AI made in Europe - with strategic commitment to the seal of quality
The leading innovation centers for artificial intelligence are currently outside of Europe. However, there are already fundamental prerequisites and promising approaches in place to change this status quo.
There is a broad consensus that artificial intelligence (AI) is a key technology for the next evolutionary stage of the global economy and society. One trend is emerging: in order to develop its full potential, AI must be implemented in a practical manner and accepted by large sections of the population.
This applies in particular to the field of generative AI, which has seen impressive development momentum in recent years. The ability to generate content such as text, images, videos or code makes this form of AI a powerful tool that offers direct, concrete applications in production, customer service, software development, marketing and many other areas.
The main flow of investment in this impressive technology has been concentrated in the USA since 2019. China and the EU as a whole follow far behind with just one-thirtieth of the investment volume each, according to Stanford University's AI Index 2024. While the global AI market is expected to grow to USD 1.8 trillion by 2030 according to forecasts by Statista and Grand View Research, the USA and China are currently investing significantly more in the AI sector than Germany, for example. This gives them a clear advantage in the development of market-ready AI solutions.
The speed at which AI innovations are advancing and the scale of investment in this sector are proving increasingly challenging for regulatory attempts. While the United States and China offer a relatively lenient regulatory framework, Europe tends to have comparatively tough regulatory guardrails, as the EU AI Act illustrates.
Europe's role in the global AI landscape
The challenge for Europe is to develop its own AI strategy and to find and consolidate its own place in the AI world. Focusing on AI solutions and language models that are specialized, practical and highly contextual seems to be the most promising approach. Such solutions can gain the trust of users, which is essential for the acceptance and integration of AI into social and economic life.
Europe already has suitable tools at its disposal. These include the Horizon Europe program, which includes plans to invest around 95.5 billion euros in research and innovation for the period 2021 to 2027. Around 290 million euros of this is to be made available in 2024 to promote research focusing on data, robotics, artificial intelligence and the development of cloud edge servers.
In addition, the basic European idea of joint cooperation also offers opportunities: synergy effects can be achieved through the development of shared resources. Through targeted and joint investments and combined expertise, Europe can join forces, set standards and realize its vision of responsible and human-centric AI models and applications.
Europe is currently at a crossroads. But with targeted investment and a strong commitment to ethical standards and practical applicability by governments, language model providers and AI service providers, "AI made in Europe" can become synonymous with quality, trust and innovation.
About the author: Benedikt Bonnmann is a member of the Executive Board of adesso SE and responsible for the Data & AI business.
Source: www.adesso.ch
