Breakthrough in Artificial Intelligence
- One in Three Companies in Germany Now Uses AI – Almost Twice as Many as a Year Ago
- 8 in 10 Companies See AI as the Most Important Technology of the Future
- 93 Percent Prefer an AI Provider from Germany
Berlin, 15 September 2025 – Artificial intelligence (AI) has reached the broad base of the German economy in recent months. Around one in three companies (36 percent) now uses AI – almost twice as many as a year ago, when the figure stood at 20 percent. Nearly one in two companies (47 percent) is currently planning or discussing the use of AI, up from 37 percent last year. Conversely, only 17 percent say that AI is not a topic for them – down sharply from 41 percent the year before. These are the results of a representative survey of 604 companies in Germany with 20 or more employees, conducted on behalf of the digital association Bitkom. “Artificial intelligence has achieved a breakthrough in the German economy,” says Bitkom President Dr. Ralf Wintergerst. “Companies have not only recognized the potential of AI – they are using it and investing in it. This is good news for the competitiveness and future viability of the German economy.”lose
A Positive Outlook on AI Dominates
8 in 10 companies (81 percent) are now convinced that AI is the most important technology of the future (2024: 73 percent), while only 17 percent still consider it a temporary hype (2024: 26 percent). For the first time, a slight majority (51 percent) believe that companies not using AI will have no future (2024: 48 percent). Conversely, only 31 percent still say AI looks spectacular but offers no concrete benefits for their business –down from 46 percent a year ago. 83 percent now view AI as an opportunity (2024: 78 percent; 2023: 68 percent). Only 14 percent see it as a risk, and just 1 percent believe AI will have no impact on their business. Around one in four companies (24 percent) expects AI to transform their business model, while 23 percent fear it could threaten their existence. “AI offers enormous opportunities for companies of all sizes and sectors. The biggest risk is to ignore it and miss the AI train,” says Wintergerst.
29 Percent Plan to Increase AI Investments
This year, 8 percent of companies already using or planning AI intend to significantly increase their AI investments compared to 2024, and another 21 percent plan somewhat higher investments. Only 5 percent plan to reduce spending, and none intend to cut investments drastically. 60 percent will maintain their current level, while 4 percent have never invested and do not plan to do so, likely relying on free tools. “Entering AI has never been easier,” says Wintergerst. “There are numerous free tools to explore the possibilities. However, powerful and legally compliant AI tailored to a company’s specific needs and integrated into its IT systems does not come free of charge.”
AI Usage: Customer Contact and Communications Dominate
AI is primarily used in customer interactions (88 percent) and marketing and communications (57 percent). Far behind are research and development (21 percent), production processes (20 percent), controlling and accounting (17 percent), human resources (14 percent), and internal knowledge management (11 percent). AI is rarely used in management, legal/tax, or sales departments (each 5 percent) and IT departments (2 percent). About 12 percent of AI-using companies have integrated AI into their own products or services. “Many companies are still using AI selectively. As they gain experience and expertise, new application areas will open up – unlocking AI’s full potential,” says Wintergerst. Most companies use only a few AI applications: 24 percent use one, 27 percent two, 24 percent three, and only 6 percent four. Just 2 percent use five or more, while 17 percent declined to specify.
Impact on Employment: Mixed Expectations
The Impact of AI on the Labor Market Remains Difficult to Predict. At present, it is still difficult to assess how artificial intelligence (AI) will affect the labor market. The vast majority of companies in Germany (67 percent) expect no impact on the number of employees. One in five (20 percent) believes that employment levels will decrease due to AI—by an average of 7 percent. At the same time, 7 percent of companies expect the number of employees to increase, on average by 8 percent. Among companies that already use AI, 28 percent anticipate a decline in employment (by 7 percent on average), 9 percent expect an increase (by 9 percent on average), and 57 percent foresee no change in the number of jobs. Roughly one in three companies (31 percent) believes that AI will help alleviate the shortage of skilled labor in Germany. “AI will change job profiles – some will even disappear, while others, entirely new ones, will emerge,” says Dr. Ralf Wintergerst, President of Bitkom. “For the German labor market, with its challenging demographic structure and already significant shortage of skilled workers, AI represents a major opportunity. In the future, we will have more work than people to do it. We need digitalization and new technologies to ensure that our companies remain competitive and our public administrations efficient.”
