IAA MOBILITY 2025 in Munich showed once again that it is no longer just a car show, it has become Europe’s leading platform for mobility and technology. With more than 750 exhibitors from 37 countries and over half a million visitors, the event highlighted global trends and pressing questions shaping the industry.
In this episode, I take you behind the scenes of IAA 2025 and explore the five key themes that defined the show:
- China vs. Europe: the rising strength of Chinese OEMs and how German brands respond
- Software-defined Vehicles: from cars as hardware products to updateable, connected platforms
- Battery Technologies: the race for range, speed, and supply chain sovereignty
- In-Cabin Sensing: from driver monitoring to holistic occupant awareness
- Artificial Intelligence: between real progress and AI-washing
We’ll also look at the tension between Summit and Open Space, the significance of missing players like Tesla and Toyota, and what IAA means in comparison to Shanghai, Detroit, and CES Las Vegas.
My conclusion: the future of mobility is being negotiated on multiple stages at once and IAA remains Europe’s benchmark for how competitive and credible the automotive industry truly is. The battle is fierce, but far from decided.

I haven’t had a vacation yet, but I’ve been working intensely: on my next book, on exciting projects and with my appointment as Honorary Professor at FH Aachen, I’ve also experienced a true highlight.
In this episode, everything revolves around IFA 2025 in Berlin. I was on site, gathered impressions, and will put into perspective what really mattered: from smart glasses and rings as new HMIs, to robots in all shapes and forms, to smart home solutions swinging between gimmick and real value. In addition, there are exciting numbers, trends, and a look at how IFA compares to CES in Las Vegas.
- Is IFA the German CES, or does it remain closer to the end customer?
- Which trends are just for show, and which truly change our daily lives?
- And what role do wearables play in the automotive context?
As always, I’ll conclude with a personal take: what really sticks, what’s overrated – and where I see the real opportunities.
Next week, we’ll continue with IAA 2025: cars, mobility, and a comparison between the German and Chinese automotive industries.

In our final episode before the summer break, we explore the technological frontiers where humans and machines no longer just interact—but intertwine.
Three transformative technologies are changing everything:
- Brain-Computer Interfaces, decoding thought itself
- Artificial Organs and AI Prosthetics, where biology meets machine
- Autonomous Systems: decision-makers without an operator
Each promises more independence, more efficiency, more quality of life. But they also raise deep questions:
- How much machine can a human become?
- And how human must the machine be?
Join us on a journey from neural signals to self-driving cars, from clinical breakthroughs to ethical dilemmas. We explore the emerging human-machine continuum, where interfaces disappear, but interaction becomes more vital than ever.
Because even in an autonomous world, HMI remains the key. Always.

In this episode of the Human-Technology Podcast, I share insights from a World Café session I hosted on the future of In-Cabin Sensing. What began as a simple question "What’s happening inside the vehicle?" opened the door to a far-reaching discussion about technology, trust, regulation, and human experience.
We explored three guiding questions:
- What exactly is In-Cabin Sensing?
- What are the key use cases—today and tomorrow?
- What open issues still need to be solved?
From fatigue detection to emotional state analysis, from personalized comfort settings to life-saving child presence alerts, In-Cabin Sensing is no longer optional. It’s becoming the differentiator in the age of automated and user-centric mobility. But with its rise come new challenges: ethical data handling, standardization, and rising costs.
Tune in to learn:
- How sensors, AI, and UX come together to make cars safer and more intuitive
- Why the vehicle must feel like an ally, not a watchdog
- What still stands in the way of scaling this vital technology
This episode is both a deep dive into the current state of the art and a call for collaboration across industry, regulation, and design. Because when the car truly understands the person inside, mobility becomes more than movement: it becomes meaningful.

In this episode of the Human-Technology Podcast, I take a comprehensive look at current developments and fundamental trends in the field of Human-Machine Interfaces (HMI) in vehicles. It’s not just about technological progress — it’s also about a deeper question: How is our relationship with technology evolving, and what does that mean for the design of the interfaces between humans and machines?

