RISEBA Professor Develops a Digital Twin Attracting Attention from German Media
Professor Valters Kaže (RISEBA University of Applied Sciences) has developed his own digital twin to ensure students continuous access to lecture content and academic support abroad. The project has been created in collaboration with AKAD University in Stuttgart (Germany), where Valters Kaže has been appointed as a visiting professor in one of the distance-learning study programmes.
The digital professor developed by Kaže is his virtual “twin”, designed to complement the work of the lecturer by providing students with a broader, more personalised and more accessible learning experience. It is not intended to replace the human lecturer, but rather to expand their presence and capacity, particularly in the context of international studies and digital mobility.
The solution has already attracted significant attention in Germany, where several major media outlets have reported on it. The German press describes the initiative as one of the first examples of its scale within European higher education. Media outlets such as Der Spiegel, Die Zeit, and Welt have shown interest in the project.
“The digital twin is essentially an extension of my academic presence – an opportunity for students to receive answers, explanations and theoretical information at any time. In truth, this is a process in which, through practical research, we are testing how human and artificial intelligence competencies interact and what benefits this interaction can bring to the study process for all parties involved,” explains Valters Kaže.
One of the main objectives of the collaboration is to study the interaction between the digital lecturer and students, to explore how human competencies interact with artificial intelligence, and to analyse how this approach to teaching influences the quality of studies and students’ academic performance.
This initiative is becoming a platform for exploring how artificial intelligence can support higher education and where the new boundaries lie between technology and academic professionalism. It also highlights how digital and AI tools can help regional universities strengthen their international influence and competitiveness.