AI Barriers: Legal Uncertainty, Lack of Know-how, and Staffing Shortages
The biggest obstacles to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the German economy are legal uncertainty and regulatory ambiguities (53 percent), insufficient technical know-how (53 percent), and a lack of personnel resources (51 percent). 48 percent of companies complain about the strict data protection requirements, while 39 percent fear that data could fall into the wrong hands. 38 percent cite the lack of transparency and explainability of AI results, 36 percent criticize the poor quality of outputs, and another 36 percent point to insufficient funding. 35 percent are concerned about future legal restrictions on the technology. For 31 percent of companies, a lack of employee acceptance is among the main obstacles. 24 percent say they lack sufficient data for AI use, 23 percent report no identifiable use cases, and 17 percent have ethical concerns about AI.
For 9 Out of 10 Companies, the Country of Origin of AI Providers Matters
A large majority of 88 percent of companies in Germany consider the country of origin of their AI provider to be important. Among them, 93 percent would prefer an AI solution from Germany. Far behind in preference are the United States (51 percent), Japan (43 percent), EU countries other than Germany and France (40 percent), France (38 percent), and the United Kingdom (37 percent). They are followed by South Korea (29 percent), Israel (27 percent), India (22 percent), Ukraine (19 percent), and China (18 percent). No company would consider using AI from Russia. “Companies clearly want AI providers from Germany,” says Dr. Ralf Wintergerst, President of Bitkom. “However, these providers will only succeed if they are as powerful as international competitors and can offer their solutions at competitive prices. Germany must not settle for being merely a user of AI – we need to become a provider nation.”
Majority Sees More Disadvantages Than Advantages in the AI Act
However, companies view the current AI regulation critically. 56 percent believe that the European AI Act creates more disadvantages than advantages for German businesses. 23 percent of companies expect to be affected by the AI Act as users, and 1 percent as providers. Meanwhile, 32 percent believe they are not affected, 30 percent are still assessing the impact, and 11 percent have not yet addressed the topic at all. Among the companies that expect to fall under the EU regulation, 93 percent anticipate a significant administrative burden: 49 percent expect a very high level of effort, and 44 percent a rather high one. Around one-third (37 percent) of the affected companies assume they will operate at least one high-risk AI system, 29 percent expect to operate two, 4 percent three or more, and 2 percent none. However, 29 percent were unable or unwilling to make a statement on this. “When it comes to the AI Act, we urgently need clarity for companies on how exactly it will be implemented,” says Dr. Ralf Wintergerst, President of Bitkom. “Businesses also need a dedicated national contact point to support them in ensuring AI Act compliance.”Wintergerst emphasizes that the implementation deadlines for high-risk requirements must be extended by at least two years. Without this, a lack of standards and resulting legal uncertainty could lead to an “innovation standstill in the high-risk AI sector.” He also calls for greater flexibility in applying high-risk requirements to already heavily regulated sectors such as medical devices and machinery, to avoid inconsistencies and redundancies with existing regulations.
What Companies Expect from Policymakers
Companies are calling on policymakers above all to support German AI providers (51 percent), reform the AI Act (46 percent), and improve access to data (45 percent). Around one-third of companies would prioritize promoting AI research (36 percent), investing in AI computing infrastructure (34 percent), and supporting AI adoption in public administration (31 percent). 28 percent advocate for incentives to encourage AI use in business, 17 percent for AI startup funding, and 6 percent for AI talent development. Only 8 percent believe that the government should not focus on AI at all. More than one in three companies (37 percent) even support the idea of a ten-year moratorium on AI regulation – a concept that has been discussed in the United States. “We need a comprehensive, long-term AI strategy,” says Wintergerst. “That means being much more ambitious – both in the breadth of measures and in the scale of investments.”
