01
Define the company universe
A verified list of companies, for example of a region, an industry or a supply chain. Only these companies exist for the analysis, so the AI cannot invent any.
For regions
Prove your location's profile
For economic development agencies, chambers of commerce, districts and municipalities: location patterns, competence fields and future options for an entire region.
Go to regions For companiesFind new markets for your strengths
For companies in any industry: identify transferable capabilities, assess future fields, find partners and competences in a targeted way.
Go to companies For consultantsConsult with FutureSonar
You bring industry or regional expertise and client access. We deliver software and analysis. Wanted worldwide.
Become a partnerThe method
From company list to future option in four steps
02
Collect evidence
FutureSonar reads public sources of the companies, respects blocking instructions and stores every finding with its address and retrieval date.
03
Abstract capabilities
Products become transferable capabilities, each backed by a verbatim quote. A second model checks against the source, and experts review the results.
04
Patterns and future
Capabilities condense into patterns. FutureSonar then matches them with future models, such as the EU Taxonomy or megatrends, and shows where they will be needed.
The decisive step: from product to capability
Example for illustrationProduct
Self-locking screw
Customer today: automotive industry
Transferable capability
Detachable joint that holds under vibration without additional parts
New fields of application
Wherever vibration is a problem
Rail vehicles, wind power, agricultural machinery
Why sonar
A sonar shows what lies beneath the surface
A radar sees what is above the water. A sonar sends a pulse into the depths and listens for the echo. It only reports what is really there and invents nothing.
A sonar does not predict what tomorrow brings either. It reveals the ground you set your course over. That is exactly how FutureSonar works: it measures today in a verifiable way so you can choose your path into the future with confidence.
The ping is your question
You define what to search for: a region, an industry, a supply chain or a specific question.
The echo is the source
Only what answers counts. Every capability comes back with a source and a verbatim quote. No echo, no statement.
Beneath the surface lie the patterns
Everyone sees the well-known clusters. FutureSonar finds the patterns beneath them that only emerge from many companies together.
The noise gets filtered out
Marketing language and filler pages are noise. A second model and experts check every signal before it counts.
The nautical chart are the future models
The EU Taxonomy and megatrends show where tomorrow's shipping lanes are supposed to be. The sonar shows what is really beneath you.
The shallows are the gaps
Where capabilities for a future option are missing, there are shallows. You see them before you run aground.
Every statement with a source
Every capability shows where it comes from
You see not only the result but the passage it comes from. Anything that cannot be backed by evidence is shown as “unclear”. That is an honest result too.
That is the difference from a chatbot: an analysis you can base a strategy, an investment or a consulting engagement on.
Mustermann Sensortechnik GmbH · demoverified
Capability
Reliably measures gas flow in hazardous areas
“Our flow sensors are approved for use in hazardous zones and operate maintenance-free.”
Future models
Three future models, three perspectives on your capabilities
To look ahead, FutureSonar matches the verified capabilities with recognized future models. Each model is broken down into concrete requirements, and every match remains traceable down to the capability, the quote and the trend source.
EU Taxonomyopen
Eligibility for funding and finance
Which activities make a substantial contribution to environmental objectives under EU law and therefore qualify for sustainable finance and funding?
Concrete and technical, strong for industry, energy, construction, water and transport, anchored in law. Covers environmental objectives only.
Source: European Commission, EU Taxonomy Navigator
JRC megatrendsopen
European megatrend orientation
Which long-term drivers, which the European Commission also bases its policy on, can your capabilities serve?
Openly usable, regularly updated and close to EU strategies and funding. Very broad, so FutureSonar derives the concrete requirements itself.
Source: Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, Megatrends Hub
Megatrend frameworkswith license
Societal megatrends
Which long-term societal trends and concrete subtrends can your capabilities serve?
Fine-grained enough for individual companies and well known among chambers of commerce and economic development agencies. Technical industrial requirements are covered less well.
Available if you or your client hold a license for the framework.
What a match looks like
Example for illustrationVerified capability
Reliably measures gas flow in hazardous areas
with quote and source
Future requirement
Safely monitor pipelines for hydrogen and other low-carbon gases
Future model
EU Taxonomy: networks for renewable and low-carbon gases
Match 8 out of 10, with reasoning
No model is right on its own. Each is a consulting approach with its own guiding question, strengths and limits. FutureSonar shows the results of the models side by side without blending them. Further models can be added, such as a company's own vision of the future or a country's national future strategy.
Frequently asked questions
What you should know
Where does the data come from?
From publicly available sources of the companies, mainly their websites. FutureSonar respects operators' blocking instructions (robots.txt) and stores the address, retrieval date and quote for every statement. You can add your own lists.
Doesn't the AI just make things up?
That is exactly what FutureSonar is built to prevent: a fixed company list, a mandatory quote for every capability, a second checking model and review by experts. Anything that cannot be backed by evidence stays marked as “unclear”.
Where is the data processed?
In a data center in the EU and with language models from European providers. Personal data is neither passed to models nor stored. Every client gets a technically separated data room.
Which future models does FutureSonar work with?
Today with three: the EU Taxonomy for sustainable economic activities, the 14 megatrends of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) and, with a license, megatrend frameworks that go down to subtrends. The results are shown side by side, every match with reasoning and evidence. Further models can be added.
Is FutureSonar available outside Germany?
Yes. The analysis works with public sources in many languages. On site, we work with partners who know the region or industry. We are currently building this network worldwide.
Why is it called FutureSonar?
Because a sonar shows what lies beneath the surface without inventing anything: it only reports what returns an echo. In the same way, FutureSonar measures today's capabilities of companies and regions, with a source for every statement, and shows which course into the future fits. It does not predict the future, it reveals the ground.
Does FutureSonar predict the future?
No. It shows, backed by evidence, what exists today and makes plausible future options visible along with their uncertainties. The decision stays with you, just on a better basis.
Contact
Let's talk about your question
In a short conversation, we show you FutureSonar on a demo data set and clarify what an analysis can do for you, as a region, as a company or as a partner.
info@ow-it.consultingBehind FutureSonar
Olaf Windhäuser
OW-IT Consulting AB, Sweden
Senior consultant for more than 20 years with a focus on value management: measurable value for the client instead of slides. IT and AI expert and a software developer himself. From more than 5,000 client meetings, he knows how to talk to the board and to engineers with equal depth.
He lives and works in Sweden, speaks German, English and some Swedish, and thinks globally.
DEENSV, basic