With the Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence (BCAI), the company has a competence center operating at seven locations in Germany, the United States, China, India and Israel.

What started as an internal research center will in the future also have a mission to focus on commercializing and scaling Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions within the company.

Now Bosch has more than 1,000 patent families in the field of artificial intelligence, most of them attributable to the BCAI as a center of competence.

An example is Manufacturing Analytics Solutions, a system for the continuous collection, visualization, monitoring, and analysis of manufacturing data.

This system enables Bosch plant associates to analyze manufacturing processes, detect anomalies with the help of AI, and identify and eliminate the causes of irregularities at an early stage. The system was further implemented in 2021.

In general, the technology base implemented throughout the company consists of four elements. Bosch IoT Suite connects different devices to the relevant IT infrastructure solutions and collects the data transmitted by these devices.

Furthermore, the Bosch Hybrid Cloud acts as a universal platform for securely processing and storing data, while the RED Lake (Robert Bosch Enterprise Data Lake) structures data and makes it accessible across the enterprise. Finally, the AI ​​platform (under construction) analyzes the data, generates insights, and determines what action to take.

Artificial intelligence

The goal is to gradually increase the number of active customers and products that are actually digitally connected, intensify the company’s data focus, and advance AI platform maturity.

By the end of 2021, all classes of Bosch electronics were pluggable.

In 2020, Bosch launched a comprehensive AI training program to make nearly 30,000 associates AI experts. It includes training formats at three different levels for managers, engineers, and AI developers.

Another important step is the further development of its AI-enabled, video-based fire detection system, which can now also visually detect fires much faster in protected outdoor areas.

In 2021, Building Technologies made further acquisitions in the field of system integration. These included Nelson, UK-based fire alarm and security technology specialist Protec Fire and Security Group Ltd.