Networking and career guidance for the more than 300 postdocs in attendance were at the heart of the 26th annual conference of the German Academic International Network (GAIN), held from 21 to 23 August. Interest in the largest networking event for research careers in Germany outside Europe was already greater than ever during GAIN’s anniversary year in 2025 with more than 600 participants in total, and this year saw yet another slight increase.

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In addition to researchers at the postdoctoral stage, participants included representatives of higher education institutions, funding organisations and non-university research institutions, as well as political representatives, including a delegation from the Bundestag’s Committee on Research, Technology, Space and Technology Assessment, representatives of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) and eight ministers responsible for research in various German federal states. Among other things, they took part in lively discussions on the changing political environment for research on both sides of the Atlantic, which was once again a key topic at this year’s conference.

DFG President Professor Dr. Katja Becker welcomed the participants at the opening of the event which was organised jointly by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Humboldt Foundation and the DFG on 21 August.

Transatlantic Cooperation

“Year after year, the GAIN Conference is in fact a celebration of the achievements and potential of early-career scientists. At the same time, it vividly affirms the global nature of science,” said the DFG President, addressing postdocs from Germany conducting research in North America as well as international postdocs in the United States and Canada who are interested in Germany as a research location. “You are all ambassadors of this scientific cosmopolitanism and open-minded research.”

Becker said that freedom of research and the opportunity for international collaboration “form the basis of our work and, consequently, of social and economic progress”. “We must never allow these freedoms to be taken away from us, because they also constitute a cornerstone of democracy as we know it.”

Becker said she was “delighted” that the “strong commitment to transatlantic cooperation” still persisted “on both shores of the Atlantic”, especially in challenging times. She said this had also been evident at a DFG roundtable on the role of universities in future strategic alliances. Shortly before the GAIN Conference, prominent representatives of the German and North American research communities and ministers responsible for research from several German federal states took part in this exchange in Washington. This sent a “strong political message in support of academic freedom”, Becker said.

Dialogue, Consultation and Networking 

A high-profile workshop on 22 August looked at how the research community might respond to the changing political environment and the major challenges currently being faced. Under the title Widerstandsfähige Wissenschaft – starke Demokratie (“Resilient science – strong democracy”), state ministers responsible for research Timon Gremmels (Hesse), Falko Mohrs (Lower Saxony), Petra Olschowski (Baden-Württemberg), Dr. Manja Schüle (Brandenburg) and Jakob von Weizsäcker (Saarland), along with Dr. Marcus Pleyer (State Secretary, BMFTR) and Professor Dr. Walther Rosenthal (President of the German Rectors’ Conference), engaged in a lively discussion with postdocs about their experience and expectations with regard to a resilient research system.

Another topical issue addressed in various GAIN formats was the rapid development of artificial intelligence and the challenges this gives rise to. On 23 August, DFG Head of Department Dr. Ulrike Eickhoff, Dr. Matthias Haury (Biohub) and Dr. Claudia Willmes (Elsevier) discussed this topic and the opportunities and risks it presents for the various areas of research in the workshop Generative KI im Publizieren und Peer Review: Erlaubt, Sinnvoll, Riskant?! (“Generative AI in publishing and peer review: permitted, useful, risky?!”). Moderated by Professor Dr. Gerhard Kramer of the Technical University of Munich, Ms. Eickhoff also explained the changes introduced in April to permit the use of AI in the DFG’s review process. 

In addition to discussions of current research policy issues, networking and consultation are key components of GAIN. The 40 workshops offered insights into such aspects as appointment procedures, as well as providing tips on setting up a junior research group. At the annual Talent Fair, more than 90 institutions from Germany presented career opportunities to postdocs and showcased over 270 vacancies. Extensive information was also provided on the prospects offered to internationally mobile researchers by the Global Minds Initiative Germany, in which the DFG is also involved. 

As in previous years, the DFG invited the researchers it funds to a fellows’ evening on the sidelines of GAIN26, where DFG Secretary General Heide Ahrens took the opportunity to praise the productive dialogue between the postdocs and the DFG: “Our engagement on your behalf keeps us curious and open to new ideas.” She said that the work of the DFG and its dialogue with the researchers it funds were “a genuine enrichment for you and for us, as well as for the US and German research systems”.

Further Information

• GAIN26 Website(externer Link)
• GAIN26: Digital Workshop Event (externer Link)(17 September 2026, open to interested postdocs worldwide)
• Press release on the DFG roundtable(interner Link)
• Artificial Intelligence in DFG funding activities (interner Link)
• DFG funding opportunities under the Global Minds Initiative Germany(interner Link)
• GAIN advance press release (interner Link)