Aicomp Summit 2026 review: Human-centric AI, digitalization & compliance shape packaging future

Facilitating efficiency and regulatory compliance emerged as key benefits of the packaging industry’s accelerating digitalization at the Aicomp Summit in Vienna, Austria, last week. Event speakers also highlighted the importance of keeping the human element at the center of the industry’s digital transformation to stay ahead of the competition. 

René Chomsé, data scientist and IT consultant at Aicomp, tells Packaging Insights that he expects AI and machine learning (ML) to continue changing the packaging industry over the coming years. 

“Decision making will be faster, more accurate, and companies that fail to apply it will face issues, considering how competitive the industry is. Packaging companies will become more scientific as automation leads to fewer jobs.”

“This is not a matter of ‘kicking people out,’ but rather a transformation. We will see more AI experts for every area of the packaging industry.”

Dr. Elena Krause-Söhner, professor of Business Administration and Digitalization at the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University, Germany, asserted in her summit keynote that: “successful change starts with people — not technology.”

Krause-Söhner points out that 95% of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software integration projects fail due to insufficient budget allocation for training and change management.

“There is a significant training gap in AI, with only 33% of companies investing in self-training, despite 75% deploying AI,” she adds.

Leadership and collaboration

Krause-Söhner argues that while AI and digital tools can offer the packaging industry “unprecedented efficiency,” digitalization can only create “real, lasting impact” when approached holistically.

Some ways in which digital implementation improves efficiency that were highlighted at the summit include SAP software for paper packaging production, T.CON’s digital manufacturing for corrugated packaging, and digital solutions for flexible plastics.

Meanwhile, Stratasys showcased its 3D printing innovations for packaging, and Domino Printing Sciences highlighted opportunities for data integration in the printing and packaging industries.

Krause-Söhner says that digitalization initiatives succeed only when people are engaged from the start. She calls for “culture, leadership, and collaboration over mere system implementation — providing a roadmap for anyone ready to turn digital potential into real impact.”

Aicomp’s Chomsé says that the summit revealed three key ways in which AI and machinery can help packagers: waste management, predictive maintenance, and inventory management.

He adds that the biggest challenge packaging companies face when adopting AI or ML is communication. “On one hand, you have these ML specialists or AI engineers, and on the other, you have the business people.”

“The AI experts don't know how the business processes work. Getting communication started without people getting frustrated is really hard at the start, and this often goes wrong.”

“There are already best practices out there. Get an AI team that has not only specialists, but also some people that ‘live in between’ that can make communication happen, so you have a smooth flow.”

Digitalization for compliance

Beyond production efficiency and optimization, the summit explored the significance of digitalization for compliance with the evolving regulatory environment.

Timo Klemm, chief sales and marketing officer at X-IT, tells us: “X-IT helps companies to translate regulatory requirements into workable IT solutions. We have SAP integration know-how and know-how about sustainability platforms, like the US Appian.”

“We also know the regulatory requirements of the EU, and we help bring all these factors together to create end-to-end solutions.”

“We also specialized in data analysis. This includes looking at where data comes from and how to produce sustainability reports so that companies are compliant with regulations like the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).”

During his keynote, “PPWRT and beyond — upcoming challenges for packaging,” Manfred Tacker, CEO at Circular Analytics, outlined: “The problem is that many of the technical requirements are not yet known.”

“For example, there is no harmonized method to calculate recyclability at the moment, to calculate how long it takes to change a packaging system, acquire new equipment, and test everything before putting it on the market.”

“For this reason, we have developed the Packaging Cockpit to calculate technical recyclability.”

“We can already do some of this because a lot of the needed information is already available, even if the exact method of how to calculate it is not there yet, because it’s still in the works.”

Klemm concludes: “I would like to appeal, on my knees if needed, to the companies who still have not yet prepared for PPWR and for EUDR. It’s astonishing that companies are very relaxed at the moment, still, with the upcoming EU regulations, and therefore I can only repeat: start right now with preparation.”

“Get the help of IT companies that specialize in this, so that you’re ready for the August 12 or the December 30 deadline, depending on which EU regulation you will fall under.”