What we are taking away from r26 2026 in Bochum

On 1 and 2 July 2026, the r26 Business & Innovation Festival brought companies, startups, and institutions together at Jahrhunderthalle Bochum. Mojtaba Pourshiri was there as TechnoloHit's Founder and CEO.

For us, the festival was a chance to compare our product ideas with the experience of other businesses. The most useful moments came from conversations and masterclasses, often in the time between sessions.

Two days to test our assumptions

We arrived in Bochum with questions that shape our daily work. Where can AI genuinely remove friction? Which problems matter enough to justify a new system? And how can a team automate work without making a functioning process harder to understand?

Two days at a festival do not produce a finished product roadmap. Still, the same situations came up in several conversations: inquiries sit unanswered for too long, knowledge is spread across systems, and repeatable work consumes time even when the steps are easy to describe.

That gives us a useful test for our own work. A polished demo is only the start. The system has to make a specific task simpler, faster, or more reliable, with a clean handoff to a person when needed.

What we are taking back into product work

Four points became more concrete for us during the festival:

• An intelligent website should do more than display information. It should understand an inquiry, provide useful direction, and help a visitor reach the right next step.
• An AI phone assistant needs a clear handoff. Answering a call only helps when the relevant details are captured and a person can take over with context.
• Private AI starts with the data question. A company needs to know what the system processes, where information is stored, and who can access it.
• Automation should begin with a manageable process. A focused use case is easier to review and improve than a broad platform promise.

These ideas were already part of our work before r26. Two days with founders, business decision-makers, and people from the regional innovation community made the priorities sharper.

About r26

r26 continues the former ruhrSUMMIT as a two-day business and innovation festival. Its programme covered artificial intelligence, the digital economy, entrepreneurship, and the future of work. The event took place at Jahrhunderthalle Bochum.

The combination of a structured programme and open conversation suited what we came for: different views on how technology can be used inside real organisations, beyond the abstract discussion around AI.

We also want to thank Anna-Sophie Bettmann, who made it possible for TechnoloHit to take part in r26.

What comes next

We returned from Bochum with fresh perspectives and clearer next steps. Our focus remains practical: intelligent websites, AI phone assistants, private AI solutions, and automation designed around real business processes.

The About page explains the thinking behind TechnoloHit. You can also read our comparison of AI agents, chatbots, and workflows or our guide to AI phone assistants for businesses. For a specific conversation, use the contact page.