The current boom in artificial intelligence is leading to a sharp increase in demand in the German market. Spending on AI software, services and related hardware is expected to rise to 6,3 billion euros this year.
This corresponds to an increase of 32 percent compared to 2022, when 4,8 billion euros were spent on artificial intelligence. The digital association Bitkom reports this based on data from the market research company IDC. “The launch of ChatGPT a year ago was an initial spark for the use of AI. ChatGPT showed many people for the first time what AI can already do today,” says Bitkom President Dr. Ralf Wintergerst. “It has never been as easy and cost-effective as it is today for companies to use AI and gain initial experience. It’s important to take advantage of this opportunity now.”
AI software
AI software accounts for the largest share of AI spending this year (4,1 billion euros), followed by AI-related services (1,3 billion euros) and hardware (0,9 billion euros). Based on current information, similarly strong growth is expected next year. In 2024, spending is expected to rise again by 30 percent to 8,2 billion euros, and in 2025 the 10 billion euro mark could even be exceeded. According to Bitkom, market development depends very much on the regulatory framework. Wintergerst: “Providers and users of AI need a secure legal framework, which is why it is right that the EU is trying to create an AI Act. However, we must be careful that, unlike the General Data Protection Regulation, the shot does not backfire. Critical AI applications belong at the center of the AI Act and not the so-called foundation models as the basic technology.”
Many people have had direct contact with artificial intelligence for the first time this year since ChatGPT became publicly available on November 30, 2022. According to a current Bitkom survey of 1.004 people in Germany aged 16 and over, 34 percent have already tried the AI chatbot. Two thirds (66 percent) believe that ChatGPT and similar applications will fundamentally change our lives.
More at Bitkom.com
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