GTAI AI Search: ]init[ AI Platform and CoreMedia in Joint Use

Whether investing in Germany or exporting abroad, companies, investors, and decision-makers need quick access to relevant data, effective ways to compare countries, and content that supports strategic planning. Anyone evaluating new markets must be able to quickly assess economic data, industry trends, legal frameworks, and import restrictions.

To this end, Germany Trade & Invest, the federal government’s economic development agency, provides extensive information. However, with key figures for around 150 countries and more than 30,000 pieces of specialized content, the standard search function on the website does not always deliver the right answer quickly enough. The AI search we developed on behalf of GTAI makes it easier: It understands questions, guides users to relevant content through dialogue, and helps find the right contacts.

Ask questions instead of guessing keywords

The AI search is an integral part of the GTAI’s website and is immediately recognizable as an additional option to the traditional, index-based search. Users formulate their queries in natural language within the chatbot dialogue. Thanks to the Large Language Model (LLM) used, the search does not end with a document in the CMS. For example, someone researching the current customs regulations for exports to China not only receives the relevant content in clear language but also finds the way to the appropriate authority to clarify any remaining questions. To ensure this works reliably, the website’s content is continuously indexed: country information, industry reports, customs and trade law, international business opportunities, export initiatives, economic conditions, as well as publications and contact information for economic experts.

Implementation using ]init[ AI Platform and CoreMedia CMS

For reliable everyday use, the GTAI AI search requires two things: a stable AI foundation and a seamless content integration. We have combined both in this project – using the ]init[ AI Platform as the technical foundation and the CoreMedia Content Cloud v12 as the content base.

Our AI implementation platform provides reusable components to bring AI applications into practice quickly, user-friendly, and securely. It bundles language models, vector search, prompt flows, and integrated quality controls so that responses are generated in a traceable manner with source references. At the same time, there was a clear focus on data protection and operational security. The open-source-based platform offers robust safeguards for this purpose, supplemented by monitoring, logging, and security services.

On the CoreMedia side, content is structured so that the AI search specifically processes only relevant content objects. We have configured data exchange so that CoreMedia transfers new or modified content to the indexer in near real time. This ensures that content remains searchable and up-to-date at all times without a complex crawling solution or high maintenance costs.

The project demonstrates that for AI-powered search to be effective in everyday use, what ultimately matters is not the technology itself, but the benefits it provides: offering guidance, reducing complexity, and enabling reliable decision-making. This is precisely what the project was designed to achieve – with a clear focus on the user experience, a solution that is easy to use, and a system that remains stable over the long term. In this way, AI search helps the GTAI fulfill its foreign trade mission in an even more accessible manner.