With football, the “transfer initiative”. But it’s the best of the Best: inventions, with which German companies in artificial intelligence. From Berlin, Sabine Kinkartz.
What went wrong with the audio compression to MP3, has folded in the three-dimensional production with a printer so far: The 3D printing was not invented in Germany, German companies today are in the ground-breaking technology is also a leader. “There is not even explored it, how to build space stations on Mars and manned stations on the moon, but on-the-spot printing,” says Federal Minister for economic Affairs, Peter Altmaier. “Because you have to only transport the printer and then prints with the materials he finds on site.”
A success story that is by no means as self-evident as it is in view of the booming German economy could accept. 90 billion euros invested by the state and the economy in 2015, in research and development. The three percent of gross domestic product. By 2025 it is expected to be 3.5 percent. So, Germany plays in the international comparison, quite in the first League. In the implementation of new ideas into useful and desirable products and services to the power, however, is becoming less and less noticeable.
Horsepower and no road in sight
Especially the middle class is becoming weaker. The so-called innovators-ratio, which measures how many companies have spawned in the past three years, innovations. In 1999, 56 percent of medium-sized enterprises, to 2017, only 36 per cent. “The agile, small and medium-sized companies for our innovation strength and our prosperity is important,” complains the Minister Altmaier.
A house from the 3D printer
Research and development is becoming increasingly concentrated in large corporations and scientific research institutions. “We have in basic research in many areas, a good position,” says economy Minister Altmaier, the Problem. “Nevertheless, we find that we often bring the HP on the street.”
Federal government intervenes
The policy does not want to just stand by and watch. In your a year ago, concluded the coalition agreement, the CDU, CSU and SPD have agreed on a so-called “transfer initiative”, to implement the Federal Ministry of the economy now. The goal: to bring technology, Know-how and companies in Germany, together, need each other and complement, and in order to be successful. But maybe the Problem is here? Research findings are therefore not customers, because of certain companies in Germany, for example, in the Internet sector, did not develop at all?
“The middle class is innovative in the products that he makes, but not in the case of applications of artificial intelligence,” outlines the Federal Minister of the economy, the Problem. In fact, the infamous MP3 is in the key technologies of the future-Broke again in the room. Whether it is artificial intelligence, Remote Control or voice control in all of these areas of German research institutions had a number of successes. Publications have been published and patents registered. The commercial success of the U.S. Internet giants Amazon, Apple and Google drove.
Google buys the machines?
Also in the case of “industry 4.0”, the leap into the digital production, Germany is started. The term was coined in Germany. But it will be German companies that celebrate the achievements, if the real world of the machines is permanently merged with the virtual of the Internet? This question is on the Federal Minister for the economy enormously. “Maybe you have the web, but we have the things,” he said recently in a discussion with a member of the Board of Google on the importance of the machines in the “Internet of things,” recalls Altmaier. The Google representative had to smile then, only maliziös and answered: “Oh, yeah, maybe we buy things, too.”
Their successes, companies like Google are also celebrating with the help of German basic research, because they also have German professors under contract. “Every Euro that we spend in Germany for basic research also leads to the fact that others benefit,” said Altmaier. It is all the more important to use the results of research in one’s own country. And fast. In China, we are of the opinion that in the field of artificial intelligence in the future, only the people’s Republic itself, and the United States have a significant role to play. “I’ll have the time then, provided that there shall be no third place, but we are in a Situation in the world, the Claims to be re-defined,” warns the Minister of economy.
At 600,000 euros is the end
China and the USA are two countries that are, however, a lot of money in technologies of the future. If you look at the funding the catalog of the transfer initiative, which must find that under the heading “funding amount” to a maximum of 600,000 euros to show up. “It’s not good enough,” explains Dominik Ewald, founder of the Start-up MonitorFish, which has developed a diagnostic System for intelligent, real-time Monitoring of aquaculture. Water quality, fish movements, growth and behavior patterns will be analyzed with the help of artificial intelligence so that Stress or diseases arise in the first place. There were prizes and funding from the Federal Ministry of Economics. But the current offers are no longer sufficient to lift the company to a new, international level.
In China, aquaculture is an important economic factor
He had offers from China and the United States, according to Ewald. Financial investments in the tens of millions are not a Problem. The Minister Altmaier know. In this area, it was still “very, very difficult, because we have a market failure in Germany.” The Paradox is that in the big Venture-Capital funds in the U.S., often also German and European capitalists to be represented. “The say the can, the know how to do that, because we put our money in, but in Germany, we will the devil do such great projects to support.”
The view over the shoulder
You had to work, so Altmaier, who is not awakened but the impression that will change in financing. The transfer initiative, therefore, relies on collaborations and mergers of several companies in the promotion of research and development projects. However, since many boards of thickness are to be drilled. Because, together, offer the competitors an insight into the Innermost of your own company, this is also not necessarily in the Tradition of the German economy.