24.09.2019

Future Files – The Sequel

In the year 2048, an investigator encounters a death that seems suspicious. But the artificial Intelligence system in the police computer has a different opinion. A film about digitalization and other future trends as the kickoff for our second “Future Files” article series.

In this space more than a year ago, a blogger named Nero and a police detective, Inspector Lee, began exploring the year 2045 in our “Future Files” article series. Along with other characters, they led us into a world where cities trap more CO₂ than they emit, vehicles repair themselves after accidents, and large factories produce goods using 3D printing. Like any predictions of the future, much of the series was a kind of thought experiment combined with the extrapolation of current developments. But risk is part of daily life for an entrepreneur, as are strategies for the future and a company’s vision. Freudenberg Sealing Technologies is interested in the future. After all, it is our future as well.
The company started out as a tannery and later began making leather seals and ultimately today’s high-performance plastics. This history has taught us how important it is to look ahead. Innovation has a great deal to do with recognizing trends at the right time.

A Team for the Second Season

Dear readers, our 15 episodes have proven to be interesting and you’ve given them a great response. That’s one more reason we decided to produce a sequel. Starting today, Nero and Lee are exploring the world once again. While the two main characters largely lived parallel lives in the first season, their paths actually cross in the second. We can tell you this much: The inspector and the blogger are investigating a crime that forces the protagonists to grapple with the world around them and its trends with even greater urgency than in the earlier case. You learn the exact matter at hand in a small short film at the kickoff. Then six text episodes follow on our website. The criminal case ties the episodes together, but they can also be read individually. Among other things, they deal with artificial intelligence, self-driving cars and the future of urban life.

Keeping a Close Eye on the Future

In his very first chapters the short crime thriller, Inspector Lee had already shown himself to be a resolute yet thoughtful investigator with a good measure of skepticism about newfangled trends. In coming episodes, his mental state will certainly be put to the test since he at times seems to have landed in the wrong era – thanks to the advances of 2048. Meanwhile, as usual, Nero, the curious and open-minded blogger, wanders into great peril…

Of course, we’re also inviting you to browse through the first season’s chapters again. Raise the curtain!

The Right Computational Base

Inspector Lee was dealing with his trickiest case ever. His AI assistant told him that it was a 99.7 percent certainty that the death of political activist Hanna Karlsen was a suicide. But Lee was operating on the theory that artificial intelligence entities had conspired against the anti-digitalization militant.

16.01.2020

Desolate Game

Data scandal in Las Vegas: Several casino operators have been using monitoring devices and artificial intelligence to cheat their customers. Ironically, the scandal was discovered through the use of artificial intelligence. Hot on the trail of data activist Hanna Karlsen, Nero, an investigative blogger, decided to take a look around the desert metropolis.

19.12.2019

Knowledge is the Opposite of Trust

Inspector Lee was dealing with his toughest case ever. The death of activist Hanna Karlsen was almost certainly a suicide, the artificial intelligence unit had told him. In fact, the probability was 99.7 percent. But during her lifetime, the anti-digitalization militant had feared retaliation from the artificial intelligence system. Just one more conspiracy theory?

21.11.2019

Forgotten

Rome is still the only major city in the European Republic that refuses to prohibit self-driving in the city, citing data privacy concerns as its justification. It turns out that data activist Hanna Karlsen often visited here. Nero, an investigative blogger, traveled to the eternal city to learn more.

22.10.2019

Death by Shopping

Inspector Lee was facing his trickiest case ever. The AI assistant had explained to him that the death of a political activist was a suicide – with 99.7 percent certainty. But during her lifetime, the anti-digitalization militant feared for her life. She believed the forces of artificial intelligence would exact their revenge. But was it just a conspiracy theory?

01.10.2019

Digital-free

Nero, an investigative blogger, traveled to Paradise Island on the trail of data activist Hanna Karlsen. A group of digital dropouts had retreated there in the year 2050. The appearance of harmony is deceptive.

20.09.2018

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

August 22, 2046. Nero, a tech blogger, decided to take stock. How far has humanity come in its battles against climate change, hunger and disease? What has changed in the energy industry, agriculture, mobility and medicine – and why?

23.08.2018

All in the Head

An important scientist and bioengineer lies dead in his study. Inspector Lee does not believe in an accident. And it turns out that the dead man was doing research on a project that could change the world of the future.

19.07.2018

Skewered

Something is not right in this warehouse of the future. An inventory drone disappears as if by magic and then reappears damaged. As Cliona wants to get on the track, it gets dangerous.