Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Recognizing patterns, processing language, making decisions, learning from data — artificial intelligence (AI) is the umbrella term for systems that take over tasks previously requiring human intelligence.

The subfields at a glance

Machine learning forms the foundation: algorithms that learn from data. Natural language processing makes language machine-readable — for chatbots, translation, and text analysis. Computer vision interprets images and video, for example in quality control. Generative AI creates new content through large language models.

The German AI market

EUR 9 billion market volume in 2025, 24-26% annual growth. EUR 1.6 billion in federal investment through the AI Action Plan. AI-related job postings: +139%.

37% of German companies actively use AI. The remaining 63% are evaluating, planning, struggling with data quality. Those who start now with a well-defined consulting project are six to twelve months ahead of their competition.

What the EU AI Act means

Since 2025, the EU AI Act classifies AI systems by risk: from minimal (spam filters) through limited (transparency requirements) to unacceptable (social scoring). Most enterprise applications fall under "limited risk" — transparency obligations yes, approval procedures no.