When Independent Aftermarket Meet AI – A Look Back at the 2022 Industry Forum

Before RepairGPT was trending, we spoke about AI-driven diagnostics at the 2022 Industry Forum for Independent Workshops – and why data trust matters.

Intro:

Three years ago, I had the opportunity to speak at the Industry Forum for Independent Workshops hosted by Vogel Communications Group, ZDK and kfz-betrieb. My contribution focused on the early results and ambitions of the BMWK-funded research project Autowerkstatt 4.0, developed within the Gaia-X Hub Germany. The project explored how AI could support root cause diagnostics in automotive repair – and what conditions must be in place to make it work in everyday workshop environments.

Juan I. Hahn presenting the research initiative Autowerkstatt 4.0 at the 2022 Industry Forum for Independent Workshops – exploring machine learning-based diagnostics for the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

Why this moment mattered:

At the time, terms like “AI in the workshop” were far from mainstream. Most attendees were just beginning to explore digital diagnostics, connected tools or data access models. But we already saw what would become obvious in the years to come: without trusted data flows and semantic interoperability, AI can’t scale in the aftermarket.

Key Messages:

• Autowerkstatt 4.0 was early – but right. We anticipated what many now call “RepairGPT”: AI that assists diagnostics based on structured vehicle and workshop data.

• It’s not about replacing people – it’s about supporting smart decisions. The goal was always to help technicians navigate complexity, not automate expertise away.

• Interoperability and trust are system conditions. Without common data standards, secure sharing, and local control, even the best AI models will remain isolated pilots.

• German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) support was decisive. Public-private support enabled the project to connect industry, tech and governance around one shared ambition: making AI in repair viable.

Legacy & Outlook:

Autowerkstatt 4.0 shaped how we now think about AI-readiness in the aftermarket. Many of today’s initiatives – from RepairGPT concepts to smart diagnostics and data spaces – build on the foundational thinking of this early collaboration. It showed that future-proofing the workshop is not a tech upgrade – it's a systems shift.

Final Thought:

“What we imagined in 2022 is becoming reality. But only for those who are building the structure to support it.”

Want to connect the dots between diagnostics, data and AI in real workshops? Let’s talk.