Second German-Israeli Digital Health Conference by GIHF-AI

The German Israeli Health Forum for Artificial Intelligence (GIHF-AI), initiated and conducted by the European Leadership Network (ELNET), is hosting its second annual conference on September 5th-6th, 2023, in advance of the Big Bang Health event in Essen. Within the conference framework, ELNET is bringing a high-level delegation of Israeli Digital Health experts, government representatives, and startups to Berlin and Essen through its innovation projects, GIHF-AI and the German Israeli Network of Startups and Mittelstand (GINSUM). The delegation is supported by the Israeli Ministry of Health, HealthIL, and the Business Metropole Ruhr GmbH.

Upon the invitation of Essen Lord Mayor Thomas Kufen, the conference will be officially opened on September 5th at Essen City Hall. Lord Mayor Thomas Kufen expressed his enthusiasm: “I am delighted that Essen is the host city for the German-Israeli Digital Health Conference. Essen not only serves as the healthcare provider number one in our region, but our hospital networks are also pioneers in the Smart Hospital sector. The healthcare ecosystem in my hometown additionally comprises innovative businesses and startups that support the medical landscape with their expertise. Based on our close city partnership with Tel Aviv-Yafo, we recognize the value of exchanging ideas and networking on health and digitization topics. Therefore, I wish all participants a productive and enlightening time in Essen.”

As part of the conference reception, the results of the comparative GIHF-AI study on trust in healthcare data usage in Germany and Israel will be presented for the first time. Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Sylvia Thun (BIH/Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin) and Prof. Dr. Ran Balicer (Clalit Innovation), and conducted by Dr. Alexander Schachinger (EPatient Analytics GmbH), more than 2,000 Germans and Israelis were surveyed by the market research institute Kantar.

The main conference event will take place on September 6th at the Colosseum Theater Essen. In addition to high-profile keynotes, panel discussions, and startup pitches, participants will work on action points and policy recommendations in three breakout sessions on regulation, cooperation in healthcare, and market access for Digital Health startups. The results of the GIHF-AI conference will be presented and discussed on September 7th at the Big Bang Health event.

Carsten Ovens, CEO of ELNET in Germany, commented, “The Startup Nation Israel is known for its advanced digital healthcare, including hundreds of young technology companies with a strong focus on Artificial Intelligence. They particularly benefit from the availability of medical data in Israel. We want to learn from these experiences in Germany. With the German Israeli Health Forum for Artificial Intelligence (GIHF-AI) and the German Israeli Network of Startups & Mittelstand (GINSUM), ELNET has been building bridges between both countries for several years, connecting the ecosystems.”