KI Bundesverband: Jörg Bienert Takes Over the Center for Sovereign AI

As of: 13 July 2026

Jörg Bienert, co-founder and long-time chairman of the board of the KI Bundesverband (German AI Association), is moving to the helm of the Center for Sovereign AI at LEAM GmbH. The association is making him its first honorary president. In the short term nothing changes for SMEs – but anyone building AI systems now should plan in a model-agnostic way, so that a forthcoming European model alternative can be swapped in later.

What is the Center for Sovereign AI?

The Center for Sovereign AI (CESAI) is an initiative of LEAM GmbH, based in Hürth in the Rhenish mining region (Rheinisches Revier). Its goal is to build powerful open-source foundation models “made in Europe” – transparent, anchored in Europe and usable by business, science and the public sector.

Foundation models are the large base models on which chatbots, assistants and analysis tools are built. This field is currently dominated by US providers such as OpenAI, Google or Anthropic – European alternatives with comparable performance have so far been largely absent.

LEAM is jointly backed by the KI Bundesverband and eco, the Association of the Internet Industry. The name stands for “Large European AI Models” – a programme that the KI Bundesverband itself launched for European AI sovereignty.

The location is no coincidence: in the Rhenish mining region, LEAM is meant to build a new economic pillar around AI infrastructure and expertise after the coal phase-out.

Who is Jörg Bienert – and what changes for him?

With immediate effect, Jörg Bienert takes over as managing director of the Center for Sovereign AI. This is based on a notice with which the KI Bundesverband informed its members; provimedia has received it as a member, and the move has not yet been publicly documented.

Bienert founded the association around seven years ago together with Rasmus Rothe and shaped it for years as chairman of the board. With the move, his role as deputy managing director of the association ends.

“Europe needs its own competencies, its own models and its own infrastructures if we want to actively shape the next phase of artificial intelligence.” – Jörg Bienert, according to the member notice

Rasmus Rothe, chairman of the board of the association since November 2025, describes the move as “a strong signal for Germany as a whole as a location for AI”. With the honorary presidency, Bienert remains connected to the association. Operational management stays with Daniel Abbou.

Who is behind the Center for Sovereign AI?

The key facts at a glance:

Why does this matter for German companies?

The question of digital sovereignty has long since reached many IT departments. Anyone using AI services today almost always relies on US providers – alternatives from Europe have so far been largely missing. This is exactly where CESAI wants to step in.

For day-to-day practice in SMEs, the personnel change initially makes little difference. From our perspective as a member of the KI Bundesverband, it is still worth looking ahead – especially at three points:

• Privacy-critical use cases: Once CESAI models are available, a European alternative to US providers emerges – relevant for industries with strict data requirements such as healthcare, public administration or the financial sector.
• Time horizon: For most companies this is still a long way off. It only becomes practical once production-ready models exist – the notice names no date.
• Architecture decision now: Anyone building AI applications today should plan in a model-agnostic way, to be able to swap in a European model later without rebuilding.

This is our assessment as an association member, not a confirmed fact from the notice. This is exactly the architecture philosophy we apply in provimedia’s model-agnostic AI development: systems that run on established models today and can be switched to a European model if needed. That way companies stay flexible, regardless of when CESAI delivers market-ready models.

Frequently asked questions about the Center for Sovereign AI

Is the Center for Sovereign AI already usable?

No. According to the association, CESAI is still being set up; production-ready models do not exist yet. You can follow the initiative’s progress at leam.ai.

What sets CESAI apart from other European AI initiatives?

CESAI is not backed by a single company or research institute, but by two established business associations – the KI Bundesverband and eco. This gives the initiative direct access to a broad membership base from business and the digital industry.

Will Bienert’s former position as deputy managing director be refilled?

The notice does not comment on this. So far the association only mentions the new honorary presidency as compensation for Bienert’s withdrawal from operations. For member companies this means: contact structures within the association could still change in the coming months.

What is the difference between chairmanship of the board and honorary presidency at the KI Bundesverband?

The chairmanship of the board is the operational leadership role, currently held by Rasmus Rothe. The honorary presidency is a newly created, representative title without an operational function – Bienert is the first to hold it.

What does “sovereignty” mean in concrete terms for AI?

It means control over data, models and infrastructure, independent of non-European providers. For companies, ideally, this means freedom of choice instead of dependence on a single provider outside the EU.

Sources

• Member notice of the KI Bundesverband, July 2026 (provimedia has received it as a member; not publicly documented)
• LEAM GmbH – Center for Sovereign AI
• KI Bundesverband – New Board 2025
• KI Bundesverband – Kick-off for LEAM in the Rhenish mining region

Information based on the association’s notice and public sources.