A cheerful Konrad Adenauer (KI) welcomed our guests to the Kosmos in Berlin. In good political style, he gave the floor to our Chairman Norbert Lammert: "Möglicherweise hat niemand die Rundumkompetenz, um all die Aspekte, die mit diesem Thema sowohl technisch, politisch, sozial wie ökonomisch verbunden sind, vollends abzudecken. Genau das wollen wir aber versuchen" says Mr. Lammert, opening our AI Congress.
We asked the question: How can AI support the state and what regulatory measures are required? The needs of start-ups and young entrepreneurs were taken into account as they formulated their concerns for policy and legislation in the field of AI. In the area of security and cyber security, we deepened international perspectives on the use of AI in defense and defense as well as on threats posed by AI. In the field of education, we promoted a positive understanding of AI and developed approaches for the meaningful integration of AI in the education system.
AI as a therapist? Or rather an annoying fellow citizen?
This multi-perspective ran through the entire day and was already evident in the first panel: Dr. Rebekka Reinhard, founder of human magazine, introduced the panel with a thought experiment. She asked our Fellow Lars Zimmermann, co-founder and board member of the GovTech Campus, Jeanette Hofmann, Head of the Politics of Digitalization Research Group (WZB), and Juri Schnöller, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Cosmonauts and Kings, what ideals they ascribe to AI as a fixed entity in the future.
Lars Zimmermann painted a picture of AI as an annoying fellow citizen that we ascribe to knowing more than we do, but which can also shape discourse and therefore plays an important role. Juri Schnöller describes another aspect. He explains how the massive loss of trust in political parties, the state and the church could also be restored through AI as a kind of therapist – AI as a relationship therapist.
Where do we want to go as a society?
AI is changing how political messages are conveyed. Juri Schnöller emphasizes that the most important thing here is what image of society we have and what the socio-demographic realities are. What future we have as a society is therefore the central question for him when it comes to AI. "Während wir das Haus renovieren, sollten wir nicht vergessen, dass der Dachstuhl schon brennt." The question of who we are as a society and what our society will be like will also affect all AI issues. He appeals: We can debate a lot, but we must not forget the socio-demographic realities in Germany. Our Fellow Lars Zimmermann continues: "Bevor wir über die ganzen weichen Themen, die nicht unwichtig sind, reden, müssen wir die harten, klaren Kompetenzen im Land aufbauen, bevor wir anderen erklären, was ethisch oder moralisch besser oder schlechter ist". This results in strategic decisions that the country has not yet made. He appeals: Germany is at a strategically important point and must take action.
If we want to preserve and improve democracy, we need to restore what holds everything together at its core: Trust. Our simulation game made it possible to experience precisely that. To show that AI can be both a challenge and an opportunity for democracy and democratic processes, the setting of the game was the 2025 federal election. In the simulation game, populists developed an AI-supported disinformation campaign and the participants took on various roles in order to react to it.
The aim was to strengthen democracy with the help of AI!
Campaigns, videos and speeches were developed using AI tools to raise awareness of the use of AI in democratic processes such as elections. Julia Fleiner, Head of Online Communication at KAS, and Juri Schnöller led the simulation game.
What is AI doing to us?
Manouchehr Shamsrizi, founder, gaming expert and political consultant, raises the question: "Was – und wie – sind unserer gegenwärtige Narrative zu KI?". He brings magic into play - at least as a metaphor: "Gehen wir davon aus, KI ist Magie? Was macht sie mit uns?". He makes it clear how important it is to engage with narratives and how much they shape discourse: "Die Schwächen, Limitationen und Kosten von KI werden immer in der der Debatte lauter sein als die Chancen und Möglichkeiten. Dagegen müssen wir anhalten".
AI and cybersecurity are central ethical elements of our collective security and the protection of our freedoms
"We need to secure it from the start!", emphasized Yosi Aviram, Director of the Israeli National Cyber Directorate, who gave insights into improving cybersecurity through AI. "It's a constant battle between attacker and defender in the fast changing World of AI-powered cyber security". Stefan Saatmann, Global Coordinator of Cybersecurity Policy at Siemens AG, emphasizes: "Das Vertrauen in unser technologisches Ökosystem durch KI zu sichern, ist eine unserer Hauptprioritäten. Die eigentliche Bewährungsprobe der KI liegt in der Umsetzung". AI and cybersecurity are not just technological issues, but also key ethical elements of our collective security and the protection of our freedoms.
