Updating our social, political, and technological operating systems

A home for ideas.
A driver for change.

The TUM Think Tank is a university-based research to action platform that brings science, technology, and society into dialogue. We connect researchers, decision-makers, and change agents to turn knowledge into action, advancing a responsible digital future through cross-sector collaboration, critical insight, and public engagement.

Latest

Policy Brief

Balancing technological sovereignty and regional revitalization

What the EU Chips Act 2.0 can learn from the US Rust Belt

21. Aug 2026

Research Journal

The importance of now!

Note 5: When working with foresight, one of the key things we have to do is to not forget that foresight has to start somewhere. The roots of the future are found in the now.

30. Jul 2026

Report

From Technical Implementation to Measurable Impact: Evaluating Smart City Projects with a Focus on Impact

The Urban Digitainability Lab at the TUM Think Tank has published a new research report on how German municipalities can systematically measure the impacts of digital and sustainability-oriented urban development projects.

24. Jul 2026

Publication

Governing Virtual Wonderland

Power, Rules, and Rebellion in the Metaverse

15. Jul 2026

Policy Brief

Practitioner’s Guide on Designation of Core Platform Services

Insights from the EU DMA for AfCFTA and COMESA Competition Regimes

20. Jul 2026

Research Journal

Oracles

Note 4: The history of foresight provides us with interesting insights into the mechanisms and dynamics that we can use to understand our relationship to the future today, and it also gives us useful hints on how we can design new foresight methods.

23. Jun 2026

Publication

The Use of Virtual Reality Technologies in (Engineering) Education

How can Virtual Reality (VR) be used as a transformative tool in (engineering) education?

11. Jun 2026

Research Journal

The future of a decision

Note 3: When working with foresight projects it quickly becomes apparent that what we focus on matters. Just focusing on the future in general is sometimes exciting, because it allows us to explore the broad spectrum of possibilities that tomorrow brings - but it also means that we sacrifice specific insights for broad brush perspectives.

26. May 2026

Publication

Co-Creation for Sustainable Urban Innovation

A Practical Guide for Collaborative Partnerships Between Cities and Civil Society

19. May 2026

Research Journal

Invariances and trends

Note 2: A lot of foresight is about forecasting trends, and with trends we mean change. In all of our engagement with the future we most often begin asking “what is changing?”. The reason for this is straightforward: we want to prepare for that change, and try to understand how it will affect us, our organization and our future overall.

08. May 2026

Initiatives at the TUM Think Tank

Our initiatives

We are home to a network of labs, projects and fellowships, each focused on a unique area of inquiry. Our initiatives are built on the belief that tackling complex issues requires an inter-disciplinary approach and a willingness to explore new directions of learning.

Integrating experienced practitioners into the work of the TUM Think Tank

Fellowship

Frontiers in Digital Child Safety

The Frontiers in Digital Child Safety initiative seeks to contribute to ongoing debates about novel ways to advance child safety through a series of open-source materials, including research briefs, issue spotters, or technical descriptions. It is complementary to existing and emerging child protection efforts. The transatlantic multi-stakeholder initiative at the TUM Think Tank is made possible by financial support from Apple. It invites collaboration among scholars at TUM, Harvard University, and the University of Zurich, and facilitates contributions by a global research community. The initiative will explore a range of innovative technological, educational, and other approaches to prevent and respond to digital child safety issues.

Project

The Content Moderation Lab explores how digital platforms regulate online speech—and how these choices influence user behavior, public attitudes, and democratic engagement.

Lab

The Urban Digitainability Lab is a transdisciplinary lab focused on empowering municipalities to drive the sustainable and digital transition.

Lab

The Creativity Lab at the TUM Think Tank is a research-driven collaborative space that brings together scholars, young people, artists, and decision-makers to study, experiment with, and translate human creativity.

Lab

Beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries, we seek fellows from diverse backgrounds who are dedicated to address societal challenges by developing approaches to advance the public good.

Fellowship

The Youth and Media Lab is an international hub for participatory research and policy innovation that empowers young people to co-create a safer, fairer, and more inclusive digital world.

Lab

The Immersive Realities Working Group pioneers responsible innovation in XR and social agents, bridging academia, industry, and policy to shape human-centered, equitable digital futures.

Lab

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Events

Planning in the Age of Digitalisation, AI, and Accelerated Construction (Event in German)

How can AI become a tool for digital urban planning?

Online
22. Sep 2026

Workshop

Democratic Innovations Lab Conversations

How can democratic participation be strengthened beyond elections? This question kicked off the new discussion series “Democratic Innovations Lab Conversations” on July 8, 2026. The inaugural event brought together perspectives from city administration, state politics, and workplace co-determination.

Richard Wagner Str.1
08. — 08. Jul 2026