EN 
DE With 120 lectures and seminars, around 1,000 participants, and a program covering everything from AI to regulation, the ESE Congress 2025 once again demonstrated what currently drives and motivates embedded developers. Above all, it became clear that 2025 was the year in which AI agents became mainstream as code assistants.
The ESE Congress 2025, held from December 1st to 5th, once again demonstrated the vibrancy, eagerness to learn, and enthusiasm for discussion within the embedded systems community. With 120 presentations and seminars, the event was once again highly attended, combined with the familiar, collegial atmosphere for which the ESE Congress is known.
A fact for which the approximately 1,000 participants once again awarded top marks, both in terms of content and organization: Exhibitors gave an overall grade of 1.57, while participants rated the congress an average of 1.56. For almost 401 of them, Germany's largest specialist conference on the topic of embedded software engineering was completely new territory: 396 registrants attended the ESE Congress for the first time in 2025.
The free digital pre-conference also sent a strong signal: Participation was exceptionally high this year. Even if companies seemed to be tight on travel and training budgets, the high turnout showed that the hunger and need for knowledge and information exchange remains as strong as ever, and that the pre-conference has become an established and important starting point for the congress week.
AI agents will become important helpers in code development.
Perhaps the most obvious crowd-pleaser was the track Artificial intelligence – especially where the discussion focused on AI as a concrete tool for writing and developing program code. Presentations such as "From Copilot to Crew – How Coding Agents Will Transform Embedded Teams in 2025," "Using AI-Generated Code in Demanding Industrial Applications," "Large Language Models in Software Engineering," and "Artificial Intelligence as a Driver of Efficiency and Quality" resonated with current trends. The discussions quickly made one thing clear: AI has arrived in the embedded systems field – not as a gimmick, but as a tool that transforms processes. Whether it's assistance with refactoring, improved test coverage, faster analysis of legacy code, or new forms of collaboration between humans and agents: many participants left with concrete ideas on how to improve quality and speed in everyday work without relinquishing control.
Specific knowledge requirements regarding the Cyber Resilience Act and best practices for implementation and architecture
In parallel, a second top topic remained highly prominent: the Cyber Resilience Act. The compact seminars on regulations, security requirements, and practical implementation in development organizations were particularly well-attended. The high demand was a clear indication of how much this topic concerns developers – and how high the need for information remains.
The combination of contextualization, concrete recommendations for action, and the exchange of best practices made these sessions so valuable. Many discussions revolved around how teams can meaningfully integrate requirements into their processes without becoming bogged down in bureaucracy – and how security, documentation, and product responsibility can be pragmatically combined.
The lecture series on testing and quality also continued to attract strong interest: "Cultivating and Managing Technical Debt" and "The Good, the Bad, and the Bug" demonstrated how much the community is simultaneously committed to clean engineering and an honest culture of learning from mistakes. The ESE Congress thus remained what it has been for years: a realistic compass between innovation and craftsmanship.
It was striking, however, that the automotive track, a fixture in the congress program for 17 years, saw comparatively low attendance in 2025. A significant decline in participant numbers was observed specifically from this sector; a gap that was also felt in the congress halls. This aligns with the current weakness of the automotive industry in German-speaking countries, where increased restraint regarding travel and budgets is evident in many places.
All the more remarkable, then, was the voice of those who were nevertheless present: Several participants emphasized that the need for information and further training is higher than ever, especially in this segment. Between the pressure of transformation, software complexity, and regulatory requirements, the desire for exchange is growing – even if not all teams are currently able to realize it.
Groundbreaking keynotes, excellent speakers
The ESE Congress once again demonstrated its strength during the keynote speeches: Nearly 400 attendees listened to Andreas Willert's keynote address, "How AI and Knowledge Graphs Are Revolutionizing the World." His central message—to move beyond reductionism and prioritize systems thinking—resonated with the audience, particularly because the transfer to complex engineering domains with nodes, relationships, and dependencies became immediately tangible.
The remaining days of the congress also provided valuable insights for both mind and daily life. On Wednesday, Prof. Dr. Volker Busch spoke about stress management in times of information overload and demonstrated practical ways to better cope with sensory overload, multitasking, and everyday digital stress – a topic that resonates with many both professionally and personally, making it clear that the ESE Congress has long since transcended purely technical topics.
A particular highlight of the fourth day of the congress was Stefanie Voss's keynote address: "The Pirate Strategy – What we can learn about agility from historical pirates." Interactive, inspiring, and a refreshing contrast to the in-depth technical presentations, it revolved around daring, breaking conventions, and questioning the status quo – true to the motto: nothing ventured, nothing gained.
The congress week in 2025 also included the recognition of outstanding contributions: Johannes Bergsmann received the Speaker Awards for the highest-rated speakers of the previous year for his seminar "Agile Requirements Engineering Beyond User Stories"; further Speaker Awards went to Dr. René Graf ("We have an idea, but do we have a product?"), Daniel Penning ("Visual Studio Code for Embedded Projects?") and Christoph Schmiedinger ("Less is more – What we can learn from frugal innovations"). The Newcomer Award was given to Malte Kaiser for "Coprocessor on Linux: Can you hear me?".
Ultimately, it was the encounters outside the lecture halls that truly defined the ESE Congress: a superbly attended trade exhibition, intensive networking, and the traditional foosball tournament as a reliable mood booster. Thursday evening was also a special moment, when congress partner MicroConsult Academy GmbH celebrated its 30th anniversary.
In summary, the ESE Congress 2025 showed that the community remains stable and the thirst for knowledge is growing. And what sounded like something from the future in the 2010s has long since become part of everyday life.