The discussion underlined how important the multi-perspective on the field of AI is, also in order to create a safe digital environment in which innovations can succeed.
Artificial intelligence from different perspectives - that was the aim of our AI Congress.
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3Q
Clear AI rules that do not slow Germany down
"Wir bekommen Kompetenzen nur, wenn wir Freiheiten haben und nicht nur Regulierungen" explains Ronja Kemmer (CDU), member of the German Bundestag, with regard to artificial intelligence and its rule-based use in the area of governance. Alisha Andert, LL.M., Co-Founder and Managing Director of This is Legal Design and Chair of the Board of the Legal Tech Association Germany, adds that we need a legal framework for AI applications in Germany with clarity! There should not be 80 different interpretations of the law. Parsa Marvi (SPD parliamentary group) also made it clear that we need a uniform approach when it comes to specific AI requirements for the regulation of organizations and companies within the Federal Republic of Germany and not separate interpretations in each federal state. He also identifies public administration as the area that can benefit directly from the targeted use of artificial intelligence.
AI use cases in administration
Flora Geske, CEO and co-founder of SUMM AI, discussed the role of artificial intelligence in optimizing administrative processes and its contribution to overcoming modern challenges. The use of AI technologies can save up to 90% of this expenditure. "Mit Leichter Sprache auf Knopfdruck!" Alexa Möller, COO and MD, Polyteia, reported on her pioneering collaboration with the Ministry of Education in Schleswig-Holstein, which has become a flagship project in the field of public services thanks to AI innovations. AI makes it much easier to search internal databases. In addition, the AI can answer specific queries about the reports produced, which saves time and noticeably reduces the workload of the ministry's staff.
AI and education
"In ‚Wie kann AI Bildung verbessern?‘ steckt schon gar kein ‚ob‘ mehr, nur noch ein ‚wie‘" says Matthias Graf von Kielmansegg from the Vodafone Foundation, moderator of the "AI meets Education" panel, by way of introduction. Consequently, AI is already a central component in the education sector. Diana Knodel, founder and CEO of fobizz, and Anja Tempelhoff, Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family, agreed on another point of discussion: AI offers the opportunity for prompt feedback to pupils, which is particularly important for their motivation.
Sven Schütt, CEO of the IU Group, clearly sees another advantage of using AI in the education sector: "KI ermöglicht die Hürdengrade bei Fragestellungen zu senken, was ein großes Potenzial mit sich bringt".
Interactive formats such as workshops also focused on the area of AI and education, from which four takeaways emerged:
- AI assistants can support the work of teachers, but cannot replace them.
- All results should always be checked for accuracy, which requires specialist knowledge as well as reading, questioning, factual and interpretation skills.
- Teaching about, with, through, despite and even without AI. Because AI will not disappear, let's create a world with it, together!
- Pupils can also benefit from AI assistants if they are informed about their function, opportunities and challenges.
This results in four As and a B: Educate, Try out, Accept, Get active + Accompany instead of prohibit.
AI applications
Various start-ups formulated their needs for politics in the field of AI and presented AI solutions at the same time. Charlotte Kufus, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Legalos OS, presented an innovative AI solution that not only simplifies internal communication, but also improves transparency and accessibility of legal information for all levels of the organization. Lukas Wuttke, Founder & CEO at tracebloc, emphasized that tracebloc not only offers technology, but also acts as a partner to shape the digital transformation processes in companies in a customized and sustainable way.
In a discussion on "AI in film", director, actor and author Maria Schrader and Johannes Kargerer from Produktionsallianz exchanged views. Maria Schrader's award-winning film "Ich bin dein Mensch" raises a provocative question: Is love between humans and artificial intelligence possible?
Visitors were able to gain further insights into exciting and innovative AI developments and applications at the trade fair stands of our cooperation partners.
Seeing AI as an opportunity to strengthen, empower and promote democracy and society was a particular concern for us as a foundation.
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Division Civic Education
About this series
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, its educational institutions, centres and foreign offices, offer several thousand events on various subjects each year. We provide up to date and exclusive reports on selected conferences, events and symposia at www.kas.de. In addition to a summary of the contents, you can also find additional material such as pictures, speeches, videos or audio clips.