A Reality Check Between Ambition, Architecture, and Everyday Practice
When a citizen wants to communicate with public authorities, the well-established classics are still available: fax, telephone, and email — supplemented by a growing number of inboxes, portals, and specialized messaging systems. Clarity is not exactly their defining feature.
In Germany, FITKO, Saxony-Anhalt and Hamburg are attempting to bring some structure into this historically grown communication landscape through the ZaPuK project. The goal: fewer isolated solutions, more structure, more interoperability. (The fax is surprisingly persistent.)
In this session, we take a sober, technical look at the following questions:
- What can Matrix realistically deliver as a general-purpose communication fabric for public administration?
- Where does the protocol fit well from an architectural perspective?
- Where does it become interesting?
- And where does theory collide with federal realities, domain-specific processes, and operational models?
We discuss the current state of projects, discussions, and recommendations followed by an honest reality check. No marketing. No promises of salvation. But plenty of room for critical questions.
Links:
- https://gitlab.opencode.de/it-planungsrat/fit-ab/zapuk
- https://netzpolitik.org/2025/verwaltungsdigitalisierung-arbeitsgruppe-empfiehlt-matrix-protokoll-fuer-behoerdenkommunikation/
- https://www.digdir.no/standarder/verdens-programvare-star-pa-skuldrene-til-apen-kildekode/7195
- https://gitlab.opencode.de/fitko/matrix-g2x/