What billionaire Hasso Plattner plans in Potsdam until 2035

Potsdam. Software billionaire and patron Hasso Plattner wants to breathe new life into the disused site of the former state parliament building in Potsdam: A modern university campus is to be built on the Brauhausberg. At the same time, the Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI) at Griebnitzsee is to be expanded into a "leading European institute for digital sciences," as it is described.

At a press conference on Monday afternoon, the first details of the investment were announced, which are the subject of a letter of intent signed by Plattner and Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD).

The University of Potsdam is getting a fourth campus, centrally located near Potsdam Central Station. The plan is to create "outstanding study and research conditions" within the next ten years.

The HPI, together with the University of Potsdam, is to be developed into a “beacon in the international scientific landscape.”

Investments will also be made at the university locations in Golm and Neues Palais – with the aim of offering “modern, efficient and future-oriented study conditions”.

The HPI will take over the space previously occupied by the university on the Griebnitzsee campus. The Hasso Plattner Foundation will provide the replacement space on Brauhausberg. The listed buildings there will be preserved and renovated.

The existing Faculty of Digital Engineering is to be expanded to include additional master’s programs and international collaborations – with a focus on artificial intelligence.

Completion is expected by 2035 “at the latest.”

The Letter of Intent includes the following four points:

• Support of the growth prospects of the HPI at the Griebnitzsee site by the state, in particular by enabling a “maximum degree of autonomy in academic matters for the institute and the joint Digital Engineering Faculty”, it says
• Development of the Griebnitzsee Campus for the HPI and the Brauhausberg Campus for the University of Potsdam by the Hasso Plattner Foundation
• Supporting the Foundation in the planning and construction processes within the framework of a task force at management level
• Supporting the University of Potsdam with the already planned construction measures at the Golm and Am Neuen Palais campuses and accelerating the measures

To this end, a task force will be established in the State Chancellery to ensure smooth operations. It will be led by Woidke and Plattner. Working groups in the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Science will be in charge.

It is about “continuing a Brandenburg success story,” said Minister President Dietmar Woidke, recalling the beginnings of the HPI in the late 1990s.

University President Oliver Günther expressed his gratitude for the smooth collaboration. It had been just eight weeks since the first discussions. The new Brauhausberg campus will be a "showpiece project" that sets new standards in research and teaching.

There are no estimates yet as to how much the investment will cost. However, it won't be a billion, Plattner said. He's not the one to thank, but rather his foundation. "We want to be on our way to becoming one of the top computer science faculties in Germany," Plattner said.

The 81-year-old Plattner, once a co- founder of the software company SAP, has long been known as a patron of science and art. "Together we are sending a clear signal: for education, openness, and sustainability. Europe needs places where talents from all over the world can think freely, research, and create – Potsdam will be such a place," he said.

Plattner is certainly considering scientists from the USA coming to Potsdam. US President Donald Trump is waging a campaign against science there. What's happening there is "horrible," Plattner says.

Plattner has already established the Hasso Plattner Institute as an IT research facility in the state capital. In 2017, he opened the Barberini Art Museum with a large collection of Impressionist works, followed by the Minsk Art House in 2022.

The Brandenburg state parliament met on Brauhausberg until 2013. During the GDR, the highly visible building housed the SED district and county leadership. It was therefore nicknamed the "Kremlin." It has stood empty for many years. Years ago, it was rumored to be converted into residential and commercial space.

In August 2023, a major fire broke out in the listed building, causing the roof to collapse. The site has also been repeatedly damaged by vandalism.

This text first appeared in the “Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung” – a partner in the Editorial Network Germany.