On January 24, 2025, Prof. Dr. Stefan Wrobel, co-director at the Lamarr Institute, participated in the French-German AI Industry Executives’ Dialogue. Held at the French Embassy in Berlin, the event brought together leaders from industry, research, and politics to advance the development of a strong European AI ecosystem.
The dialogue, a critical milestone in French-German collaboration on AI, aimed to revitalize the momentum initiated by the 2019 Treaty of Aachen. This treaty and its associated roadmap laid the foundation for closer cooperation in research and digital transformation in relation to artificial intelligence. Against the backdrop of increasing geopolitical and economic challenges, the event emphasized the need for a unified strategy to ensure Europe’s technological sovereignty and competitiveness.
Key topics discussed included the strategic importance of artificial intelligence as a source of competitive advantage, the challenges posed by fragmented computing resources, and the need to harness the “data treasure” held by French and German enterprises. The discussions underscored the importance of aligning French and German capabilities to create a sustainable, trustful AI ecosystem that can compete on the global stage with the American and Chinese market.
Prof. Dr. Wrobel played a key role as a rapporteur during the executives’ roundtables, where participants engaged in discussions aimed at identifying concrete actions for an industry-led French-German AI Roadmap. The roundtables focused on two main topics: 1) the industry’s assessment of the strategic AI position in Europe and 2) priorities and proposals for a concerted action from French and German industry, innovation and research stakeholders.
The event concluded with a wrap-up by Prof. Holger Hanselka (President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft) and S.E. François Delattre (Ambassador of France to Germany). The outcomes of these deliberations will serve as a foundation for proposals to be presented at the International AI Action Summit in Paris in February 2025.
With his participation, Prof. Wrobel also reaffirmed the Lamarr Institute’s commitment to actively promote international cooperation and innovation in the field of AI. The aim of the Lamarr Institute is to contribute to Europe’s leading role in the global AI landscape and to strengthen technological sovereignty through cutting-edge research, the promotion of young talent and transfer to industry.