Four key topics are in focus:

- The digitalization of cockpits: From physical buttons to software-defined interfaces — how the vehicle is transforming into a digital device
- Apple CarPlay & Android Auto: The revolution of Bring Your Own Device — opportunities, risks, and strategic dilemmas for OEMs
- External HMIs: When vehicles communicate with their surroundings — new forms of interaction through light, gesture, projection, and sound
- AI and multimodality: Why voice assistants, eye tracking, and intelligent support systems are fundamentally reshaping HMIs — and how trust becomes the key UX factor

This episode blends technological analysis with user-centered reflection. Because the best technologies are those that disappear — and still make an impact.

"I miss my pre-Internet brain." This quote by American author Virginia Heffernan hits at the very core of our digital existence.

In this episode of the Human-Technology Podcast, I explore why modern technologies overwhelm us mentally – and how this connects to our evolutionary history. What happens when a Stone Age brain meets high-frequency interfaces? When tools turn into environments? And what role can vehicles play in all of this?

Episode topics include:

- Why our brain isn’t built for multitasking – and what that means for digital interfaces
- Five reasons we long for our “pre-internet brain”
- How today’s HMIs and vehicle interiors overload our mental capacity
What opportunities arise when we turn cars back into spaces of clarity, calm, and sensory richness

In this episode of the Human-Technology Podcast, I revisit one of my most successful LinkedIn posts, a contribution on shared mobility that generated almost ten times more views and comments than my usual posts. The post put forward a bold thesis:

The cities of the future have no room for privately owned cars.

But what’s really behind that statement? In this episode, I take the time to explore the topic in greater depth:

- The current situation: Why cars consume so much space, resources, and mental attention and what that means for the cities we live in.
- The car sharing models: From free-floating fleets and peer-to-peer models to ride pooling, an overview of existing services.
- The history: How car sharing in Germany evolved from eco-driven niche projects in the 1980s into a serious market segment.
- The user experience: Why many car-sharing services fail to deliver a convincing user experience despite all their tech and what urgently needs to change.
- The economic reality: Why providers like Share Now are pulling out, why the takeover by Lyft is symbolically significant, and why car sharing remains financially shaky around the globe.
- The future outlook: Between the “sacred cow” of private car ownership and the vision of car-free cities – what future does shared mobility really have?

One thing is clear: there are no easy answers. But that’s exactly why it’s worth taking a closer look. Tune in if you want to understand why shared mobility is so polarizing, what we can learn from the current situation, and how we can shape smarter mobility in our cities.

In this very personal episode, I’m stepping away from the usual path of technology, trends, and interfaces to share my own story for a change.

Because: beyond HMI///// is celebrating its anniversary!
Ten years of self-employment. Ten years of freedom, responsibility, crises, and opportunities.
And a very personal approach to connecting humans and technology.

I talk about:

- Why I left the safety of a corporate career in the industry
- What really happened in the early days of running my own business
- How I built a lean, independent, and location-flexible consultancy
-And the five key insights I would share with anyone considering taking the leap

An episode about new beginnings, self-leadership, doubt – and the power of staying true to yourself.

A LinkedIn post that hit like lightning—over 200,000 impressions, hundreds of comments, and a heated debate: Why is the offensive by Chinese car manufacturers failing in the German market despite billions in investment, solid technology, and aggressive pricing?

In this episode, I analyze:

What we can learn from the market entry of Japanese and Korean OEMs
Why BYD, Nio & Co. are technologically advanced but fail to make an emotional connection
What future scenarios are conceivable for Chinese vehicles in Europe
Between China-speed and European skepticism lies a deep divide—culturally, in branding strategy, and emotionally. Anyone wanting to succeed in Germany needs more than just a good product.

A reality check on brand identity, user acceptance, and the power of emotion in the automotive market.

In this episode, we’re diving back into the technical side of things – right at the heart of development reality. The focus is on ISO 9241, the key series of standards for ergonomic human-machine interaction.

Why everyone has an opinion on HMIs, but why we as professionals need more than just subjective assessments – we’ll explore that, along with the origin, structure, and application of ISO 9241. We'll talk about dialogue principles like task suitability, error tolerance, and controllability – and why scientific rigor and systematic thinking must be the foundation of good HMI design.

To wrap things up, we’ll take a look ahead: How does the standard address AI, augmented reality, and multimodal interaction? And what does that mean for the future of human-machine interfaces?

Topics:
- The origin and significance of ISO 9241
- The seven dialogue principles as a design foundation
- Future challenges: AR, VR, AI, and human-centered interfaces

An episode for anyone who wants to design HMIs that are not just beautiful, but meaningful.