Berlin, November 2 (Reuters) — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Monday that Germany and Europe must accelerate the development of their own artificial intelligence capabilities to safeguard their “digital sovereignty” in an era of new technological transformation.
Speaking at an AI conference in Berlin, Merz warned that as this new technology becomes integrated into the economy, nations risk ceding control to external providers.
“For this very reason, as we develop and deploy this technology, we must—at all costs—avoid becoming entirely dependent on third parties,” he said.
“That is precisely why the issue of digital sovereignty in the context of artificial intelligence has become a truly existential matter,” he stated.
He noted that adapting to this shift will require “a massive technical and organizational effort, as well as a profound modernization of our nation and economy,” and pledged to accelerate the digitalization of the economy.
“After all, our goal is to be able to produce and manage technology—from hardware to software—across the entire value chain, independently, securely, and autonomously,” he said.
When Merz took office last year, he appointed a minister for digitalization and modernization; his administration has pledged to step up efforts to close the technological gap with faster-developing European economies, such as the Netherlands and Denmark.
Germany established a national artificial intelligence strategy as early as 2018, and many German enterprises—including a number of startups—have already adopted and integrated this technology. However, critics point out that Germany has been slow to develop the digital infrastructure, skills, and domestic tech industry necessary to fully leverage artificial intelligence.
According to the Ifo Institute for Economic Research, many public administrative bodies and companies in Germany remain heavily reliant on paper-based correspondence and record-keeping, leaving them ill-prepared to take full advantage of the boom in artificial intelligence.
It points to the small scale of Germany’s high-tech sector, the low level of digitalization in public services, and a shortage of skilled labor.
Merz, who recently concluded a five-day visit to Singapore, Japan, and South Korea, highlighted Germany’s strengths in industrial engineering while noting that the country intends to seek cooperation with like-minded partners, such as Canada and France.