Munich, Germany, 13th May 2026 – Xentara, a Munich-based software company advancing software-defined manufacturing, will host the second edition of its Connection Day on 1 July 2026 in Munich. The event brings together industry leaders, analysts and technology experts to discuss the rise of Physical AI and the transformation of industrial systems. It will examine what is driving this transition, why it is accelerating, and how companies can remain competitive as the pace of innovation increases.
“We are at an inflection point where AI is no longer just analytical, but operational,” says Michael Schwarz, CEO and Co-Founder of Xentara. “The shift towards software-defined manufacturing is happening across industries, and organisations need to rethink how they design, operate and scale their production systems. Connection Day is about bringing together the people who are actively shaping that change, and I would like to personally invite the wider industry to join the event and the conversation.”
Xentara’s Connection Day programme brings together a high-calibre line-up of industry experts across keynote presentations, panel discussions, practical customer cases, live demonstrations and a tabletop exhibition. The session kicks off with a keynote delivered by Patrick Ruthardt, Principal at Roland Berger and former Mercedes-Benz executive, who will outline why Physical AI requires software-defined manufacturing, drawing on his experience from large-scale industrial transformation. Andreas Geiss, Senior Executive Advisor, former Aleph Alpha and Siemens executive, will address the growing pressure on European industry to remain competitive in an environment defined by rapid innovation cycles and global competition.
From a market perspective, Anna Ahrens, Principal Analyst at Omdia, will outline how lessons from software-defined vehicles can be applied to industrial automation, highlighting the parallels between sectors that are converging around software-centric architectures.
Alongside these strategic perspectives, the agenda also focuses on real-world implementation. Jürgen Pfeifer of WAGO will discuss the role of edge AI in industrial control, combining real-time processing with local inference, while Kristina Krebs, Co-Founder of Prognostica, will present a case study demonstrating how AI is already being embedded into optical sorting systems to improve quality control in food production. This practical focus is reinforced by a customer case from Armin Grozinger, CEO of Benthor Automation, offering first-hand insight into how these concepts are being applied in an industrial setting.
The programme is complemented by contributions from technology and platform providers, including Dr. Johannes Riesterer of Studio Fluffy and Robert J. Schiermeier of ValueMiner, who will assess how software ecosystems, data and scientific computing are enabling new approaches to industrial optimisation.
Beyond the conference sessions, the event will feature a tabletop exhibition with demonstrations from companies including Advantech, Benthor, COLIGO (BE.Services), Hilscher, Prognostica, Studio Fluffy, Tronic One, ValueMiner, WAGO and of course Xentara, providing attendees with direct insight into current developments in industrial AI and automation.
Open to industry participants across manufacturing, software and robotics, Connection Day is designed as a platform for exchange, bringing together different perspectives at a time when the boundaries between sectors are increasingly blurring. Industry organisations including the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance and the Bavarian Chips Alliance are also involved in the event, reflecting growing cross-industry interest in software-defined and AI-driven manufacturing technologies.
The event will take place in Munich on 1 July 2026, from 10:00 to 16:00, followed by an informal networking session. Attendance is free of charge, with registration available at https://go.xentara.io/cd26-ticket. The full agenda can be found at https://xentara.io/connect26.
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