Artificial Intelligence – Where Do We Stand in Germany?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is widely regarded as a technology which will impact the future competitiveness of the German economy. Looking at the research productivity of German scientists and universities in AI, we find that Germany definitively belongs to the top performers in AI research globally, although the United States and China are somewhat ahead. This is not surprising taking into account the sheer size of their talent pools. Furthermore, the majority of promising AI startups are based in the United States, while Germany is clearly underrepresented in the group of excellent AI startups given Germany’s excellence in AI research. Hence, it is obviously more challenging for Germany to translate research excellence into successful entrepreneurship.