The rapid progress in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) is undeniable: In just a few months, algorithmic language models have doubled their computational capabilities, becoming faster, more accurate, and more versatile. They are capable of analysing increasingly larger amounts of data, summarizing information more effectively, even acting as conversation partners, detecting abnormalities on X-rays that no human would notice, and offering themselves as copilots for all sorts of office tasks. The ability to generate photos, videos, audio, and entire books with simple commands is just one application that has garnered significant attention. Because anyone can use this AI, it has also overturned previous notions of creativity in art, music, photography, film, and journalism. Consequently, concerns about job loss are widespread, as AI could potentially take over many tasks previously performed exclusively by humans.

The EU has reacted relatively swiftly and introduced its own regulation, the AI Act, for various applications. It is now being implemented. Dangerous developments are identified, prohibited, or legally constrained, and the groundwork is laid for business models on which companies can build. This is a major success for Europe as a location for professional AI. Nonetheless, regulation cannot alleviate the risk of job losses due to AI tools. As with other technological upheavals, many positions are likely to disappear, but new ones will also be created. Historically, the German economy has always managed to turn such upheavals to its advantage and make the best of them.

However, AI threatens to bring about a shock of change far greater than any previously managed. Alongside advancements in AI, there are also dramatic breakthroughs in other sectors, each of which brings significant alterations in its own right: New tools in biotechnology allow DNA sequences to be generated practically at will. Nanotechnology and quantum computing take a giant leap forward, realizing technologies that were recently considered science fiction. Robotics is also experiencing an innovation surge, dramatically expanding its applications. When these new capabilities are combined with AI, the latter acts as a process catalyst. This accelerates changes in the working world in a way that eclipses previous "revolutions."

Moreover, some emerging economies are now entering the scene as new competitors, capable of challenging industrialized countries across all sectors – as China has done in the automotive industry. The timing is favourable, as everything is in flux, and established knowledge and experience are no longer as valuable as before. Germany still ranks in the upper third in various AI rankings. But so it once did in digitalization. And there it has carelessly relinquished its lead. Now, digitalization is still lagging behind over here. Germany cannot afford to let this happen again in the cross-cutting technology of AI. The entire location is at stake.

Whether Germany emerges as a winner in the realm of artificial intelligence hinges not solely on investments in research and businesses or regulatory measures, but also on education. This time, the Humboldtian educational ideal could work in our favour: In AI, it's not necessarily specialized skills that matter, but cross-sectional abilities. Microsoft President Brad Smith recently said that what is needed most are people who think broadly across multiple branches of knowledge: philosophy and mathematics, physics and language, computer science and social sciences. This is where we need to start and finally follow through on the rhetoric about education initiatives. Only when artificial intelligence is complemented by human intelligence can we use the great upheaval in the working world to our advantage. Everything must be put to the test – including regional authority in education. Because this time, everything is at stake.