While one looks in vain for a chair for “natural intelligence” in Germany and Austria, in addition to the 164 existing AI chairs in Germany, an additional hundred are planned for in the federal AI strategy and another hundred in Bavaria alone. As a thank you, Finnish AI founder and exiter Peter Sarlin is donating thirteen AI chairs to his home country to promote competitiveness and growth. AI is the undisputed megatrend of the moment, but opinions differ as to whether the phenomenon is a blessing or a curse. The assessments range from saving humanity in the face of global challenges to the threat of extinction. Eric Schmidt, ex-CEO of Google and Alphabet, is one of the friends of the future: “The arrival of superintelligence is the most important event in the development of humanity for 500, perhaps 1,000 years.” In the TED talk he is euphoric: “It’s unbelievable what’s going to happen.” Productivity increases of 30 percent per year are on the cards. “The economists don’t have any models for this.”
