Aleph Alpha's Former CEO Launches CNTR, Recruits Apple Engineer as CTO

Jonas Andrulis, co-founder and former CEO of Aleph Alpha, announced new details about his latest venture, CNTR, a startup focused on creating collaborative AI systems designed to enhance human-machine cooperation in industrial settings. Backed by a multi-million-dollar investment from German consultancy Roland Berger, CNTR aims to address a critical challenge in industrial artificial intelligence: the need for human judgment alongside automation.

CNTR, whose name references 'centaur chess'—a format where humans and computers play together—was formally unveiled this week. The startup positions itself in opposition to current trends where AI primarily replaces human labor. Andrulis argues that human involvement remains essential, particularly in complex AI-driven processes in industry, where relying solely on automated systems can introduce risks such as errors and so-called 'hallucinations', or generated inaccuracies by AI models. CNTR's technology enables AI agents to actively consult humans by asking questions or seeking clarifications, aiming to make outputs more reliable and accountable.

As part of building its team, CNTR has named Alejandro Molina, an experienced engineer who previously worked at Apple, Amazon, and Aleph Alpha, as its new Chief Technology Officer. Molina will relocate from the United States to Germany to take on the CTO role.

Andrulis emphasized the distinction between CNTR's philosophy and prevailing industry approaches: “Most AI systems today are built to replace human labour. Humans are reduced to temporary gap-fillers. That’s a dead end—for the technology itself as well as for the companies that are putting their most valuable assets at risk: their teams and their culture. We’ve founded CNTR so that humans and machines can learn, make decisions, and solve problems together—not competing, but collaborating with each other.”

Aleph Alpha, the German startup Andrulis previously led, was one of Europe's few independent developers of large language models (LLMs). In recent years it shifted from developing foundational models to offering services that help governments and businesses implement artificial intelligence in real-world contexts.

Industry observers note that CNTR’s strategy of emphasizing human-in-the-loop processes reflects an increasing awareness among European AI firms of the limitations and risks of full automation. The recruitment of high-level talent from the United States is also a notable step, signaling the growing international ambition and profile of European AI startups.

Reference: tech.eu