📋 Tender Overview
The expert commission Competition and Artificial Intelligence appointed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy has completed its work and today presented key recommendations for strengthening the AI location in Germany and Europe during its final meeting.
Federal Minister Katherina Reiche: Industrial artificial intelligence is our chance to shape the next industrial revolution from Germany. It boosts productivity creates new business models and strengthens our competitiveness. If we act decisively now Germany can become the global leader in industrial AI.
Federal Minister Dr. Karsten Wildberger: This final report is a clear mandate for me to continue our course with even more determination. We must unleash AI innovations instead of stifling them with a thicket of rules. Europe must not be the world champion in regulation while others occupy the global markets. We need more freedom for our developers. Only then can we not only research but also implement and scale sovereign AI solutions made in Germany. Now is the time for us to act ourselves.
Professor Rupprecht Podszun (Chair): It is crucial whether Germany and Europe will lead the next wave of AI innovations or whether we will slip deeper into dependence on a few powerful companies. The foundations for European AI success are there: we have outstanding research established industrial companies the European market the rule of law and democracy. What is still missing is a political focus. We as a commission say: these 20 points are what matters now.
Rolf Schumann (Chair): AI is the base technology of our time but we must not get lost in bureaucracy. The commission clearly recommends: strengthen competition instead of regulating innovation away. We need the unbureaucratic establishment of a sovereign infrastructure and easy access to data spaces especially for SMEs. With a fast track for talent and a pause on additional regulations we create the necessary space for companies. It is about bringing our industrial strengths through AI applications to the streets now.
The commission was established in October 2025 to develop practical proposals on how to secure and expand competition and innovation in the age of artificial intelligence. The background is the profound transformation of the digital economy where data computing capacities and platform structures are increasingly controlled by a few global players. Therefore the commission aimed to show ways to ensure fair competition conditions while simultaneously strengthening technological sovereignty.
In a total of five sessions the independent interdisciplinary body identified key areas of action and developed concrete recommendations. These particularly address the topics:
Infrastructure and digital sovereignty: building sovereign competitive AI infrastructure with a European focus; the state as an anchor customer for European solutions; improving location factors by lowering energy costs and reducing regulatory hurdles. Financing: further development of the Germany Fund into a long-term sovereign wealth fund German Future Capital with a total volume of about 300 billion euros for the period 2026-2035; intelligent public procurement as an investment instrument; ten percent of defense spending for AI and disruptive technologies. Data: significant simplification and centralization of data protection; establishment of high-quality open data spaces with industrial domain knowledge; priority development of a data space for health data and life sciences; massive provision of public data. Competition and (de-)regulation: consistent enforcement of the Digital Markets Act; intensification of merger control in the AI sector; promotion of open source to reduce dependencies; substantial simplifications in GDPR AI regulation and other EU digital laws; moratorium on new EU digital legislation. Talent and transfer: fast track for highly qualified professionals with a 48-hour visa guarantee; simplification of employee participation in start-ups; mandatory AI skills in schools and universities; focusing research funding on German strengths; promoting spatially clustered AI hubs; significant acceleration of spin-offs from universities.
The recommendations presented will now be incorporated into the further economic and digital policy decisions of the federal government.
In detail about the expert commission Competition and Artificial Intelligence: The expert commission provided for in the coalition agreement works voluntarily and independently. The chair of the commission is held by:
Prof. Rupprecht Podszun Professor of Competition Law University of Dusseldorf; member of the Monopolies Commission Rolf Schumann Co-CEO Schwarz Digits Chief Digital Officer of the Schwarz Group Prof. Sebastian Thrun CEO Sage AI Labs
The commission also includes the following members:
Dr. Ferri Abolhassan Board Member Deutsche Telekom CEO T-Systems Prof. Ariel Ezrachi Director Oxford Centre for Competition Law and Policy University of Oxford Deepa Gautam-Nigge Vice President Corporate Development & Investments SAP SE Prof. Axel Metzger Professor of Civil Law and Intellectual Property Law Humboldt University Berlin Cedrik Neike Board Member of Siemens AG and CEO Digital Industries Claudia Nemat Supervisory Board Member ABB former Board Member Deutsche Telekom Prof. Bjorn Ommer Chairholder LMU Munich Chief AI Officer of LMU Co-Director Bavarian AI Council Verena Pausder Chairwoman of the Federal Association of German Startups e.V. Johannes Reck CEO & Founder of GetYourGuide Deutschland GmbH Hina Schlie Supervisory Board Member/Entrepreneur Co-Founder and Co-Chair of EncourageVentures e.V. Dr. Richard Socher CEO of You.com Managing Partner of AIX Ventures Jens Wiese Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Leitmotif
In addition alongside ministry representatives the following external experts contributed their perspectives with impulse lectures to the commissions work:
Rafael Laguna de la Vera Director of S
