist and author, shared his experiences in a presentation titled “You Can Lie to Yourself, Too—But It’s Easier with AI!” He uses documents, original photographs, and written materials to create parallel realities. In an entertaining yet critical manner, he demonstrated how this interaction with AI consistently yields astonishing results: For example, AI models confirmed the authenticity of documents or images that the artist had previously fabricated—including those with fabricated sources. Toperngpong argued that we shouldn’t neglect our creative “muscles”: AI is like an elevator—useful and fast, but sometimes you’d rather take the stairs.
Accompanied by the music of DJ—and designer—Jan Stricker, aka International 433, the meetup came to a close in a relaxed atmosphere filled with conversation.