Strengthening the resilience of our economy and society: Plattform Lernende Systeme emphasises contribution of AI and digitisation
Munich, 26 May 2020
The corona pandemic poses unprecedented challenges for the economy and society. Solutions and strategies are needed to overcome the current crisis and to create a “New Normal” in the post-crisis phase. The Steering Committee of Plattform Lernende Systeme discussed the potential of digitisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in its seventh session, which was held as a web conference. Further topics were the current work priorities of the platform.
Artificial Intelligence is already providing support in the corona crisis in various ways: through systems that recognise COVID-19-specific pneumonia in computer tomography images within a few seconds. Through simulations that support decisions on sensible contact restrictions. Or through intelligent chat offers that relieve companies and authorities of the burden of answering inquiries. The technological potential of AI and digitisation must continue to be consistently exploited in order to give our economy and society the ability to adapt successfully to adverse conditions and to cope well with them in the future. In short: to increase their resilience.
This insight was shared by the members of the Steering Committee of the Learning Systems Platform. In the meeting chaired by the two co-chairs, Federal Minister of Research Anja Karliczek and acatech President Karl-Heinz Streibich, they agreed to develop a position paper. It is intended to explain to the general public in a clear and comprehensible way how we can increase the resilience of our systems with the help of AI and digitisation – whether by improving healthcare provision or simplifying citizen services.
Certified AI as a competitive factor
The meeting also discussed the results that the working groups of Plattform Lernende Systeme have already delivered on the defined priority topics 2020. How can value be created from data? How does the SME sector benefit from this – be it through increased efficiency or new revenues? Exemplary applications from very different sectors are illustrated in a vivid booklet that will be published shortly with further suggestions from the Steering Committee. The current crisis also shows when it comes to value creation: data strategy and collaboration are more important than ever in digital ecosystems.
A prerequisite for the widespread use of Artificial Intelligence is trust in the systems. The contribution that their certification can make to this and the technical, legal and ethical requirements that must be taken into account are the focus of a recently published impulse paper of the Plattform Lernende Systeme. It was preceded by a round table which brought together the most important players in this project throughout Germany and promoted a constructive exchange. A certification of secure and trustworthy AI could become an important competitive factor compared to providers from the USA or China, was the conclusion of the discussion in the Steering Committee.
The Steering Committee controls the content and strategic orientation of Plattform Lernende Systeme and provides impulses for its work. Its members from science and industry were appointed by the BMBF and represent important topics, disciplines, industries and companies of different sizes in the field of Artificial Intelligence.